Spiritual support for Almaty’s neediest children

24-year-old Rima Ibragimova (centre), a teacher who works for a Christian missionary organisation, supervises the unloading of biblical materials for distribution to the residents of the Baganashil children's home in the hills outside Almaty, Kazakhstan. Photo: Norwegian BS/Dag Smemo (KAZ04DJ-152.JPG)

ALMATY, Kazakhstan — Small groups of excited youngsters crowd round Rima Ibragimova as she approaches the large building in the hills outside Almaty which is home to 240 children aged between three and 17. Perhaps more than almost anybody else, Rima understands how these children, who are either orphans or whose parents have lost custody of them, crave affection and praise from adults. At only 24, her own time at the Baganashil children’s home – 13 years in all – is still fresh in her memory.

Since leaving this institution at the age of 16, Rima has worked hard to convert a difficult start in life into a success story. Now a qualified teacher, she is a member of the Baptist Church and works for a Christian missionary organisation. Visiting the children’s home, a run-down building located rather incongruously in an increasingly popular residential area of the city, is part of her professional responsibilities, but it is also a great pleasure for her. She has kept in touch with life there and has watched as residents who were no more than toddlers when she left have flourished into happy, confident children. She knows that offering them spiritual support is a vital element in this process.

Three-year-old Maxim settles down for an afternoon sleep. He is one of triplets who are from South Korea and live at the Baganashil children's home in the hills outside Almaty, Kazakhstan. Photo: Norwegian BS/Dag Smemo (KAZ04DJ-146.JPG)

On each visit to the children’s home, Rima tries to assess what type of biblical materials would be most suitable for particular age groups. This time, she has teamed up with staff from the Bible Society in Kazakhstan to bring several boxes of the Society’s own Children’s Bible. As the children begin eagerly turning the pages, she seizes the opportunity to talk to them about some of the stories they find there. The children’s quick responses reveal that they are very willing to learn: indeed, it is clear that some of them are already quite familiar with the Bible.

15-year-old Ivan has lived at the Baganashil children's home in the hills outside Almaty, Kazakhstan, since he was three years old. His dream is to become a doctor. Photo: Norwegian BS/Dag Smemo (KAZ04DJ-133.JPG)

For the older children in particular, the biblical knowledge they have acquired during their years at the children’s home is a source of great comfort and encouragement as they face difficult decisions about their future. Some, like Alfira and Inessa, both 16, and 15-year-old Ivan, have dreams of acquiring professional qualifications. Perhaps not surprisingly, given that the older children are expected to assist in caring for the younger ones, both Alfira and Inessa hope to train as teachers. They all know that, whatever profession they wish to enter, they will have to find a private sponsor for their training, as no government funding is available.

Before the visitors leave, Inessa tells them how much she has enjoyed reading the Bible which Rima brought her on a previous visit.

“The Bible gives me hope for the future,” she says. “One of my favourite verses is in chapter three of John’s Gospel. It reads, ‘God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die’.” (CEV) (WR 390/6 - 02.05)