Today the world is celebrating the safe arrival of the Royal baby. There is much fanfare, and much delight, extending beyond the UK and the Commonwealth. And with good reason – this is a truly blessed event, to learn of the birth of a future King!
A birth is the kind of good news that begs to be shared. It’s the promise of life and joy, of laughter and delight. It’s the kind of good news that deserves celebration!
So, as a fan of the Royals, I decided to give a gift in honour of this joyous occasion. While I’ve not met the new parents, I have met some of their relatives – lovely folks! – though we’re not exactly close chums. So just what does a thrifty cleric do for strangers half a world away, aside from pray?
I gave a gift of life.
It didn’t involve sending anything to the UK; it didn’t involve bunting and banners and wrapping paper. It will never sit on a shelf collecting dust, or be filed away with the thousands of other items sent by strangers.
My gift, in honour of the Royal Baby Boy, is a donation to PWRDF in support of midwife training programmes. The Royal Baby will have, and has already benefited from, some of the best opportunities: the best doctors and nurses, the cleanest hospitals, the latest and greatest medical tests and attentions as required.
But there were some 360,000 babies born today, most of them in the developing world. These are children who are just as loved as the new Royal baby, and so I believe they should also have opportunities of good health care for them and their mothers. PWRDF’s work with midwife training is established and extensive (for example see http://pwrdf.org/2012/midwives-improve-lives-for-mothers-and-children/); PWRDF is expanding it’s work in areas of maternal, newborn and child health (for example, a major symposium on this topic will be hosted by PWRDF this fall!)
I believe that these new mothers and their babies could benefit more from my small donation to PWRDF than the Royal Baby could from a tiny trinket. I believe that all of us has the opportunity to see this royal birth as an invitation to raise the standards of births around the world. I believe that my donation, inspired by (and honouring) the new Royal, will help to make the world a better place while enabling me to live out my baptismal vows. I believe that Baby Cambridge has the potential to be a positive influence on our world; I hope that our response to this birth will equally demonstrate a positive influence in the world.
I thank God for the safe delivery of the Royal Baby, and I thank God that other mothers have increasing opportunities for safe deliveries as well. After all, while not everyone will be born in privilege, everyone can be born in relative safety, and anyone can change the world for the better. We only need consider Mary’s humble, unassisted delivery of our Lord and Saviour as proof.
Care to join me in supporting the PWRDF’s midwife initiative? Go to: http://giftsformission.anglican.ca/productDetail.asp?crypt=CDhgHnBjcGc0GjVaAVA=
By PJW51 July 24, 2013 - 10:56 am
While an important event for the Royal family, I am unsure it deserved all the media coverage it got. Now how about celebrating all the other babies born Monday ?
And for the record I like the idea we have 3 heirs to the British throne alive now. That has not happened since 1894.
By Laura Marie Piotrowicz July 24, 2013 - 11:32 am
Exactly my intention. Celebrating the gift of life for all – those born into a media storm and those born into stormy circumstances. And doing my small bit to make a difference for those who need it!
By Fr. Bengry July 25, 2013 - 12:10 am
Great idea and a wonderful way to celebrate (I just rang the Church bells!) I’m going to follow your example — how do I direct my funds in the way you have? Can I specify that it is for mid-wives? Great idea! Great idea! And I’m going to see if my congregations want to do the same thing! S+
By Laura Marie Piotrowicz July 25, 2013 - 11:51 am
Thanks Shane+ for the enthusiasm! It’s easy. You can either donate through the Gifts for Mission catalogue (the link within the blog) or on the PWRDF website (pwrdf.org) and click the ‘donate button – then identify the amount of gift you’d like and write ‘midwives’ in the directions box. Alternatively, if you’re old fashioned like me, you can write a cheque and mail it to 80 Hayden Street, Toronto, ON M4Y 3G2 with “midwives” in the memo box or on an accompanying slip of paper.
Any donations without specification go to the area of greatest need – so some general funding goes to support midwife programmes as well as other maternal and child health programmes. So much good being done…