Writing to your sponsored child in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka
In Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, many of our local church partners work in Christian-minority contexts. We therefore ask that you keep the following guidelines in mind when writing to your sponsored child and avoid any language which could be considered by others as an attempt at conversion. This is to ensure we keep your sponsored child and their community safe.
PLEASE INCLUDE IN YOUR LETTERS:
- Phrases like, “God has a great plan for you and your family.” or “God bless you and your family.”
- Specific references to God and Jesus Personal stories – general Specific references to spiritual content.
- Personal stories and testimony. Your sponsored child is interested in you. Build a personal connection with them by sharing who’s in your family, some of your daily activities, what you do for a living and what your hobbies are.
- You can also include your own personal testimony. When talking about your own experience it’s ok to use the word Saviour and similar wording to describe the importance of Jesus in your own life.
In your letters you can also:
- Describe the qualities of Jesus (loving, hope-filled, caring etc);
- Talk about biblical values (please don’t mention specific chapters or verses);
- Talk about the fruits of the spirit- Share a parable from the Bible in a story-telling format.
PLEASE AVOID:
- Please feel free to share your own testimony but avoid phrases like, “We want you to know Jesus,” “Jesus wants you to follow him,” or “Have you accepted Christ?”
- Hopes that your sponsored child will come to know Jesus or be saved.
- Criticism of the local government. We ask sponsors to avoid any language that could be seen as negative or critical of the local government.
- Questions about specific religious practices e.g. does your family go to church?
- Explanation of certain Bible Verses that could be considered as an attempt at conversion.
Our local translators in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka will sense check your letters to give you extra reassurance. There may be times when they need to adjust your message. They will only do this if they strongly feel that the content would threaten the safety of a child or the viability of Compassion’s work there. If changes must be made, the translators will try to preserve the original intent of your language.