Church Leader Sparks Baby Boom In Georgia

-THE STRAITS TIMES Friday, March 27 2009// page A23 world international

"Georgia's birthrate has increased sharply over the past year, a development many attribute to the influential head of the Georgian Orthodox Church, BBC has reported.

Two years ago, the small Caucasian nation had one of the lowest birth rates in the world. But after Patriarch Ilia II promised at the end of 2007 to personally baptise any child born to parents of more than two children, the number of babies born jumped by nearly 20 per cent last year - "a miracle", said the Georgian Orthodox Church.


In a country where 80 per cent of the population follows the Orthodox faith, the Patriarch is indeed an influential figure. Many say he is the highest authority in their lives."


There are a few things we can learn from this short excerpt of an article about an influential man.
1. We should be self-conscious
2. We should watch our words
3. We should use influence for good

We must be self conscious- As individual people part of the bigger picture in the fabric of society our actions do not go unnoticed. Even something as insignificant as a small nation's birthrate is watched closely by BBC. Everything we do and say are remembered by the people that we come into contact with consciously or unconsciously. For example if you know that a person is violent by nature you would be careful when approaching that person, but how would you know whether that person was violent by nature unless you have known that person through a different source or that you took notes of what that person was like? I want to prove that we take notes of each other to remind us that we affect the people that we directly or indirectly come into contact with.

We should watch our words- In the second paragraph the Georgian Orthodox Church said that the increase in birthrate was a miracle. what is the definition of a miracle?

mir⋅a⋅cle

/ˈmɪrəkəl/ [mir-uh-kuhl]

1.	An effect or extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a supernatural cause.

So a miracle as we can see is something that is 'supernatural'. In the case of the article, i could attribute one of the reasons of the increase in childbirth is because of Patriarch Ilia II's initiative. So what the Georgian Orthodox Church said in this instance was not right. Claiming the work of a man supernatural should be taken with discretion and wisdom. ( in the same note- not all churches are the same)


We should use influence for good- I am not about to explain what good is(morals differ from individual to individual) and how to do good. Not many people are put in positions with authority or influence. Therefore its safe to say that influence is entrusted with a select few. People in authority have leverage and can control certain elements within their circle of responsibility. In the last paragraph of the article we can see that people respect and in a way 'obey' the Patriarch. Because of the prospect of having the Patriarch's promise of giving blessing on their children the parents are motivated or "strongly encouraged" to give birth. And to take care is no easy feat, with responsibility no lesser. in this case (in my limited and narrow view), the parameters of good would be the ability of the parents of fully take care, provide for his/her needs, and to plan for his/her future. The possibility of the "giving of birth so we won't miss this opportunity" is very high because of the scarcity of such an event to baptize children. Did the Patriarch think of this when he wanted to bless kids? He could destroy the lives of kids whose parents aren't prepared for the kid but decide to bring him into the world. Be very careful of whatever or whomever you influence. You may influence someone to do the wrong thing(even with good intentions).

Report by Luke Chang