Operation Christmas Child Shoe Boxes
 

Does anyone make these? It's a program run by Samaritan's Purse that sends shoe boxes packed by regular people with necessities and fun stuff to kids in need all over the world. Part of it is to spread the gospel, as the children are given a picture booklet about Jesus with the boxes and are invited to take a 12 lesson course, but don't have to. I'm not really religious but I figure, if it gives kids hope and makes them feel loved, I'm not against it. I really wanted to pack some this year but didn't get around to it. I'm excited to next year though and I plan to look for clearance and dollar-store stuff throughout the year. I even made a big list of ideas for things to pack!

I've done it before but never heard of it in a religious way before. We sent ours to Romanian Orphans each year, I liked doing it :)

Yeah we used to make them in school & I was thinking of doing one next year however now you've just told me they use it to try & shove Christianity down needy children's throats I think I'll pass & do something else.

I think a good alternative might be to make shoe box gifts for homeless shelters or other local community programs like salvation army. I thought about maybe doing that. That way it's still helping people out without the religious aspect.

Our church does this. I do two boxes a year. I include toys, gum, crayons, pencils, paper, and cleanliness stuff like soap, combs and shampoo. Helping people you won't meet is cool. And to those of us who are religious, it's not about shoving anything down anyone's throat. Letting people know about what you believe, in a positive way is about doing something that we think the central figure of our belief wanted us to do, namely, helping others. Beyond that, this isn't a religion board, so I will leave it at that.

I love these!
I made a couple in school, and I looked into making some this year but it was already past the collection deadline. Certainly next year!

I never heard of the religious angle either and we did tthem tthrough samarirans purse for years. My child's school sends it to the romanian orphans

Ive done these a couple of times, through church and school, but since i heard about the religious thing i feel a bit iffy about it. Having said that, they were very fun to do

I don't want an arguement, however since you've explained your stance, I feel I should express mine.

I wholeheartedly agree. Helping people you won't meet is cool.

However, after I read this orignal post I felt I should do some quick research considering I was connected to the world wide web. I looked on the OCC website & saw this & it sits even less well with me.



Now, why would that be? If they're distributing Christian literature with the boxes anyway? Because they supposidly want to be "sensitive to the indigenous population"? No. That just doesn't wash with me.*

A more believable explination would be because they don't want any other items of faith in there.

I feel that if they were doing what Jesus wanted, if they were really spreading the message of love thy neighbour then they would give the boxes away without the Christian literature and chance to "go hear more about Christ".

If they really, really wanted to get the message across then they would use the money spent on literature and sermons to fund things like education and medician or even sanitation facilities in the towns that they give to.

Helping others is a beautiful thing but that doesn't seem like that's all they're trying to do & that just doesn't sit well with me.

But by all means continue to do it. Don't let one person on the internet stop you doing something you love. The original poster said some good alternatives & I'll look at doing some of those.

*Apologies for the part in bold. It's not there for any particular reason. I'm having computer fail & can't bloody get rid of it. Also for the glaringly obvious spelling mistakes. I just woke up & I may or may not fix them after I've finished my coffee. However until then brain no worky.

Why would they not tell people instead of making it something people 'find out' I guess if they are a christian organization, they have a right to promote their faith, like gideons give out new testaments at school talks

I've done these before, mostly through school (which was catholic).
I think it's a nice idea. I may be wrong but I think majority of Romanian people are Christian anyway so they probably quite appreciate the booklet.

This year our taekwondo club has collected tins of food (soup, beans, etc) to give to a soup kitchen type place that feeds homeless people, and some will also go into food parcels for families that are struggling to afford much food.

Operation christmas child to my knowledge go to other places, the romanian orphans one is a different organisation. Feel free to correct me, we did romanian orphans this year and didn't have the usual operation christmas child envelopes which you have to label and put money in.

Guys I dont think the UK branch puts in any religious things as I have worked for them before and never seen it. The OP is from America where I think its done a bit differently.x

I would love to do this but there are no drop off points near where I live.

From the uk samaitan's purse website faq
I’ve heard that you put Christian literature into the shoeboxes before they are shipped. Is that true?

No. We have never put Christian literature into shoeboxes before they are shipped, nor do we ever intend to do so.

Is Christian literature sometimes distributed with the shoebox?

Yes, where appropriate we are pleased to be able to provide literature. A local church or Christian partner distributing the shoeboxes may issue a free copy of a Christian booklet, The Greatest Gift, which contains Bible stories, including an explanation of the true meaning of Christmas. No-one is obliged to take this booklet. It is given to a child with their shoebox, not inside it; the only person opening shoeboxes after UK warehouse checks are completed is the child.

I've always been interested in the idea but the same as many above, I'd not be interested if it was used for religious purposes really..

There's also the fact it's horribly inefficient. Centrally provided aid may be less personal and more utilitarian, but you get a lot more bang for your buck that way.

I think they provide aid too, this is just a way the public can get involved in donating.

I'm not really religious, but I always thought it was a lovely idea to send shoeboxes of gifts to children - whether it came with a Christianity booklet or not. Just like the OP, I believe that if it gives them hope, whether it's true or not, then it's a positive thing. It's like telling kids about the toothfairy to make them feel better about losing their teeth. (Not meaning to be disrespectful to Christianity there!)

Besides, I'm sure the main point of the operation isn't to shove any religion down the childrens' throats, but to give them a lovely gift and some cheer and happiness at Christmas time. Right?

They don't have to read the info