Adopting older children?

[spiritofjoy]

For those of you who have adopted older children (3+ years old), how did you introduce or incorporate them into the Catholicness of your home and family? DH and I are planning to adopt soon, probably a child preschool to 7 or 8 years old and are looking for advice. The child will very likely have no Catholic or Christian background at all.

[OCLittleFlower]

While I'm not an adoptive parent (yet) I can say that it's very possible to introduce the Faith later with success.  I had no exposure to Catholic things between the ages of 6 months and  8 years.  And, well, here I am.

Just make it part of your lives and explain things to them, especially when they ask "what's that?"  If they are young enough to want storytime in the evening, include bible stories and lives of the saints.  I'm sure some of the parents on here can point you in the direction of good picture books for this purpose.

Also, depending on their background, they will need to be baptised, etc.  Get in touch with a good traditional priest who can perform the baptism(s) and also give you pointers in teaching them the faith.

[Scriptorium]

Hmm ... I don't have experience, but you can introduce it just like anything else. This is who we are. ("We" includes the child.) So it is just integral to his/her incorporation into the home. If you love the Faith and live it, that is just going to be apparent to the child, and inasmuch as they are attracted to your love, they are attracted to the source of it. Just breath that goodness, and the child will meld right into it. There may be humps with a child that may have had a bad background, but the principle is the same. Exude love and trust, and the child will learn that it is safe to be part of your family. The Faith should be part and parcel of this process.

[Fontevrault]

Does your child speak English?  We adopted 3 Russian children - two who are 3.5 years old and one 2 year old.  We have been teachng them little by little as they acquire English.  It seems quite natural for them to imitate us during prayer time and even anticipate saying grace before meals. 

[spiritofjoy]

Does your child speak English?  We adopted 3 Russian children - two who are 3.5 years old and one 2 year old.  We have been teachng them little by little as they acquire English.  It seems quite natural for them to imitate us during prayer time and even anticipate saying grace before meals. 

The child will probably speak English, and maybe Spanish (hey, at least they'll have an advantage learning Latin!). We're going to be adopting through our county program.

[Fontevrault]

Does your child speak English?  We adopted 3 Russian children - two who are 3.5 years old and one 2 year old.  We have been teachng them little by little as they acquire English.  It seems quite natural for them to imitate us during prayer time and even anticipate saying grace before meals. 

The child will probably speak English, and maybe Spanish (hey, at least they'll have an advantage learning Latin!). We're going to be adopting through our county program.

You will have less of a struggle then.  Our kids had a hard time understanding our bad Russian, so the first two weeks were rocky.  My best advice is to begin by bringng them into your usual prayer routine.  They will ask questions and be curious about things.  It should create some wonderful moments when they are engaged and really interested in what you have to say. 

Our kids loved the family altar from the first moment they set foot in the house and abslutely adore looking at pictures of saints.  They want to understand why all of these things are important to us.  I use these brief moments (toddlers never pay attention for long) to teach them what I can - their English is still very limited, so things are moving slowly.