God's Word is Changing Gypsy Communities in Romania скачать в хорошем качестве

God's Word is Changing Gypsy Communities in Romania

Gypsies in Romania are one of the largest ethnic minority groups in our country. According to the 2011 census, they numbered more than 620 thousand people, or 3.3% of the total population. There are voices saying these figures do not reflect the reality of the situation. According to the 2013 estimates, Gypsies make up 10% of Romania's population, accounting for about 1.5 million people. Daniel Vasile: About 1,500,000 Gypsies are currently living in Romania. These are the estimates of the World Bank, the Council of Europe and the National Agency for Roma. The NIS tells us that 624,000 Roma live in Romania. There is a major difference between the two numbers. Nicole Trif-Rast: Just under 20% of families have running water, a bathroom or a toilet inside the house in the community I work in. Of course, almost half of them have a damaged roof and an earthen floor. Over the years, special programs for the integration of Gypsies have been developed and have made visible improvements. But one of the most significant tools has been the Word of God, as those who have been involved in Roma communities have observed. Ionel Țuțac: The Gypsies need the Gospel. I say this because, lately, God has given me the opportunity to plant a church among a Roma community in Măguri village. I've seen their sincere desire to know God, their passion for music, their interest in changing their lives, and their desire to invest in the next generations. Many have come to the conclusion that the Gospel has solutions to solve the problems of the Gypsy communities. Viorel Candreanu: I had the opportunity to see our Gypsy brothers... At times I found myself under the impression that God had taken His grace from other people, including our Romanian people, and gave it to the Roma brothers for this time. Once the Gospel enters Gypsy communities, there is an increasing interest for a different life and for the education of the younger generation. At the same time, social changes are taking place. Aurora Vatamaniuc: In a community where they would drink, cut each other using knives, and where people were afraid just to walk on the street, instead of three bars, three churches were built. We opened a day center there, in one of the churches in Murgeni. We work with children and adults began to change their attitude when they saw us keeping our promises, really caring about their children, and wanting to give them another chance for their future. Mihai Dumitrașcu: I am pleasantly surprised, and I think what I see today resembles very well what happened to the Jews when they came out of Egypt. I expect the change will lead to a generation that will be mature enough to tackle the difficult problems in their community, transforming the entire society. The integration of Gypsies into society can also have a significant socio-economic impact in the long run. It is estimated that, in the coming years, the retirees in Romania will outnumber the people working in the labor force. Daniel Vasile: You should know that our pensions can be paid by the Gypsies. I am saying this being aware, and as a wake-up call: 30% of the active Roma population is operating in the labor market. If we don't understand this and won't integrate the Gypsies into the labor market in the coming years, it may be that when we retire, we'll have no one to pay our pensions. More news and stories from Romania produced by Alfa Omega TV here: https://alfaomega.tv/en/news-from-rom...