>> i will send my son! we will get them together. take him, please! >> let's get them together. that would be something else. kate is a living miracle, but the real hero here is barb. she just absolutely refused to give up. if you're a parent dealing with a painful situation with your offspring, whether it's a special needs child, a rebellious teenager or an adult child who is making bad choices, you are the one that can make a difference. it takes faith, perseverance, wisdom and much prayer to bring about the best in that child, but remember, with god, all things are possible. kate is a living example of that truth. we'll see you next time. >> i would like for other people to realize that god made them the way they are for a eason, and that he will use you. if only you will let him.

>> george: today on christian world news, pope benedict xvi goes into retirement. thousands gathered to wish this popular pope farewell. such unknown, unwanted and unloved, millions of children without parents struggle to survive. but now the church in one european nation is leading the effort to save orphans. and this indian woman prayed to the hindu gods her whole life, but shi never knew peace until she got an answer she didn't expect.

pope benedict xvi bids farewell to the faithful. hello, everyone, i'm george thomas. tens of thousands gathered in the papel square on the eve of his historic resignation this week. the 85-year-old pontiff used his last message to remind catholics around the world to stay faithful to god's word. mark martin has the story. >> reporter: he was surrendered by tens of thousands of the faithful. many pressing in to catch a glimpse of their spiritual leader as he drove by on his popemobile. >> it is such a monumental time. no pope has resigned the way he has done, and it is something we have to see. >> reporter: and then he took the stage, smiling, taking it all in. the crowds responding with long-standing ovations. it was, in many ways, pope benedict xvi's moment to reminisce one last time. >> translator: on april 19, almost eight years ago, i had the certainty which has

always stayed with me, of the life of the church coming from god's word. >> reporter: 50,000 plus people came from around the world, waving flags and carrying banners saying thank you. he resigns as leader of the worlds 1.2 billion catholics. he thanked his cardinals for their support and for honoring his decision to become the first pope in 600 years to resign. >> loving the church means having the courage to make difficult choices, having always in front of us the good of the church and not ourselves. >> reporter: speculation has been rife over what prompted the pope to resign. >> i think just the kind of weight of the job on someone who is relatively frail and very old, you know, just took its toll and it was time for him to go. >> reporter: and yet benedict spoke of carrying a heavy burden during his

tenure. >> the words that have resonated in my heart have been, lord, why are you asking me? it is a great burden you placed on my shoulders, but if you ask, i will accept. >> reporter: promising never to abandon the message of the cross, benedict will become pope armeridus, and he will minus his trademark red shoes. the college of cardinals will meet this month to select a new pope. he will return to the vatican to live in a convent. >> george: thanks, mark. turning to the middle east where about 100 coptic christians have been detained in libya. heron, on line, reports that the men are accused of spreading the gospel. the coptic report says they are egyptians living in libya who were taken captive. the men reportedly have been

tortured. the coptic archbishop responsible for libya said it doesn't make sense that so many coptic christians decided to provincia prosyltize in another country. syria's 2,000-year-old christian community is being devastated by the christian war. they interviewed over 100 christian syrians in lebanon. they say malitia are driving them out because of their christian faith. one woman says her son and husband were shot in the head just because they were christians. it is the second largest in the middle east after egypt. today whole villages disappear when islamic rebels arrive. a lebanese patriarch says it is, quote,"a great exitous taking place in silence." recently cbn middle east

bureau chief chris mitchell spoke with lila about persecution about christians in syria and the middle east. >> what is your situation in syria right now, specifically for christians? >> it is very hard to tell right now. the problem is that the rebels are saying that the assad government is killing the christians, and vice versa, and nobody really can tell. they're fleeing, and they're very much caught in the cross-fire. churches have been destroyed, and there are terrible reports coming out, but it is hard to sift through them at this time. >> syria is sort of the latest example of what is happening in the arab spring. what impact has the arab spring had on christians in the middle east? >> what it has done is it has overthrown strong men, like mubarak, and soon probably assad, who kept a tight reign against islamist terrorism. but what is happening now is that in egypt, the islamists

are now in charge. the government is implicitally involved, and perhaps more. >> their churches, you say, are attacked for, i think, sometimes young christian women are kidnapped? >> yes. there are terrible stuff going on with christian women, rape and kidnapping and forced marriages. the villages are invaded and burned because of rumor of someone having an affair, a muslim man with a christian woman. honor is at stake. this just happened a few months ago in egypt. it is not just egypt. it is happening in north africa as well, and as we've seen, syria is a mess. iraq has been devastated by this. sometimes it is state-sponsored terrorism, but it is also mobs and vigilantes that are not suppressed by governments in other places. >> you say in your book this has happened before, it is a phenomenon, and it is hi historical and it has

happened several decades ago. >> the slogan, first the saturday people and then the sunday people has to do with the jews and the christians. the saying means they will remove the jews from their countries and then they will remove the christians. the jews are gone. essentially 850,000 jews were kicked out of arab lands, muslim lands, between 1948 and 1970. and i think there are less 8,000 now. and all of them put together, except for iran. but now we have the same phenomenon. we do have a voice we can use legislatively. we can go to our congressmen and say, look, somebody is on death row in iran and we need to intervene, and sometimes it works. >> lila, thanks for joining us. >> george: you can more of chris' interview with lila on his jerusalem dateline program. find the link at our cbnnews.com. coming up, seeking solutions to ukraine's orphan ep

disk. epidemic. how christians are taking action to see every orphan in the country adopted by a family. that story when we come back.

>> george: they are unknown, unwanted, and unloved. millions of orphaned children worldwide living without parental care. now churches, christian organizations, and hundreds of families in the eastern european nation of ukraine want to make a difference in the lives of the most vulnerable. to the human mind, it seems almost impossible. but spend time with the asai family and they'll soon convince you with god all things are possible. >> the moment you see an orphan's eyes, i promise it will change your life. >> george: 10 years ago, she left with a dark past. ugeni was a drug addict and h.i.v. positive. both had a radical encounter with jesus christ that

changed their lives forever. >> i began to search for god. i could see the path that i needed to go on. >> george: the couple's dream? to see their nation of ukraine without orphans. >> if someone told me years ago i would have these many children and to be married in an h.i.v. positive man, i would say it is impossible. but god burst in us something special. >> george: they became the first family in ukraine to adopt a child with h.i.v. not just one, but seven h.i.v. positive children. >> if we want to see a ukraine without orphans, christians have to be a part of the solution. >> george: and christians are answering the call. she joined hundreds of pastors and christian leaders from different parts of the globe in key, for a summit on orphan care. she leads a grassroots movement to care for ukraine's orphans.

>> god said he is the father of the fathers. which means he wants every orphan to be in a family. how is god going to do it? it is through the church. adoption and providing a home for an orphan is an intergal part of the gospel. >> george: in this is a crowd that is very serious about seeing a ukraine without orphans. sitting in the crowd, there are about 160 families that have either adopted a ukraine child are or today foster parents. he is one of them. he is a pastor, and along with his wife, they have 31 foster children. >> can all families take 31 children in like we did? no. but if this movement is to have a lasting impact, christian leaders must set an example, and they are. in the past few years, god has been moving pastors to take charge. >> the potential here is

huge because the church is engaged across denominational lines, to be a model to countries around the world how the church can make a difference to children. >> pennington is for hope for orphans, with bible-based orphan ministries. he has six children. five of whom are adopted. >> the only way to reach 140 million orphans around the world is through the church. because only the church is big enough. only the church has the power and the mandate to reach that many children in a sustained way. >> george: pastors in russia, bel belleros and others have started movements. the president of compassion international says he is moved by the pastor's dedication to the vision. >> they do it with an understand that god commits to bless orphans, and those who do bless orphans. to see an audacious vision

that these guys actually are qual tbiequalified to talk about because they're doing it. >> george: steve webber calls the movement a miracle. webber leads cbn's ukraine office which has an active "orphans' promise" out reach. >> 20 years ago, there was such a stigma against the orphan that christians would fake pregnancy by carrying a pillow before they would take an orphan. today we're preaching take the orphans home in our churches. >> george: and the public is taking note. at a nationally televised event that drew ukraine's rich and famous, they received a pride of the nation award for their heart for orphans. there was hardly a dry eye in the crowd as people stood and applauded. >> we didn't think about any awards. we simply were doing what was on our hearts to do. >> we have only god to

thank. he shows us how to love the unlovable. without him, we have no life. without him, my children have no hope. without him, the orphans of ukraine have no hope. >> george: george thomas, cbn news, key, ukraine. up next, a devout hindu seeks answers to life and joy, and finds her answer in >> george: the woman in our next story grew up in india, though rejected by her father, she worked hard to get an education and become a successful social worker. when she had problems or needs, she sought help from the gods of her hindu religion. until one day he heard a new voice telling her to go to church. >> when i was born, the astrologer told my father it is not worth raising me as his daughter.

he said it is better if you end her life now as a baby. it kind of poisoned his mind and thoughts towards me. >> reporter: rada was raised in a devout hindu family in india. she had a strained relationship with her father, one that worsened over time. >> every business failure he endured or financial loss, he blamed it on me. he became an alcoholic. and he abused us physically and verbally. >> reporter: she sought comfort and acceptance in her family's faith. >> every time i went to hindu temples and worshipped god, but when i came out of the temples, there was always a void. and that void was so strong. hopelessness was always there. >> reporter: rada turned to education in her search for purpose. she excelled in her studies. >> i did my masters in medical and psychiatric work. after i completed that, i

was given a job to work as a counsellor in a cancer hospital. >> reporter: she provided care and comfort for many of the patients. however, this only deepened the emptiness she felt in her own life. >> people were suffering, you know, young and old. some of them had asked me, what would happen to their soul once they died? i didn't have any answers. i felt really desperate. so i kind of filled my void with more education. >> reporter: rada received a scholarship to study in america, but life here seemed harder than ever. >> the culture shock was so great. i missed home, my family. i couldn't concentrate much, and my grades started going down. >> reporter: she was on the virge of losing her scholarship, but she had a greater problem. >> i had only $36 in my account, and my social security card was stamped not authorized for work. >> reporter: it was

impossible for rada to pay for her own education, and she was unable to afford a plane ticket back to india. the fear of being homeless took over. >> i was really afraid of the future. i didn't know what would happen to me in this foreign land. it was a major crises in my life. >> reporter: rada sought help from the only help she knew. >> i cried out to all of the hindu gods and go goddesis. i heard, these are man-made images. i'm a holy god. go to church and you will find me. i said no way. i rejected that. but in my desperation, when the thought was so strong i needed an answer. >> reporter: a fellow student invited her to church. >> i sat in the last seat, and i started listening to them worshipping. there was such joy in my

heart i couldn't explain it. there was peace in my heart. the pastor said that god wants to have a relationship with me. as a father/daughter relationship. all i have to do is repent for my sins, invite jesus as my lord and savior. i am a pride-filled person. i said there is no way i'm a sinner. i'm a good person. i'm a social worker. i helped hundreds of pena people in my life. >> reporter: she refused the pastor's invitation. over the next few weeks, she wrestled with these thoughts. but one night she had a vision. >> when i laid dyn an down and tried to sleep, it was like a movie, all of the things that were not right in the eyes of god. when i saw that, and if these are wrong and sinful in the eyes of god, i should ask for forgiveness. so i got on my knees at my

bed. i said, god, i ask for your forgiveness. i don't know much about jesus, but i invite him as my only lord and savior. >> reporter: the emptiness and loneliness started to disappear. >> now i have this god, a personal god, that will walk with me, that will carry me through, that will guide me and counsel me and minister to me. so the fear was taken away from me. from then onwards, miracle after miracle after miracle happened in my life. >> reporter: she received a scholarship to another university, which extended her visa. she also moved into a christian woman's home where she was mentored into a relationship with god. rada is married now with a family of her own. she has full assurance she found the true god she was looking for. >> jesus gave me the sense of security and peace and joy and hope. when you really embrace god's love, then there is no

fear and there is no loneliness. no more loneliness. and he blesses you. >> george: wherever you are in the world today, maybe you're watching this story, and there are many stories like rada's, you can find the link to them ought nnr website, cb cbews.com. we'll be back right after this.

nearly 200,000 people. in the middle of the suffering, the christian relief agency, samaritan's purse is giving people desperate food and water. they have provided more than 1.2 million litres of water, and has handed out more than 17 metric tons of food, and it has helped to prevent deadly diseases, building

latines and shelters. finally today, the african nation of mali, the fight against islamic militants is winding down, but "operation blessing" continues to feed those cout u caught up in the conflict. gary lane has more. >> reporter: cbn news joined the city in jamaco. most led the take over of the northern city of gou. they still depend on the generosity of others to help feed their children. she was pregnant when her family made the 600-mile journey from gou to tomacco. her baby was born with a hernial problem. "operation blessing" asked this doctor to examine little abdu. he says the first surgery wasn't done well. this baby has an infection and his intestine can come out again. his mom is now awaiting results from an ultrasound

test, paid for by "operation blessing." he may need another surgery. she told us, i am grateful to god and you for the high quality of beans and rice you have provided, and also for your concern for my baby. not only are refugees and victims of the war being fed and cared for, but cbn is doing what it can to help change the lives of young women. 19-year-old patama will soon graduate from the sewing school. she attends classes here because she wants a better future. she hopes to start her own sewing shop, and she wants to be a blessing to others. cbn helped this pastor begin the sewing school in 2004. 14 young women started classes back then, today more than 120 students are enrolled here. they attend classes for three years. she says without job skills, many of these young women would turn to prostitution to support their families. divorcedom