Port-au-Prince, Haiti -- Ten Baptist missionaries, most from Idaho, were charged in Haiti with kidnapping children after the devastating earthquake. Group leader Laura Silsby admitted that the group hadn't obtained permission to transport kids to the Dominican Republic but insists they were "just trying to do the right thing" during a time of chaos and need.

Silsby's church had been planning to open an orphanage in Haiti, but when the quake hit on January 12, some members decided to take immediate action. "Child trafficking is exactly what we're trying to combat," Silsby said.

More problems surfaced for the missionaries when it was discovered that some of the children they took weren't orphans. Some Haitian parents said they surrendered their children because they could no longer care for them, and the missionaries promised them a better life. Jorge Puello, the missionaries' lawyer, said his clients "willingly accepted kids they knew were not orphans because the parents said they would starve otherwise."

Even if the arrested missionaries had good intentions, other aid workers say their plan was reckless. "The instinct to swoop in and rescue children may be a natural impulse, but it cannot be the solution for the tens of thousands of children left vulnerable by the Haiti earthquake," said Deb Barry of Save the Children.

Many Haitians have mixed feelings about Christian groups, needing the aid but resenting religious meddling. "These types of people believe they need to save our souls and our bodies from ourselves," said Max Beauvoir, head of the country's Voodoo Priest's Association. "We need compassion, not proselytizing now."

The Rev. Clint Henry, head of Silsby's church, said they wanted to help because of Jesus' command to take the gospel to the whole world, which "includes children."

Source: Associated Press

Discussion Questions:

• How do you feel about the missionaries' predicament? Do you think they had good intentions? If they're found guilty, what punishment do you think they deserve, and why?

• What are some of the challenges of trying to help out during a humanitarian crisis? Do emergencies make it okay to bend or break rules, even if you think you're doing the right thing? Explain. If parents gave the missionaries permission to take their children, does that let the missionaries off the hook? Why or why not?

• What must it be like to be unable to care for your own family? Would you ever be willing to surrender your children in order to give them help and hope? Why or why not?

• What are some ways that groups can help Haiti's vulnerable children without breaking the law or offending the Haitian people? What role should Christians be playing in Haiti right now?

• Is it best to keep humanitarian outreach efforts separate from attempts to spread God's Word, or are there ways to combine the two goals? If so, explain.

• When you do good deeds, do you like to link them to your faith? Do you want the people you help to know that you're a Christian? Why or why not?

• Think of a time when you've acted on impulse and later been called on the carpet: Why can our first reaction to a problem often be wrong? What are some ways to ensure that our actions are well-thought-out and appropriate but still timely?

• What is God's opinion about good intentions? Do you think he considers them, even if he isn't happy with the end result of our behavior? Explain.

Scripture links: Ruth 1:1-18; 1 Samuel 1:21-28; Matthew 6:1-4; Matthew 19:13-15; Romans 13:1-5; and 2 Corinthians 8:1-7.

Stephanie Martin is a freelance writer and editor in Colorado.