In 1984 McCain and his wife Cindy had their first child together, daughter Meghan. She was followed in 1986 by son John Sidney IV (known as "Jack"), and in 1988 by son James.
[62] In 1991, Cindy McCain brought an abandoned three-month old girl, who badly needed medical treatment for a severe
cleft palate, to the U.S. from a
Bangladeshi orphanage run by
Mother Teresa;
[63] the McCains decided to adopt her, and named her Bridget.
[64] A drawn-out adoption process began, slowed down by uncertainty over the exact fate of the girl's father,
[65] but in 1993 the adoption was ruled final.
[66] McCain then stood by his wife when she disclosed in 1994 a previous addiction to
painkillers and said that she hoped the publicity would give other drug addicts courage in their struggles.
[67] Beginning in the early 1990s, McCain began attending the 6,000-member North Phoenix Baptist Church in Arizona, part of the
Southern Baptist Convention, later saying "[I found] the message and fundamental nature more fulfilling than I did in the Episcopal church. ... They're great believers in redemption, and so am I."
[68] Nevertheless he still identified himself as
Episcopalian,
[68] and while Cindy and two of their children were baptized into the Baptist church, he was not.
[68