Feb 18, 2012

Letter to Christians on Abortion: Put Up or Shut Up


I wonder what most churches would do if Roe v. Wade was really overturned. What would most churches do about all those unwanted babies? Would we see an up tic in sermons encouraging Christians to adopt? Would churches sponsor mass adoptions? Or pour money into a Christian-sponsored fostering systems & orphanages or set up programs to support & mentor young mothers who got knocked up by a guy who's already out of the picture? Many of these women won't want to carry the baby to term but will be forced to because abortions are now illegal.

What supports are Christians prepared to provide when Roe v. Wade has been struck down? 

I may be overstating it, but I'm willing to bet many if not most Christian anti-abortion conservatives are also "small government" advocates. Less government means it's not the government's responsibility to care for all the babies that are born because Roe v. Wade gets struck down. Some conservatives wax poetic about a utopian past (did it ever really exist?) when we looked out for each other, where we cared for others in our community. Here is the church's perfect opportunity to step in and care for the 1 million babies born every year to women who would have preferred to terminate the pregnancy.

I want to know right here and now what churches are doing to persuade women not to have abortions other than publicly shaming them or terrorizing them outside family planning clinics by keeping vigil & carrying pickets covered with photos of aborted fetuses.

Let's say hypothetically 40 percent of women who abort would keep the baby if the could afford to keep it. What would really make a difference to that woman is money & social support to help her care for her child. That is something concrete churches can do something about TODAY... churches could create cross-denominational partnerships & publicize it far & wide TODAY... financial help is something that many women who are torn up about an abortion would gladly accept. And it could make the difference in their decision.

Churches can provide monetary & social support not for the woman (many of whom would be judged harshly for not keeping her legs closed) but for the baby's well-being. Imagine churches doing something collectively to prevent abortion from a spirit of compassion & love? Jesus said the world would know you are his disciple because you love.

For Christ's sake, DO something so the millions of young women who seek abortion will have an "out." Give them the chance to go away to have the baby, know the baby would be cared for and loved if she decides she cannot keep it, and allow her to return to her place in society with the privacy of her decision protected. Or be the buffer she will need to tackle single parenthood.

Isn't there a scripture that says true religion is is to look after the widow & the orphan?

It's 2012 & I'm tired of the rhetoric. Christian anti-abortionists please put up or shut up already.

# 1) What are you prepared to do to help women decide to carry the unplanned/unwanted pregnancy to term?
# 2) How will you care for the orphans that are born?
# 3) Why aren't you doing it?
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* Full Disclosure: I'm not Catholic. I didn't research what the Catholic church offers in this area, but I'd wager they have more than other Christian denominations in this area. 

2 comments:

Robyn said...

hi-i have (tried) to answer your question on my blog.come visit

JKK said...

thank you Robin for visiting. before heading over to read your response, I'm going to thank you in advance. I trust your response was much more even tempered than my "just plain fed up" rant. Something got into me the day I wrote this...

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