I am not new to discussions about abortion. I have not had an abortion, for which I am more grateful than I can express. As the saying goes, there but for the grace of God go I. I am sure as a teenager facing that decision I may very well have chosen abortion. But as I began to really 'study' the issue, I was convinced that there is no good outcome to having an abortion. A few decades ago, I was perhaps too aggressive in stating my reasons for condemning abortion. I mellowed....and abortion didn't cross my 'screen' very often, so I kind of put the issue on the back burner. That all changed last week.
I am in a small group of 8...all Christians. We have been meeting together for about 9 months, so I was shocked to hear one of them say last week that they support abortion rights. They called themselves pro-choice. I wanted to say, don't you mean, pro-death....anti-life? But I held my tongue or perhaps it might be better said, I was speechless. How does a Christian reach that conclusion?
Then today I read articles posted on a Christian blog for young adults. The 'new' arguments for abortion are very disturbing. While not denying the personhood or humanity of the fetus, they claim the fetus is the real aggressor in demanding that his or her life be supported by another, and comparing the baby to a rapist in the baby's role in 'traumatizing' their mother. Another article called the baby forming within his or her mother a parasite. I am very saddened by all of this talk of what the 'mother' is sacrificing by being 'forced' to support this parasite and intruder, with no consideration for the developing baby...what of their rights? One huge tragedy is the way abortion is encouraged as a 'cure' when it is really more devastating than a sexual rape and leaves emotional scars that haunt the mother for a lifetime unless they are 'healed' by God's mercy.
Many years ago, I led a women's Bible study. One day the discussion worked its way to the topic of abortion. "What do you think about abortion?" one young woman asked me. I answered kindly having learned a 'few' things by then, that I believed abortion to be murder with no reason to be justified, but that like all sin, abortion is well within the range of God's grace and forgiveness. The discussion ended shortly and we moved on to other topics. But one woman lingered until she was the last one there. Then she told me, "I had an abortion, but I had good reasons for it." As we talked, her story was a sad one of a non supportive family and an emotional abusive lover. "What choice did I have?" she asked me. Well, this was one of the few times in my life when I truly feel that the Holy Spirit took over my mouth and my heart. I told her again that abortion is murder, that to ever move past her decision to have an abortion, she needed to admit that to herself and to God, that God was eager to forgive her of this sin and to heal her hurting heart. I then prayed for her and she left. I wasn't sure what would come of that discussion, but it was the beginning of God's work of healing in her life. In the years since we have often discussed again how that conversation was the catalyst for her to seek and FIND God's forgiveness and peace.
One of the articles I read today centered around David Readon's book, "Aborted Women, Silent No More". One quote expresses a belief of mine that I have voiced to others in the past.... "...before the abortion, Christ condemns it and Satan makes excuses for it. After the abortion, Satan is the one condemning it while Christ forgives it." This has been my method of dealing with the topic for several years now....do all I can to prevent abortion, but once it has occurred do all I can to show God's love, forgiveness and mercy to the woman who had the abortion.
The worldview of a mother's 'rights' superceding all other considerations is so evasive. What are we to do?
Here are links to two of the articles I read today:
http://www.boundless.org/2001/regulars/kaufman/a0000567.html
http://www.boundless.org/regulars/kaufman/a0000848.html
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