Perhaps you’ve seen the Planned Parenthood “sting” video on youtube. If you haven’t, you should watch it now. It’s horribly disturbing.
Abortion is quite a telling element of our society. Approximately a quarter of all American pregnancies are prematurely and willfully terminated in an abortion clinic. Pregnancy in America has become, in many ways, the most unwanted “side-effect” of sexual activity. Our own president, Barack Obama, once infamously said that he wouldn’t want his daughters “punished with a baby” for having premarital sex.
Clearly we live in a culture where we desperately want sex without pregnancy. We have even created sociological constructs about sexual orientation that define us, at our very core, based on who we most enjoy having sex with. In fact, I would argue that this concept of orientation has become the definitive measure of sex rather than the natural purpose of sex, which is to propagate the human race. For many Americans, sex is about pleasure (and possibly love), but not about procreation. This seems like a rather bizarre, even anti-scientific belief. But it is pervasive.
I wonder what other cultures might have to say about this. I wonder, even, how the women of the Bible would respond to our culture’s pregnancy-phobia. What would women like Sarah, Rachel, and Hannah—all of whom knew intimately the heartbreak of barrenness—say to our 25% abortion rate? For so many today, pregnancy is a curse; it is a problem easily solved with a “medical procedure”. But these women considered themselves cursed because of their barrenness. We seek to avoid pregnancy at all costs, but they considered it their greatest joy and highest honor.
Perhaps these ancient women have something to teach us: That pregnancy is an honor and a privilege, not an unwanted side-effect of sexual pleasure or, Mr. President, a “punishment”. You may criticize me because I’m a man and have no right to speak about such things. Perhaps you’re right. But I’m trying to give voice to ancient women of great faith and hope in God, and I believe their voices are vital for today, not only to renew the soul of our culture, but also to save the lives of humans that might otherwise be discarded.
6 comments:
It really is tragic :-( Abortion breaks my heart. I feel like a lot of it comes down to how selfish our society has come. I heard of someone getting an abortion because they already had this big vacation planned and they didn't want a pregnancy to ruin it.
Thank you.
I was recently accused by a stranger of having too many children and asked in the most accusatory way possible why I would do such a thing. As if A) it is any of their business and B)I was solely responsible for over population, environmental catastrophe, and the undoing of mankind.
However, I would be seen as nothing less than evil and intolerant if I dare ask another woman why she chose to abort. Seems a little backwards to me since I am merely making choices with my body as well. I simply told him that I loved children, especially mine, and moved on knowing from the tone that he was only looking for a confrontation.
The video (YOU MUST watch the whole thing...it only gets worse towards the end) makes me sick. Abortion...it's exactly what you have called it in past posts, silent genocide.
Why the hell are we so empowered by our rights (having sex with whomever, whenever) but the effects of this, the consequences of bad choices or in some cases just the God-given miracle of pregnancy, we will do everything to avoid when it's not convenient??
I am literally sick to my stomach. We have got to continue to do our part to educate and shed light on how truly horrible abortion is...not to mention the lives of the poor woman and children in sex-trafficking.
I would never ask a woman why she chose to abort, at least not in an accusatory tone. Perhaps in the context of offering emotional support it would be OK, but even then probably not for a stranger.
Beating a person up for a mistake they've made in the past is useless. My favorite example is when as a child I asked a trusted adult for suggestions on how to treat a sunburn and was prescribed sunscreen.
The time to talk to a woman about abortion is when there's a real danger that she's considering one and hasn't been offered advice or alternative options. In an abortion there are two victims, mother and child. Before an abortion, Jesus expects us to love (agape) both... after the abortion, all that's left is for us to love (agape) the mother.
And on the topic of the video... yes it was offensive, but I found it even more offensive that the people who were actively supporting the abuse of young girls were themselves women. Am I evil for holding women to a higher standard than men when it comes to protecting children (and young girls in particular)?
You are not evil. And for the record, I would not ever ask a woman in an accusatory tone why she chose an abortion either. My statement was merely to make a point and to vent my own frustrations although I may have come across as a tad judgmental.
I also think it is important to understand that abortion is a symptom of other issues that need to be addressed. The video hits on some very key issues regarding minors, sexual abuse, etc. However, more than half of the women who get abortions are poverty stricken women in their 20s that have at least one child already, and the majority of which are Christian.
This is a problem that is way more complicated then any one of us could possibly imagine. We need to be the church.
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