“…and that it ought to be destroyed I propose to prove. I know that it means very different things to different people; but that is because evil always takes advantage of ambiguity. I know it is praised with high professions of idealism and benevolence [and] with silver tongued rhetoric. But that is because evil is always flattered, as the Furies were called “The Gracious Ones.”
I know that it numbers many disciples whose intentions are entirely innocent and humane; and who would be sincerely astonished at my describing it as I do. But that is only because evil always wins through the strength of its splendid dupes; and there has in all ages been a disastrous alliance between abnormal innocence and abnormal sin.” -Eugenics and Other Evils
It is strange to think of a time in our nation’s not so distant past when we were unapologetically a “pro-choice” country. America was pro-choice in that it supported the choice to own and enslave other human beings. Except during that time, those enslaved were not considered human beings. They were stamped as less than human, not worthy of the right to life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness. In modern society, we continue to try and arbitrarily define what life is, when it begins, and who is worthy of it. We invent new ways to deny humans their God-endowed rights when our ability to choose convenience over preserving life is threatened.
The arguments of past slave owners and those of non-slave owners that supported the right to own slaves are hauntingly similar to those of the modern day pro-choice movement. A few of these common arguments are, but are certainly not limited to:
“My body, my choice” was at one point “My property, my choice.”
“No uterus, no choice” was “No slave ownership, no choice.”
“It’s not the government’s or anyone else’s business what I do with my body” was “It’s not the government’s or anyone else’s business what I do with my property.”
“Think of the harm and restriction it does to women” was “Think of how many communities would suffer and go hungry; think about the infrastructures that would collapse without slave labor.”
“Passing laws to restrict abortion and make it illegal won’t make it go away or change anyone’s mind” was “Passing laws to restrict slavery and make it illegal won’t make it go away or change anyone’s mind.”
And probably the most common argument of today that is so eerily similar to its past predecessor is this, which is usually uttered rather timidly and half-heartedly, without much confidence or assurance- whispered with desire for appeasement and neutrality: “I think it’s probably wrong…I would never personally make that choice. But ultimately, it’s not any of my business what others are choosing to do with their ______.”
There is no sufficient argument to be made in support of a nation’s “right” to kill its own children. We know we are called to be a voice for people who are outcasts, marginalized, and forgotten. While there are many people that fall into this category and need our intervention, there is no people group in our country that is more targeted and dehumanized than unborn children.
My prayer is that more and more legislation would be passed that seeks to permanently end abortion: abolition of abortion alone. While heart beat bills and restrictions will inevitably save lives, they ultimately are not enough. It needs to end for good. The abolitionists who sought to end slavery were not satisfied with “less slavery” or “more restrictions” on slavery. They worked for and dreamed of it being gone forever. And even more so…more than just laws being passed and words written on documents- they wanted an eternal truth to become permanently written on the hearts of men and women: that all humans are made in the image of God and are to be treated as such.
I pray that more legislation continues to be passed in favor of defending unborn children. But even more so, I hope that we would be in prayer for friends, family, and neighbors for blessed conversations regarding this issue. Our aim is to get our culture to start viewing all life the way God sees it in order that it may be saved. The goal isn’t to denigrate others’ sense of morality or to condescendingly glare down from a position of superiority, and may we vehemently oppose people “on our side” that so obviously find pleasure in doing so.
May our words be seasoned with love and grace for those who differ in opinions. May what are normally hostile conversation be turned to tender-hearted moments, filled with passion for peace and understanding. May we fully trust this movement to our God and not to our own wisdom or understanding. May we pray that God’s laws would pass from tablets of stone to become pressed on the minds of our friends and neighbors- that His words would move from ink on pages to etchings on our hearts, and that Christ would be glorified as unborn life, in addition to its Creator, begins to be loved. May we actively seek to provide hopeful encouragement and be a part of tangible solutions for women in crises that need help.
And may we fall in love with God’s word more and more, which is our true moral compass and North Star. At the top of a broad list of egregious errors that the Church has committed throughout its history was its participation in slavery and its passive silence, which stood as a broad pillar that helped keep this abominable practice upright for far too long. May we flee from the same arrogance and sin that entices us to twist the scriptures into our own truth for personal convenience and comfort, and may God’s truth be rightly divided and lavished upon our hearts and upon others with boldness and love.
Abolition alone.
“The God who made the world and everything in it… himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for:
‘In him we live and move and have our being’;
as even some of your own poets have said,
‘For we are indeed his offspring.’” Acts 17:24-28
“For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.” Psalm 139:13-16
“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds.” Hebrews 10:16
THOUGHTS 