On being a pro-choice Christian
First and foremost I want to clear up one particular line of thought. Although I am pro-choice, I (in no, way, shape, or form) like abortion. I detest the very idea of abortion. It sickens me to think that an entire generation of babies has been killed.
However, I support abortion in cases of rape, incest, or if the mother's life is in danger. I'm a true Clintonian - I feel that abortion should be safe, legal, and rare.
How can I, as a Christian, even consider being pro-choice? Simple. I think that passing laws banning abortion is too easy. If we tore down every abortion clinic in the country it would be far too easy for Christians to continue ignoring the actual problems affecting non-Christians. Passing laws outlawing aborting a fetus won't solve the true problem.
The real problem is a lot of people still need to hear about Jesus, people who don't know Christ long desperately for love and affection. These people look for love in all the wrong places; relationships, drugs, and promiscuous sexual activity. People never find love in these pursuits. They find themselves in a worse situation than they started. It's part of man's sinful nature to engage in risky sexual situations. How should we as Christians react?
I want to see Christians react in a way that shows that we care about the teenage girl before she gets knocked up. I want us to respond in love; offering hope to the hopeless, telling people about God's love (a love which no sexual encounter can ever compare to), and God's grace.
We need to start by teaching young women to respect themselves; to empower them to tell their boyfriends NO when they are pressured to have sex. We need to understand that this is a fallen world, and people will continue to sin; abstinence-only sex education classes are not enough! We need to make condoms and birth control available; we can't expect non-Christians to act as Christians, but we can make their lives better by offering protection against disease and unwanted pregnancy. We need to create realistic alternatives to abortion for young, unwed mothers. We need Christian clinics to be the first place they turn; a place where they can be shown God's grace, offered help and assistance, and counseled through the process. We need to stop crucifying those who opt for abortion; as Christians we need to model grace and forgiveness. Screaming and protesting at abortion clinics models neither - praying for and with a scared young girl deciding if she wants an abortion evidences both.
I'm pro-choice ... but I'm also pro-life. Christ said that he came to "give life and give it abundantly." When considering the issue of abortion, I ask that we as Christians have a consistent ethic of life. That we consider both the life of the fetus, and the quality of life of the mother (Christ came to give life abundantly - that's a quality of life far better than being pregnant and scared). A girl who feels her only option is to kill the life inside of her most likely doesn't yet know our Savior. We as Christians can model Christ's love and offer her this hope that lives inside of each of us. We must not forget in our efforts to save the un-born babies that God loves the babies' mothers, too.
However, I support abortion in cases of rape, incest, or if the mother's life is in danger. I'm a true Clintonian - I feel that abortion should be safe, legal, and rare.
How can I, as a Christian, even consider being pro-choice? Simple. I think that passing laws banning abortion is too easy. If we tore down every abortion clinic in the country it would be far too easy for Christians to continue ignoring the actual problems affecting non-Christians. Passing laws outlawing aborting a fetus won't solve the true problem.
The real problem is a lot of people still need to hear about Jesus, people who don't know Christ long desperately for love and affection. These people look for love in all the wrong places; relationships, drugs, and promiscuous sexual activity. People never find love in these pursuits. They find themselves in a worse situation than they started. It's part of man's sinful nature to engage in risky sexual situations. How should we as Christians react?
I want to see Christians react in a way that shows that we care about the teenage girl before she gets knocked up. I want us to respond in love; offering hope to the hopeless, telling people about God's love (a love which no sexual encounter can ever compare to), and God's grace.
We need to start by teaching young women to respect themselves; to empower them to tell their boyfriends NO when they are pressured to have sex. We need to understand that this is a fallen world, and people will continue to sin; abstinence-only sex education classes are not enough! We need to make condoms and birth control available; we can't expect non-Christians to act as Christians, but we can make their lives better by offering protection against disease and unwanted pregnancy. We need to create realistic alternatives to abortion for young, unwed mothers. We need Christian clinics to be the first place they turn; a place where they can be shown God's grace, offered help and assistance, and counseled through the process. We need to stop crucifying those who opt for abortion; as Christians we need to model grace and forgiveness. Screaming and protesting at abortion clinics models neither - praying for and with a scared young girl deciding if she wants an abortion evidences both.
I'm pro-choice ... but I'm also pro-life. Christ said that he came to "give life and give it abundantly." When considering the issue of abortion, I ask that we as Christians have a consistent ethic of life. That we consider both the life of the fetus, and the quality of life of the mother (Christ came to give life abundantly - that's a quality of life far better than being pregnant and scared). A girl who feels her only option is to kill the life inside of her most likely doesn't yet know our Savior. We as Christians can model Christ's love and offer her this hope that lives inside of each of us. We must not forget in our efforts to save the un-born babies that God loves the babies' mothers, too.
posted by Michael Airgood at 1:19 PM
1 Comments:
Michael, thank you for putting into words my entire philosophy on abortion. When I pitch my (/"our") idea to CSA for eliminating the pro-life crosses and doing an education program instead, I plan on printing this blog and reading it to the group. Until then, I will pray for strength not to chicken out. :)
Love you! Keep writing! <3
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