Every year, the men in my church have a golf tournament. It’s kind of like a boy’s day out where they get to fellowship together, and have a little friendly competition. This past year, however, one of the ladies of the church asked if she could join in, because she likes to play golf. It sparked a bit of conversation. Should we allow women to participate in the golf day, even though it’s a men’s activity? (The women have their own get-together’s as well).
This was the first time there had ever been a woman wanting to be a part of the golf day. There has never been any other women who signed up. (There aren’t any other women in the church who even know how to play golf!) It was an exception. Life is full of exceptions.
I’m a bit of an exception. (I definitely don’t like golf though). My interests set me apart from all the other ladies at church. I’m not the norm. But that’s what keeps life interesting. The thing is, to change the entire format of something for one isolated case probably isn’t the best route. What makes the most sense is treat each case individually.
Our world, however, tends to take those unique exceptions, and makes blanket rules because of them. And it’s understandable why. You don’t want anyone to feel marginalized, or left out, or unwanted. And so we tend to elevate the plight of the minority.
In some cases, that isn’t a bad idea. Very often the minority needs the support of the majority because they’re unable to stand up for themselves. That said, what happens when the majority starts taking advantage of the rules put in place because of the minorities? Well then you get exactly what we’re debating right now, and that’s abortion.
Here’s the thing about social media. It gives a voice to people who aren’t responsible enough to have a voice. It makes things worse than they actually are. It offers no accountability for the things we say or post. I live in Canada, and late-term abortion has been legal for a long time. The difference is, there was no picture that ever circulated with people smiling while signing for the bill to pass.
I don’t think social media makes us smarter. I think it just reveals how ignorant we actually are.
Did you know that rape, sexual abuse and incest are real? A disgusting, awful and despicable reality. It’s something that requires much more care, focus, and understanding. I won’t even get to the root of it all, which is a combination of being prisoners to sexual desire, lack of respect and honor for women and children, and ultimately the glorification of sex that leads us to believe we can’t live without it.
What we’re dealing with now is the fallout of the sin that has destroyed our world. I wish we could go back to the beginning and fix the actual problem, instead of trying to put a band aid on an open wound. But here we are, faced with the deplorable consequences of generations of sin.
When talking about abortion, proponents will usually point to the worst possible scenario to justify their views. They’ll cite a young girl who had been raped by her older brother and then falls pregnant. How can we possibly expect her to keep the baby? Here’s the thing. That’s an exception (a terrible one), but an exception none the less.
Those types of cases statistically happen about 1% of the time, but because it triggers such sympathy and disgust, it’s just easier to use it as an example. In such a case, I believe there needs to be a lot of care and sensitivity. I believe the church especially must step up to help. I believe there’s nothing wrong with having a conversation when it comes to something so painful and difficult.
But what about the other 99% of cases?
My nephew was born with many health complications. He is six years old, and he can’t walk or talk, or do anything for himself. My sister-in-law was given the option to terminate the pregnancy, because the doctors saw the issues early on. But she said no.
It’s not easy to care for him, but my brother and sister-in-law would never go back and make a different decision. I understand that maybe not everyone is that strong. I understand why health problems can be unnerving. I also understand that there can be health risks for the mother as well. There are a lot of situations that need to be handled gently and with care.
This isn’t easy. No one is pretending that it is. But there’s a difference between allowing there to be a conversation, offering support and sensitivity, and then making a blanket rule that decides you can kill your baby for any reason at all.
I want to see a better adoption and foster care system. I want to see more support for single mothers. I want to see financial and social aid. I want to see men held responsible for abandoning a mother and child. But it seems to be a lot easier to just “get rid of the problem”, despite the fact that it ultimately creates more problems, the least of which is the mental and physical effects it has on the woman.
This isn’t about being anti-women. I’m about as pro-women as you can get. I think the disrespect women are faced with is disgusting. But abortion isn’t an issue of women’s rights. If a woman believes she is mature enough to have sex, then she must be prepared to deal with the possible consequences of that decision.
This has become a popular talking point because of news stories, and government decisions, and thus everyone chimes in with an opinion. We need to be careful about what we say, what we support and what we take a stand for. You might not care about God’s view on the matter, but you should.
- But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and had called me through his grace. (Galatians 5:15)
- Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you. (Jeremiah 1:5)
- They mutilated their sons and daughters by fire, till the Lord, in his great anger against Israel, put them away out of his sight (2 Kings 17:17-18)
- They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons, and they shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and their daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, desecrating the land with bloodshed (Psalm 106:35, 37-38)
- There are six things which Jehovah hates. Yes, seven which are an abomination unto him: Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood. (Proverbs 6)
There are a lot of other things the church needs to speak up on. And that responsibility is on us. We can’t have recency bias, and only decide to talk about something because it’s the new flavor of the month. I understand abortion is just one issue of many. But when we’re talking about the start of a life, it sets itself apart.
We’re told that we need to fight for the rights of all people instead of just focusing on babies, but the thing is that all of them have already been given the right to be born.
Understand what battle you’re fighting. If you think banning abortion will affect your rights as a person, you’ve been misled. Once we start fighting for the rights of the unborn, human dignity will be elevated as a result. We have to start somewhere. Let’s start by choosing life.
