What does it mean to be Pro-life today?

The horrific shooting of an abortion doctor in Kansas by an antiabortion zealot is forcing us to take a look at the current state of the Pro-Life movement in our country. Both sides can look at this awful incident and wonder about all that leads to such destructive behavior.

For those who are on the Pro-Life side of the conversation it seems that we need to take a look at where we are. In many ways these are hard days for the Pro-Life movement. First, President Obama, while working towards civility and understanding from the both sides of the abortion debate is clearly working from a more left wing agenda on the issue. Some of his first actions as president were to repeal executive orders from President Bush aimed at protecting unborn life. Secondly, with the appointment of one Supreme Court Justice soon and possibly several more in the coming years, the court may be making a shift that will not help the Pro-Life cause.

So how should pro-lifers proceed through these difficult days? I think that first and foremost there needs to be some readjustment on our perspective on what it means to be pro-life. Believing in the sanctity of all human life, born or unborn, is not simply an issue in regards to abortion. It is a major component, but life is life wherever it exists. I have stated numerous times in sermons and through my writing that the church needs to focues on the unborn and the already born alike. Poverty, AIDs, and genocide are affecting more children each year than abortion. So let’s just make sure we are focusing on all sanctity of life issues that God is calling us to make a difference in.

With the changing landscape there needs to be a shift in how we are trying to accomplish the ultimate goal of lowering the number of abortions as much as possible in our country and in our world. I do not believe that Roe V. Wade will ever be overturned in our country. If it was in some way altered, it would most likely become an issue that was sent back to the states to rule on. The majority of states will most likely still legalize it. Even that happening is a huge longshot.

But, regardless of the legality of abortion, we should be working to eliminate abortions. Taking the choice from women doesn’t actually address the issue that leads most women to abortion anyways. Eliminating poverty, providing support for single moms, helping to rebuild the family, providing sex education, talking about abistenence, and helping those who need them get the means to prevent pregnancy will make a huge impact on the number of abortions in our country. To find models for this we need to look outside of our countries to ministries that operate in countries were abortions and orphans are so prevalent. Ministries in these countries are trying to change the culture around women and children to help give them life. There are no hopes of eliminating abortion in these countries so people have had to find other ways to help prevent them. These are the models we should be looking towards in our future to provide better preservation for all life.

Personally I am excited to begin partnering with a new organization called Doma that my friend Julie Clark has started. Doma is doing a lot of this kind of work in the Ukraine, Russia, and throughout Africa. Models like theirs are the kind of models we need to adopt here in the US as well. There are so many passionate and committed people who want believe in the sanctity of all life. My prayer is that we will increasingly find more effective and even more Christ honoring ways to pool our efforts and make a difference in the lives of those who have no voice for themselves.