I'm seeing a lot of posts on Facebook about how outraged people are with the law that was passed in New York legalizing abortion through the full nine months of pregnancy - and again, this week, when a legislator in Virginia was questioned about her bill that would do the same there. People are angry - horrified - distraught - and I wonder why. Not "why are they reacting so negatively to the thought of a full term baby being aborted" - but why now?
Abortion has been legal "on demand" since the 1973 Supreme Court decisions Roe v Wade and Doe v Bolton. Since 1973, abortion has been legal the full nine months of pregnancy - for any reason. New York's law didn't change anything (other than to make it legal for a non-physician to provide abortion services) - and the proposed Virginia law wouldn't have changed anything, either.
There's also been a great deal of anger over what the Governor of Virginia said about this bill - he virtually condoned infanticide - allowing an aborted baby that had the misfortune of surviving the attempt on his/her life to "be comfortable" until the parents and doctors could decide what to do - to either resuscitate or allow the baby to die "comfortably." This isn't anything new, either. Late term abortions often result in an "unintended live birth" - and the policy has been to put the baby aside (like in a closet so no one has to listen to their pitiful cries for help) - and to do nothing until the baby has finally expired.
SO - my question is - why now? And - will anything change as a result of all this angst? I think people are reacting now because the pro-aborts are becoming increasingly demonstrative and vocal about how far they're willing to take this. Those of us who have been involved in the pro-life movement for awhile have heard and seen this so often that it doesn't surprise us - but for those who are more comfortable NOT knowing, it's becoming more difficult to ignore what's been going on for decades. I've seen this cycle happen before - most recently after the Planned Parenthood undercover videos were released a few years ago. People were upset - outraged - angry - for awhile. There was a lot of talk about "doing something," but we didn't see a huge uptick in the number of people who wanted to volunteer or financially support our work "in the trenches." And - sadly - the church went back to ignoring the moral decay not just around it, but that is often in its midst.
I wonder how long this latest surge of anger will last. A few more weeks? Maybe a month? And then - back to "normal" - back to letting the killing continue unchallenged and unabated? Back to voting for a political party that supports abortion at every level because they've always voted for that party? Or - will people finally say "enough" and really get involved?
Women NEED our help! The pressure to abort is often unrelenting - and is always overwhelming. Women need to know they can count on us to be there in time of need - and that takes resources - time - talent - and treasure. We can't just say that abortion is wrong - unless we're willing to walk alongside a pregnant woman who feels that abortion is her only option. Jesus expects us to be His arms/legs/hands and HEART for the broken, wounded, desperate and abandoned.
Only time will tell if this is the tipping point in the dialogue about abortion. What side will you find yourself on when the dust settles?
Abortion has been legal "on demand" since the 1973 Supreme Court decisions Roe v Wade and Doe v Bolton. Since 1973, abortion has been legal the full nine months of pregnancy - for any reason. New York's law didn't change anything (other than to make it legal for a non-physician to provide abortion services) - and the proposed Virginia law wouldn't have changed anything, either.
There's also been a great deal of anger over what the Governor of Virginia said about this bill - he virtually condoned infanticide - allowing an aborted baby that had the misfortune of surviving the attempt on his/her life to "be comfortable" until the parents and doctors could decide what to do - to either resuscitate or allow the baby to die "comfortably." This isn't anything new, either. Late term abortions often result in an "unintended live birth" - and the policy has been to put the baby aside (like in a closet so no one has to listen to their pitiful cries for help) - and to do nothing until the baby has finally expired.
SO - my question is - why now? And - will anything change as a result of all this angst? I think people are reacting now because the pro-aborts are becoming increasingly demonstrative and vocal about how far they're willing to take this. Those of us who have been involved in the pro-life movement for awhile have heard and seen this so often that it doesn't surprise us - but for those who are more comfortable NOT knowing, it's becoming more difficult to ignore what's been going on for decades. I've seen this cycle happen before - most recently after the Planned Parenthood undercover videos were released a few years ago. People were upset - outraged - angry - for awhile. There was a lot of talk about "doing something," but we didn't see a huge uptick in the number of people who wanted to volunteer or financially support our work "in the trenches." And - sadly - the church went back to ignoring the moral decay not just around it, but that is often in its midst.
I wonder how long this latest surge of anger will last. A few more weeks? Maybe a month? And then - back to "normal" - back to letting the killing continue unchallenged and unabated? Back to voting for a political party that supports abortion at every level because they've always voted for that party? Or - will people finally say "enough" and really get involved?
Women NEED our help! The pressure to abort is often unrelenting - and is always overwhelming. Women need to know they can count on us to be there in time of need - and that takes resources - time - talent - and treasure. We can't just say that abortion is wrong - unless we're willing to walk alongside a pregnant woman who feels that abortion is her only option. Jesus expects us to be His arms/legs/hands and HEART for the broken, wounded, desperate and abandoned.
Only time will tell if this is the tipping point in the dialogue about abortion. What side will you find yourself on when the dust settles?
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