Abundant Life

As stories out of New York and Virginia have circulated in recent weeks regarding new abortion legislation, the pro-choice/pro-life debate has once again intensified.  While I cannot swing at every pitch the news cycles throw at me, I feel compelled to step into the box and take my hacks on this occasion.  So from one Christ-follower to others, here are some things I’ve been reflecting on:

1. To start with basics, the foundation of this debate is a question of what constitutes a human life. Several direct statements in Scripture of God knowing us even before forming us in the womb as well as the growing understanding of medical science increasingly endorses the view that we are dealing with far more than a mere collection of cells long before a delivery takes place.  Beyond those specifics, we serve and worship a living God in whom alone is life and who blessed the Creation with abundant life that would be fruitful and multiply.  Sin introduced death and the frustration of abundant life, so it must be said that God is pro-life and is at work to reverse death in all its forms.
2. The burden of proof lies with those who argue life begins at birth to offer a rationale for why one is not a full human at any point before birth.  The standard would have to be either location (in the womb) or viability.  Both of those are arbitrary and viability is imprecise and has implications for lives outside the womb if we are suggesting that an inability to sustain your life without assistance robs you of basic rights or renders you less than human.  Prudence at least would dictate we err on the side of a broad, rather than narrow, definition of life.
3. That said, I am uncomfortable with people simplistically labelling abortion as “murder”.  That is a broad and imprecise term and ignores that the law recognizes both degrees of murder and manslaughter when a life is taken unjustly.  It hearkens back to when candidate Trump was asked whether the mother choosing an abortion should be punished for murder and he answered affirmatively.  Pro-life advocates immediately (and appropriately) rushed to correct him.  Without equivocating on the reality of the full humanity of a life from conception we can acknowledge that the circumstances of an abortion make it a different category of crime than gunning someone down in a drive-by.
4. To be clear at this point, it is my conviction that life begins at conception and that the developing human being in a mother’s womb is not “part of her body” but is its own person with full rights over their body.  Abortion in my view is a moral wrong at any point.
5. Let me now shift from the ethics to the policy question.  I am not convinced that abortions would decrease in number dramatically if the practice were outlawed.  I also find it hard to believe that the majority of pro-choice advocates have an agenda to slaughter babies as a positive good.  I think their motives are a bit more complex and a bit less sinister than is often portrayed by their opponents.  If we are to have any meaningful discussion and debate over a policy approach to this ethical issue, it will be necessary to believe the best about those opposed to our views.  We certainly want them to believe the best about us, that we are not opposed to women’s rights or have an agenda to treat women as baby-makers chained permanently to the home.  So we must have a frank discussion about how to achieve the best possible outcome (i.e. the fewest abortions) in a less than optimal world.
6. With that in mind, the emphasis on stacking the Supreme Court to seek an overturn of Roe v. Wade has a number of challenges.  First, so far, electing pro-life presidents has done nothing to ensure a pro-life bench or at least pro-life decisions from said bench.  Second, even granting a pro-life bench, the court historically resists reversing itself and does so rarely.  Our newest “pro-life” justice’s statements on the record are ambiguous about the validity of reversing Roe.  Third, even if Roe were reversed, states like New York would be able to keep, and continue to pass, legislation allowing abortion.  Certainly some states would outlaw it, but in most of those states they have already successfully regulated most clinics out of existence anyway (see the recent case in Louisiana where there are now only 2 clinics in the state).  In other words, a high court decision would change little on the ground.
7. Additionally, I think we have to be honest that a fixation on this very serious moral issue has often led us to be a single-issue demographic in our politics whose votes can be had in exchange for rhetoric that does little, if anything, to actually fight abortion.  It leads to a weakening of our witness because it appears we do not care about other things that are equally moral in nature if not quite as urgent.  As the stewards of God’s prophetic voice in the world, we do not have license to decide which violations of God’s shalom we are to call out.  This will mean that oftentimes we will find ourselves on the outs with all of those holding power in our nation.  This is where the ancient prophets and apostles found themselves as well, so we are in good company.  If we give our allegiance to a political group based on a single issue, we have traded prophetic consistency for political expediency.  We are not ultimately called to change things, God does that.  We are called to faithfully bear witness to God’s beauty and truth, call for and model repentance when it is absent, and extend grace and forgiveness to those responsible. 
8. In that light, I greatly appreciate the following perspective shared by Alpha Center of Grand Rapids this week: 

                   “Many of you have probably heard about the law that was passed in New York
                   allowing women to choose abortion up until the birth of the child. While Alpha  
                   Grand Rapids does not exist to change laws, this is no doubt heartbreaking  
                   news. Alpha DOES exist to transform hearts through tangible support in an
                   unplanned pregnancy. We will always advocate for the unborn babies who
                   cannot speak up for themselves. We will always support women and men who
                   find themselves in an unplanned pregnancy and feel that abortion is their only
                   choice. We will always be here to share stories of the children who have been
                   saved and the families that have been changed because of a decision for life.
                   Most importantly, we will always do whatever it takes to share a message of
​                   hope and grace to a community and world that needs it.”

Applying the truth of the Gospel (that Jesus came that we might have life and have it abundantly) is rarely simple or straightforward.  It requires that we continually engage in humble self-reflection and posture ourselves to bless, pray for and love especially those most opposed to that good news.  I pray that God’s Spirit will bring revival to our world and that it would start with us.