A Response to a Pro-Choice Mindset

This past week I became involved in a Facebook discussion over a link I posted. For your reference, here it is:

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/apr/09040610.html

The title is "Obama Administration Call 'With Both Sides' to Reduce Abortions Compared to Hitler's Peace Conference."

Basically, as pro-lifers know, President Obama's claim to wanting to "reduce abortions" is merely rhetoric. Actions speak louder than words, and what he has done as president so far has definitely confirmed a pro-abortion mindset.

My first question for Obama is: why merely reduce abortion? Can't we work to eliminate it altogether? He is using the government to put an end to other crises, namely the economic downfall. Why can't he put that much effort into putting an end to abortion? Another thing that puzzles me is the fact that, while Obama says he wants to reduce abortions, as president he has overturned the Mexico City policy, appointed rabidly pro-abortion representatives in his administration, and has allowed tax-payer funded embryonic stem cell research (plus other things before he became president). This is why I said "actions speak louder than words," much louder than a "peace-making" phone call.

My discussion opponent mentioned that she personally feels that birth control doesn't promote promiscuity...but what do the facts say? (And from some research I've done, the book she mentioned - "Legends, Lies and Cherished Myths of American History - probably isn't the most reliable source!) I agree that extramarital sex is not just a recent phenomenon. It's also totally true that before the 20th century, it was taboo to casually talk about it....but that's how it should be! Unfortunately, sex is not seen anymore as something that should remain within marriage, and thus is has been lowered to merely a pleasure that can be separated from its primary purpose: pro-creation. No one can deny that premarital/extramarital sex is promoted by what is on TV, in books, magazines, movies, advertisements, etc. It is not held as something sacred anymore.

Here is where contraception comes in: you can have sex and not worry about the consequences of it! Thus, people can get contraceptives and not be responsible for their actions. And therefore, it would make sense that extramarital sex is more rampant these days because people don't have to be as responsible for their actions, making promiscuity more common.

Do you know how and why the promotion of birth control came about? The founder of the Birth Control League (which later became Planned Parenthood), Margaret Sanger, began the movement, and she was a eugenicist. She believed in weeding out the "less desirable" humans, who were much of the time among the poor and the minorities. As quoted from "A Plan for Peace," Birth Control Review, April 1932, p. 106, she advocated "A stern and rigid policy of sterilization and segregation to that grade of population whose progeny is already tainted or whose inheritance is such that objectionable traits may be transmitted to offspring." This shows her racist and eugenic mindset, which many people don't know about or choose to ignore.

Another issue with the Pill, in particular, is that it doesn't just prevent fertilization from happening: it can act as an abortifacient if the egg becomes fertilized. In other words, the Pill causes abortions. In addition, if you're not open to even conceiving a child, then what happens if you accidentally get pregnant? If you have this kind of mentality, it makes it that much easier to have an abortion to "get rid of the problem." Even within marriage, becoming pregnant is often seen as a negative side effect of sex, rather than the natural outcome; and so couples turn to birth control. Contraceptives rip marriages apart. We can see this in the rising rate of divorce as contraceptives have become more and more promoted in our culture.

To address her qualms about the government promoting abstinence-only education: First of all, no one can deny the fact that abstinence works! It's the only 100% guaranteed way that you won't get pregnant or get STD's. Using birth control and condoms still put you at risk. According to the Guttmacher Institute, 54% of women who have abortions have been using a contraceptive, as compared to the 8% of women who have abortions but have NEVER used a contraceptive.

The problem with "comprehensive" sex ed is that abstinence is downplayed and contraceptives are promoted. No one can deny that contraceptives are widely promoted in schools, the media, by doctors, etc. Not knowing how to use them shouldn't be the issue. The issue is the anti-life mentality and the moral degeneration of our culture, and that will not be solved by handing out the Pill. It will only be solved by restoring the Christian heritage of America and instilling better morals in our children, which includes abstinence-only education. Natural Family Planning is an excellent method for married couples who want to work within God's will for their family size. It strengthens marriages, is 99% effective, and there is a lower divorce rate among couples who use it. Visit www.ccli.org for more information.

In conclusion, if people had more self-control and would remain abstinent when they don't want to become pregnant, there would be less abortions. Birth control makes people feel like they have control over their own lives, when really God is in control, and He is the one that gives and takes away...including life. He's the one who decides when to give life and when to take it away. It's none of our business to mess around with that. All we have to do is work within His Will. If you don't have a Christian faith, this will probably be hard or impossible to grasp. But I can assure you that if more people had this mindset, the world and our country would be a much, much better place.

Speaking of new life, Happy Easter! He is Risen, the One who gives us life! :)

Pro-Life Verses from St. Matthew

During my Lenten Bible readings, I've run across several verses in the Gospels that I feel can be applied to the pro-life outlook and work.

"Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of men; for they will deliver you up to councils, and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear testimony before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; and you will be hated by all for my name's sake." ~Matthew 10:16-22 (RSV, Catholic Edition)

The bolded words are the ones which stood out to me the most. To put this in context, this is right after Jesus chose His 12 Apostles and is sending them out to "the lost sheep of Israel" (Matt. 10:6). He is instructing them to preach His Word and heal people. I believe we can apply Jesus' instruction here to our own lives today.

We are in "the midst of wolves." Just take a look around at the American (and the world's) culture: there are attacks on life, faith, and family all around us. The pro-abortion crowd is trying desparately to stop our pro-life efforts.

Christians have been persecuted and put to death ever since Jesus founded the Catholic Church. Today it's no different, especially as we preach the Gospel of Life. For example, an African-American preacher named Walter Hoye was put in prison on March 20th for peacefully proclaiming this message, and he faces 2 years in jail. This past August, 18 pro-lifers from Maryland's Defend Life group were jailed. Being pro-life is not an easy task, and we must do our research, but when we're talking to someone about our views, we need to just trust the Holy Spirit that He will give us the right words to say.

Quite literally these days, fathers are condemning their children to death...even though they're not physically performing the abortion, they're standing by and letting their girlfriends/wives get abortions, or even coercing them into having an abortion! Fathers need to be true men and stand up for their partners and unborn children. The sentence about children putting their parents to death reminds me of euthanasia, or assisted-suicide. The elderly are being put to death just because they are a "burden" and are "worth nothing," when their children should be the ones making sure they're taken care of in a Christian way.

Finally, we all know what it's like to be hated for Jesus' sake. We've all had a friend or relative, or maybe even a perfect stranger, tell us why they think we're wrong for trying to end abortion, or that abortion is a constitutional right, or that we don't understand women's needs. We know that there are people out there working against us, such as the Feminist Majority Network, who is spreading lies about Crisis Prenancy Centers and trying to shut them down. (If you want to work against this effort, contact Students for Life of America!! www.studentsforlife.org)

It's very encouraging to read verses such as the one from Matthew, because even though being persecuted isn't fun, we know we're doing the right thing because of that.