As many of you probably know I am very passionate when it comes to the abortion debate and I do not like when people claiming to be Christians undermine the issue of abortion and seem to treat abortion as a valid option for a pregnant woman. One organization that seems to treat abortion as something other than the murder of a baby is the National Care Net Organization. From here on when I reference Care Net I mean the National Organization not one specific center.
Some people may disagree with my position expressed herein but please know that I am not speaking in ignorance, I have taken a course put out by Care Net entitled "Pro-Life 101" I have read Care Net literature and I will link to a Care Net video. I also just signed up for another online course that they offer. I have written to someone from Care Net and to someone from the Pregnancy Decision Line. The man from Care Net did not answer my questions in one email and I am still waiting for a response to my recent email. The person from Pregnancy Decision Line never responded. This is not just an issue with Care Net. Too many pregnancy centers do not treat abortion as murder. We are not the only ones who have noticed the problems with the modern pro-life movement. If we truly wish to abolish abortion we must do more than take a back door approach. We must be bold in our message.
Here is a quote from Care Net in their material titled "Guidelines for Life Advocates Ten Things Not To Do When A Woman Tells You She Wants An Abortion". You can read the whole thing here.
Number 4 says: "A good Life Advocate recognizes that the pregnant woman is in a challenging situation and may be emotionally vulnerable. Manipulation is never an option. However, all of us benefit from being aware of the distinction between speaking persuasively and being manipulative. According to the Oxford Dictionary online, manipulate is defined as "to control or influence (a person or situation) cleverly, unfairly, or unscrupulously.” Effective Life Advocates avoid potentially manipulative tactics like overemphasizing abortion procedure terms, exaggerating abortion risks, or introducing words like kill or murder. Instead, remember how Christ reached out toward us in love before we knew we needed Him. It is always best to pray before it’s your turn to talk, even if its a quick silent prayer. Ask God what He wants her to hear from you. Ask Him to reveal the root cause of her decision to abort and trust that He will empower you to present the truth in the most loving and compelling way possible. Remember, according to Romans 2:4b, it is God’s kindness that leads people to repentance."
Realize it says that introducing words like kill or murder are potentially manipulative tactics. The issue with this is that abortion is murder and if you truly love the pregnant woman and her baby you will tell her the truth. Just think that if a woman has an abortion that will mean death for the baby and keep that at the forefront of your mind when talking to a pregnant woman who says that she is considering abortion. Remember to speak in love, but remember that though you can speak things out of love for a woman, she may not perceive it as love. However a person's wrong perception of what love is cannot prevent us from speaking the truth.
Part of number 9 says: "No matter how much we love someone, we cannot force anyone to do what we think is best for them. How does that transformation come about? Only through the power of the Spirit. As we behold something greater than ourselves (see the bigger picture), we are renewed. As a Life Advocate and a person she trusts, you are uniquely positioned to help her see the bigger picture. Don’t break that trust by short-circuiting the transformation process by telling her what to do. True transformation can only come from within her as God works on her heart."
I agree that a change of heart can only come about by the power of God's Spirit. However we have the duty to rescue those who are being taken away to death and to hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter. (Proverbs 24:11) Why is it wrong to tell a woman that she should not murder her baby? While we cannot force the mother to do something, we must tell her that abortion is wrong and is not an option to be considered.
In this video from Care Net "Abortion or Baby: Before You Decide" realize that they are saying that you can have an abortion OR you can have a baby. When you have an abortion it is aborting a baby. If you are pregnant you have a baby already, in most cases the woman had a choice whether or not to engage in activities that could cause the formation of a baby. A woman's right to choose ends where the baby's body begins. Whether you have an abortion or deliver the baby, there is still a baby involved.
In describing the abortion procedures they use terms such as fetus and the video seems like it could have been produced by Planned Parenthood. They say things such as that a surgical abortion "will end a pregnancy by stopping the growth of your fetus and removing it from your body." They do not use the term baby. At one point they say "body parts". They list risks of abortion but they also list challenges of parenting.
"The fetus is suctioned out." In later abortions "the Fetus has grown too large to fit through suction tubing." In later terms of pregnancy they say that it is possible for the fetus to survive outside the mother's body "The law requires that the doctor must make sure that the fetus is no longer alive before it is removed, this is done by giving an injection to stop the fetal heart before proceeding with the remainder of the surgical abortion."
At one point in the video they say "Now let's talk about having a baby" as if when an abortion takes place there is nothing happening to a baby. It merely ends a pregnancy, it is just a fetus. Not so. If a woman has an abortion she has murdered her child.
"If you choose to continue your pregnancy, your body will stay on it's natural course through the birth of your baby". See, when talking about abortion they call the child a fetus or other things but not a baby. But when talking about the decision to not have an abortion it is now a baby. The child is called different things depending on whether we are talking about murdering it or nurturing it.
I am not the only one who thinks that this video sounds like a pro-choice video. This was in the comments section of Care Net's video:
Realize people are saying that it is so nice to see a "pro-choice" video. Is Care Net actually so against abortion that they are willing to call it murder, or are they presenting it as an option so much so that people think that their video is pro-choice?
We as Christians in America must stand up and call abortion murder. We must obey the command to rescue those who are being taken away to death. We must stop treating woman who have abortions as victims but instead as murderers. We must realize that babies lives are at stake. I know that God alone can save, but we must also do as we are commanded and do our duty to be a voice for the voiceless.
Open your mouth for the mute,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
Open your mouth, judge righteously,
defend the rights of the poor and needy.
Proverbs 31:8-9
Are you willing to love your pre-born neighbor as yourself? Will the American Church sit by as babies are murdered in our nation or will we actually open our mouths, give of ourselves, and do as we are commanded?
The issue of not seeing abortion for what is truly is, does not only affect other people. I myself need to realize the full weight of what is going on. May God make us all more aware of the reality of this holocaust and may he make us warriors in this battle, both at home in prayer, and on the front lines.
Remember that while it is important for us to cry out for the protection of these precious image bearers, the primary goal is to preach the Gospel. The only way our nation can be truly changed is by people's hearts being changed by the power of the Holy Spirit. Preaching the Gospel is primary, saving babies is secondary and if someone is truly saved by God they will no longer have the desire to murder their children.
Go forth in Christ's name for the sake of His Kingdom and for the sake of your weak, defenseless, and voiceless neighbors!
With love in the Lord,
Virginia
