Harsh and judgmental words drive people away from the pro-life movement

Live Action ^ | Sarah Terzo

[Morgana]

Pro-choice author Anne Eggebroten, edited a book entitled Abortion: My Choice, God’s Grace which tells the stories of Christian women who had abortions. The book celebrates abortion as an acceptable choice and tries to justify it based on the Bible. There is one story in particular I want to comment on.

It is a first-hand account of a pro-choice clinic escort who describes how she got involved in the pro-choice movement. I think what she said is worth considering:

My participation in the pro-choice march was motivated by boredom and restlessness as much as by a desire to be of service. I had thought about getting involved in some kind of cause, but I didn’t know which one. Having been too young in the 60s to participate in the peace movement, I look forward to attending a real political march. I didn’t attend the antichoice march held the same day because the newspaper letters to the editor with “pro-life” views seem too cold, uncaring, and judgmental; one letter even said that any woman who died from an illegal abortion deserve to die.

At the March, bombarded with pro-choice rhetoric, she embraced the pro-choice cause full heartedly:

One woman speaker at the post-March rally asked for volunteers to assist clients entering the Women’s Health Organization, the only women’s health care facility performing abortions in northeastern Indiana. First trimester abortions are performed at this clinic by an out of city physician (any local doctor doing abortions will be blackballed by the community in Fort Wayne, known as “the city of churches”). As coordinator of clinic defense, the woman arranged for escorts to help those with appointments get past the antiabortion protesters. The escorts, both men and women, were volunteers with no official connection to the clinic. From her speech, escorting sounded like an exciting kind of service: necessary, different, dangerous, and more stimulating than stuffing envelopes. As a Christian, I also felt an obligation to work for justice and equality.

She now spends her time at the clinic trying to prevent pro-lifers from reaching abortion minded women and helping them find better options. This is a sad story. This woman was obviously not educated about abortion through her church. That is a shame. This initial lack of knowledge about abortion left her wide open for conversion by the pro-choice movement. She seemed to join the pro-choice movement almost on a whim, and did not start from a position of support for abortion.

Sadly, it was the insensitive, cruel, and condemning comments from pro-lifers that drove her away from the pro-life movement. One wonders whether she could have ended up on the other side of the picket line if pro-lifers had not alienated her by their unkind and harsh words.

There is a moral to take away from this story. Pro-lifers need to be careful how we present ourselves. If we express judgment, anger, and condemnation towards those who are pro-choice and those who have had abortions, we will drive people away from the movement. Before you leave that angry, nasty comments on a pro-choice Facebook status, please think about this story and reconsider. We need to conduct ourselves in a respectful and compassionate manner, or we will drive people away from the movement and right into the pro-choicer’s arms.

Source: Anne Eggebroten, ed Abortion: My Choice, God’s Grace (Pasadena, California: New Paradigm Books, 1994) 160

[Morgana]

Actually I've read " Abortion: My Choice, God’s Grace" by Anne Eggebroten. It made me sad. There was talk of forced abortions on women done by husbands and churches the women attended. The Churches would tell the women to "obey" their husband and this meant if the husband wanted his wife to have an abortion then she must do it. Not kidding. Yet "Pro choice" women are okay with this? The "choice" was not the woman's it was her husband's. That skank of a husband ended up leaving her for another woman. The church told her it was her fault she was not a "good Christian woman".

[realcleanguy]

many people try to justify their sins.

[ifinnegan]

I’m not sure I’d take any thing in this book at face value.

[allendale]

“Harsh words” are not the equivalent of the savage tearing apart of an innocent human life. Pro choice people are simply accomplices to murder. Never trust them in any matter of consequence. If they can accommodate their conscience to savage killing of innocents, they are capable of rationalizing and doing virtually anything.

[Morgana]

Actually I can believe having known some people in the Episcopagan church.

And having done some things for a crisis pregnancy center.

The stories in this book are very quite believe able, in fact I could add to it.

[yldstrk]

Protestantism has this submit element to the wife-husband relationship, so ick.

Catholics don’t, their marriage is more a mutual vocation.

[98ZJ USMC]

Never heard of that. You will have to prove it.

[Billthedrill]

I’m not sure I know a way of sugar-coating it. Look at it. Just look at it. What are you supposed to say, that it isn’t what it is?

[Elsiejay]

I wonder what brand of Christian church would deal with a pregnant woman or with the respective roles of wives and husbands in such a manner.

I have long engaged in pro-life activities with Lutherans, Roman Catholics and other Christians, and have yet to encounter anyone offering other than support and counsel in a spirit of love to a pregnant girl or woman, irrespective of the “final choice” she might opt for.

[Zuben Elgenubi]

Let me harsh and judgemental. Abortion is murder.

[Morgana]

I don’t have to “Prove” anything. Get the book and read it for yourself.

[doc1019]

The book celebratesabortion as an acceptable choice

How sad.

[Morgana]

“I wonder what brand of Christian church would deal with a pregnant woman or with the respective roles of wives and husbands in such a manner.”

At one of our crisis pregnancy centers here in town a preacher's daughter came in and told a story of a forced abortion. She was unmarried and force to do this evil thing so as not to embarrass her father the preacher and his church. I was not told which church it was, or the girl's name. I will only tell you this. It happened in Charleston, West Virginia. I hope that preacher is reading this now. You killed your grandbaby for what?? A reputation? A baby is dead for that? These people make me sick.

[jospehm20]

Yep. Killing babies should not be described kindly.

[Viennacon]

Want others to stop murdering babies? How harsh and judgmental!!!

[hinckley buzzard]

I became active in the national right to life movement back around 1988. The first thing I learned from Wanda Franz and others was, "never judge a woman who has had an abortion, or even thought about it." The second thing I learned was from Dr John Wilke: Don't let the death cult trick you into setting the mother and baby against each other. The Pro-Life answer is, "Love both."

[Idaho_Cowboy]

It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.” Luke 17:2. I ‘spose that sounds harsh too, but not to my thinking.

[JimSEA]

Women who would choose abortion need help? Yes, most often, and it is the responsibility of anti abortion advocates to provide it. From what I’ve read, this help is often available.

[Shimmer1]

spiritual abuse, if it’s true

[GilesB]

Hard to imagine anything more “insensitive, cruel, and condemning” than killing babies.