The Absence of Christ in the Christian Right: Mike Pence's Misplaced War on Planned Parenthood
Mike Pence, Image from http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0211/49609_Page2.html
Last Friday, the House passed Rep. Mike Pence’s (R-IN) amendment to strip Planned Parenthood of all federal funding. Pence has had a well-documented vendetta against this family planning and reproductive health organization — which provides services to low-income people who may otherwise not have access to health care, including cancer and STD screenings — because Planned Parenthood, in a small percentage of its overall services, legally performs abortions (WITHOUT federal funding, by the way). As his motive, Pence cites his desire to be “a persistent, respectful voice for the sanctity of life.”
Mike Pence is a self-professed Christian. In an interview with Christian Broadcast Network, Pence said, “I never lose sight of what the Lord has called me to do in my life.” But Pence has a fundamental misunderstanding of what it means to be Christian, and what the nature and character of God is, if being anti-Planned Parenthood and an anti-abortion activist are his top priorities in Congress.
To be clear, as a Christian, I understand that every life has a purpose. I believe what God says in Jeremiah 1:5: “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you,” which suggests that every life God forms, He has a plan for, before it even has a heartbeat. I do not take abortion lightly, and have no intention of validating anyone’s belief that abortion is somehow “O.K.,” — but I also do not believe any one has the right to tell a woman to carry to term a fetus created as a result of rape or incest, or in cases where the life of the mother is in danger.
What Pence and the pro-life movement have absolutely wrong is the notion that outlawing the symptoms of sin will end the sin. Banning abortion will not stop men from raping women or uncles from molesting their young nieces. It will not stop the very SMALL percentage of women who indifferently engage in risky sexual behavior with abortion as a back-up. And it certainly won’t stop fathers from abandoning their children or women from lacking the necessary financial and emotional support that it takes to raise healthy children. If Pence and Pro-lifers want to end abortion, the answer is not in defunding organizations that provide vital health services to the under-privileged. As Christians, they should know that the solution to these problems is leading the lost and lonely to Christ and allowing Him to create in them a clean heart that desires to do the will of God, one that desires to overcome the sickness within them that leads to rape and molestation and the evil that leads to abandonment and promiscuity.
As David says in Psalm 40:8 “I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” That means as Christians we are supposed to obey God because doing so makes Him happy, and subsequently, makes US happy, too. We aren’t supposed to just obey God because it is the law, because it is our duty. Yet, this is exactly what Pence and Pro-Lifers in their short-sightedness seek to do — make it a duty to obey God without the requisite heart transplant that must take place. They may reduce the number of abortions, but what quality of life are they leaving to the babies who are subsequently born? A life with dismal financial and emotional support from both parents and society as a whole. And what kind of life are they leaving the parents of those babies to? A life with no solution to heal what is broken in them that created the need for abortion in the first place. If Pence and Pro-Lifers respond that these tough answers are “not their problem,” then the lie that their Christian faith drives them will be completely exposed.
When we are confused about what to do in areas of life that have not specifically been laid out in the Bible, there is a very simply solution: look to the nature and character of God and emulate it. One Bible passage that clearly lays out who God is and what He deems important is found in Matthew 25:41-45, where He explains what will happen on Judgment Day:
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
Nowhere in this passage does it suggest that God will damn people because they didn’t stand on a corner all day with pictures of dead babies, or blow up abortion clinics, or murder doctors who provide abortions! He says He will cast away those who do not take care of people — all people! — because that’s what someone with the heart of Christ — and for Christ — would do. When you focus on meeting the needs of people, you make people curious as to what it is about you and who you know that has led you to act the way you’re acting and do what you’re doing. Your actions are your avenue to introduce people to Christ so that their lives and hearts can be fundamentally transformed. The proof of this is found in Acts 2:44-45:
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.[emphasis added]
Holy SociNaziFascism, Tea Party! But there is the road map in black and white. You want lives to change, you want hearts to change, you want people to choose not to sin, and to instead choose Christ’s way? Meet their needs. Show them that they are not alone, that they have help. Do it with kindness and love, not laws.
As Christians, our lives ought to have greater purpose than winning elections, firing up a base, or gaining notoriety and prestige. People’s souls are at stake. Christ came and died so that we might have life and have it more abundantly. That’s what pro-life ought to mean to a Christian. If that’s not what it means to Pence and other Pro-Lifers, they ought to stop shoveling dirt on the name of Christ by deceptively cloaking their self-led ambitions in Him.
Until then, we can only pray that Pence and the Pro-Life Movement have a “Come to Jesus” moment, soon.
Wow. I was literally speechless after reading this. I must respectfully disagree.
I think it is very inflammatory to say “Pence has a fundamental misunderstanding of what it means to be Christian, and what the nature and character of God is…” because he is outspokenly pro-life & a politician. Abortion is inherently a very controversial subject, regardless of where you fall in the political and religious spectrum.
In fact, who does not allow his or her faith to inform his or her political beliefs? (even atheists have faith that the world doesn’t prove God’s existence) If my Christian convictions say that God alone gives life (Psalm 139:13, Job 10:11, Job 31:13-15) and only He has the right to take it, (a la Job 1:21) who are you, or anyone else, for that matter, to suggest that I don’t understand Christianity because I am pro-life?
In Philippians 2:3-4, Paul says “Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Does “others” not include defenseless babies?
Do you really believe that the vast majority of abortions performed in this country are on women who have been raped or are victims of incest? (Or that most of the promiscuity in this world that leads to abortions stems from those things rather than sinful human nature?) Or that God doesn’t have a purpose for those lives, too? Is God not sovereign over all things? Is that not His nature and character? How many times in scripture does God use horrible circumstances of this fallen world to forge the character of believers that He raises up?
Even though anecdotal evidence doesn’t always work. I must add that a dear friend of mine has a child who is a product of rape. Despite the heinous crime committed against her & the painful situation she lived through, she loves that little girl with every fiber of her being. And she would say, and has said, as Jacob told his brothers, “What [he] meant for evil, God meant for my good.”
Has allowing abortion stopped any of those things you listed above? The fatherless children, women w/out resources raising children, etc.? Has funding Planned Parenthood? The same PP that finds it perfectly fine to “educate” and treat minor children without consent from their parents?
I’m just really confused about why I would stand idly by as thousands of innocent babies are murdered each year. I would contend that MOST are “sacrificed at the altar of convenience” rather than aborted as products of rape. Am I supposed to not support laws against homicides, robbery, etc. because all of those things flow out of the problem of sin, too?
I don’t think we have seen/will see a true Gospel-centered worldview in politics. Most politicians use Christianity as another political tactic. But that does not change my obligation to let the love of Christ control me.
Yes, Christians serve the poor and share the Gospel, while praying the Lord will change hearts. And yes, we vote our conscience on issues where culture and faith collide. Our God is both merciful and just. So should we be.
I don’t argue that allowing abortions will change people’s hearts at all. What I tried to say clearly was that outlawing behavior will 1) not stop it from happening, and 2) won’t save souls, which should be our number 1 concern as Christians. Beer is legal. I don’t drink it. Why? Because I don’t like it, don’t have a taste for it. Similarly, if we want people to stop sinning, they must not have a taste for it, they won’t do it whether it’s legal or not.
What I argue is that your friend’s sad and horrific story is not everybody’s story, and I can’t imagine telling someone who has been the victim of rape or incest that an abortion is a matter of “convenience.” What I argue is that it is a COMPLETE waste of time and resources to shut down clinics who serve the poor because THREE PERCENT of their services are for abortion, and NO federal money is used to pay for them, not to mention the JOBS that will be lost (remember those JOBS, JOBS, JOBS republicans have been hollering about? Yeah, I don’t either). Where will those people get health care if these free clinics are closed? Does that matter?
What I argue is that the decision to have and bear children is EXTREMELY personal, and just like we don’t want the government dictating how many children we can have, we shouldn’t want the government deciding what we do with our own bodies. Society will not be directly impacted by what a woman chooses to do with what’s going on inside of her, so I find abortion to be quite a different issue than murder and robbery that you mention above. Society will most likely leave that kid in our over-flowing foster care, because it doesn’t matter what kind of life the kid has, as long as they stop the initial abortion. Who cares if the kid emotionally drowns in the foster care system, or physically dies from a lack of access to adequate health care — How ridiculous! Those are the things that I find inflammatory.
What I argue is that there is a SMALL number of women who are cavalier about having an abortion, and a greater number of women who are sick about it, but lack financial and emotional support to care for children, and thus choose abortion. What I argue is if these women who haven’t been raped and who aren’t ill felt that they had the financial and emotional support necessary to raise their children, they wouldn’t turn to abortion. What I argue is that if Christ is filling the voids they are feeling, they wouldn’t be searching for validation through promiscuity, or self-harm through risky sexual behavior. There are needs in these people that we can meet, and should be a PRIORITY for us to meet for these souls.
What I argue is that Christ did not spend His life protesting against sinners, but knew with His limited time on earth that He had to draw people to Him — and chastise them for sin — through love and meeting their needs. We should do the same.
What I argue is that there are people, babies and children on this earth RIGHT NOW who have needs that need to be met, and we should focus our energy there. Just like the Mormon Church WASTED millions of dollars trying to pass the gay marriage ban when they could have used that money to serve people, I believe God is quite clear about what it is He wants us to do with our time and resources and where He wants us to put forth our energy in the scriptures I laid out above. What is most important to Him is taking care of His people. That is how the lost will be introduced to Christ, through love — not war, particularly on organizations that have saved many lives.
Our God gave us free will to choose Him, and free will to sin. Who in the WORLD are we to try to control someone else’s behavior we don’t like if God doesn’t even go that far?
As always, thanks for reading and commenting.
This piece meant a lot to me as I have been thinking a lot about my personal beliefs and their place in politics and society and the push back I get from others. I think you have made a valuable contribution to the discussion. Bonus- I agree with it!
I’m glad, Charis! I don’t think we can go wrong if we look at how Christ lived His life on earth and model our lives accordingly. I don’t think we can go wrong if we look to what God values most above all, and value and fight for those things, too.
Thanks for reading and commenting!
I see the value in your post but I must say that my experiences align with Henny’s views. I do not at all think of abortion as a “woman’s right” because it is not about her life. Once conception has taken place that child’s life takes precedence. I further believe that abortion is murder. Period. It is the ending of a human life.
As humans, we are quick to find ways to avoid the consequences of our sins. Abortion makes it all too easy to continue immoral and sinful lifestyles, as does birth control. In cases of rape and incest, we sadly overlook the circumstances that lead to such a situation. Example, a young teen is sexually molested and becomes pregnant. There is no intervention into the family, just the abortion. She often returns to the same situation, with the added guilt and confusion that comes with having had an abortion.
I agree completely that we need to focus more on preventing rape, incest and fornication. But I will never step aside and say, abortion/murder is a personal choice. God is the source of all life and I find no place in the scripture where He gives humans the choice to end it.
Further, Planned Parenthood is far from the only resources for health care for low income women. They’re just the most well represented. I’ve recently read two articles that give stats on PP and abortion in the African-American community. Of course I can’t find them now but I’ll just add this link. http://blog.adw.org/2011/02/primer-on-black-abortions/
Thanks for reading and commenting, Zhay! I agree that we overlook the circumstances that lead to the need for abortion. That is why I argue that meeting those needs through Christian love is mandatory. But I disagree that we have to put the fetus before the woman. She is not an incubator, she is a three-dimensional person with feelings, desires, and goals. Treating her as if she is an incubator is not showing her the love she needs in order to choose to carry a fetus to term, if that is your goal. Filling her with love will hopefully fill her with love for what is developing inside of her. But she cannot give love if she has none to give or doesn’t know it is to be loved.
All sins are personal choices, Zhay, so I have to disagree with you there, as well. God gave us free will to choose His way or not. John 6:37 and Ephesians 2:1-3 for example speak about our choice to remain wicked or to choose Christ. Our business is the person, not their choice to sin. We treat the person, and we let God do HIS job, which is to cure the sin.
We’ll have to agree to disagree. I just want to add that the “fetus” is a “child.” A living, breathing child. And just as we would not be okay with a “woman’s right” to murder a child once the child is outside her body, I will never be okay with murder inside the body.
But yes. It is very much God’s job to cure the sin.
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agreed. I think it makes it very easy for people to justify it by calling a child a ‘fetus’. Same way it was easy to oppress blacks because they werent “quite human”. or jews. or tutsis. I notice that when people want to make something seem easier, or justifiable…they call it by another name. So , “its not a human, its a tutsi cockroach.” Its not a baby – its a fetus. It’s only a “baby” if I’m rich enough to afford to have it or if i actually want it. Ever see a happy pregnant woman? when she rubs her belly, why does she talk about it as a “baby”. Yet the unhappy woman refers to it as a “fetus” or a “thing”. funny how language works doesn’t it?
anyhoo. my stance is decidedly PRO life. from cradle to grave. i believe in policies that protect life at conception and follow through to adulthood.i’m anti death penalty as well. in line with Jesus’ actions with the woman who committed adultery.
dcdistrict diva – you said “What I argue is that there is a SMALL number of women who are cavalier about having an abortion, and a greater number of women who are sick about it, but lack financial and emotional support to care for children, and thus choose abortion.” – If a woman decides to have a baby, but then later after the baby is born…say a few days later…realizes she lacks the financial and emotional support to care for the child…should she kill it? If you say no – then I don’t understand why you distinguish between killing the child inside the womb as opposed to killing it outside. I’m sure you’d rush to condemn any woman who killed her 1 day or 2 day or 2 month old child (no matter what her excuse was), yet you seem to be so “understanding” about a woman who “needs” to kill her child thats days or months away from being born.
i agree that a woman is not just an ‘incubator’. I dont thik we are incubators. I think we are guardians of life. sometimes, that guardianship requires grave sacrifices. But we shouldn’t make light of that role. Would you call Mary an incubator? (cuz she surely didn’t ask to get pregnant with jesus)
I’ve noticed that in our society, people who want kids are the ones who struggle the most to concieve. while people who don’t want them are the one’s who conceive. makes me wonder really. I finally realized that despite all the in vitro tricks of the trade, God won’t send a child until he’s good and ready. NOT when i think I’m good and ready. but when HE thinks so. when did we think that our wants/desires suddenly gave us the power to create/destroy life?
secondly, i love the assumptions people make about “what kind of life someone is going to live if they dont abort the baby now”. as a christian, you of all people should know that God knows what he’s doing. I’m sure my mother wanted to kil me off when she found out she was pregnant with me (teen and unwed). and yet look what I grew up to be. despite what “pro choicers” would assume about me . I lived and thrived and became a lawyer. and so did my mother.
you also say you don’t believe in telling a woman what to do about her child. If a man’s wife was killed and brutally raped, would you say the man has no right to ask that his killer be killed? yet i’m sure you’re anti death penalty as well
i want to know where you think God fits in all of this. Do you think God sends life into the earth or not?
i’m neither democrat nor republican because i find both parties to be hypocrites. democrats think killing babies is ok, but not ok to kill people who brutally rape and murder. republicans think its “christian” to kill adults for the crimes they commit, yet not christian to kill babies. NEITHER stance makes sense! Either its ok to kill. or its not. and as christians, we know its not.
Thanks for reading and commenting, Majo! The scientific reality is that there is a point where a fetus becomes a baby. At that point, it is actually illegal to have an abortion. Unless you want to outlaw masturbation or ovulation (wasted seeds and eggs), then we must acknowledge that there are periods of time where even a fertilized egg is not a baby. I do believe that a parent who doesn’t believe they can afford their kid and has no support should try to give that baby to a good home, if they want to. It could allow their kid a shot at having an exponentially greater life. But again, I’m not in the business of telling women what they should do with their bodies or their born children. God gave us all free will. Who am I to step in and take that away? Again, I think these politicians who want to regulate this are hypocritical and are overstepping their bounds, when they actually have within their grasp the legal ability to make change that would stop the need for many abortions in the first place by providing support for families and women that need it.
I have always held the stance that what a woman chooses to do with her body is her choice. I try not to have a political opinion about abortion. HOWEVER, I do have to say that I completely disagree with your stance on abortion from a CHRISTIAN perspective.
You flipped back and forth regarding the point at which life begins. You acknowledge that God says that life begins at conception, yet you then state that science indicates that life begins after a certain period in the womb. I’m confused at to which view of life you hold in esteem – God’s or man’s.
Additionally, Planned Parenthood was founded by a woman who was a staunch proponent of eugenics and ethnic cleansing. Adolf Hitler and his Nazis loved her. PP has not lost sight of its mission, which is why it lobbies so heavily for government support and remains so far entrenched in the Black community.
You are such an intelligent woman – politically, spiritually, and culturally – that I am frankly shocked that you would take such a stance. There is much evidence that PP has an ulterior motive, that God doesn’t believe in abortion, the life begins at conception; oh, and that it is NOT illegal to terminate babies (aka fetuses) into the late stages of fetal development. It just depends on the state you live in.
Also, you’ve made two major assumptions in your article and your comments back to readers: 1) that pro-life politicians desire to control the life choices of women and 2) that women do not use abortion as a way to conveniently end pregnancy caused by unprotected sex.
Many, if not, most pro-lifers understand that once a child is conceived, a woman has a responsibility to consider the life of the child above her own. Yes, the child is inside her body – that’s what God intended. However, I can’t imagine He intended for woman to decide when life ends once He begins it just because the baby is spending time in its mother’s belly. Pro-life arguments, as I understand them, are not about controlling the MOTHER (not just a woman at this point, but also a MOTHER), they are about protecting the life of a child.
Abortion for many women is used as a point of convenience. Of all of the millions of abortions that have been legally performed, do you really think that MOST of them are from rape and incest victims? Maybe YOU can’t imagine aborting a child because you had unprotected sex with someone you did not want to have a child with; however, I beg to differ. Mainly because the women that I know and I know many who have done this, have had SEVERAL abortions out of convenience (nevermind their moral compass; I’m just giving you anecdotal evidence that disputes your position). You seem to have a positively-skewed view of the motives of women. Women are just as wicked as everyone else. Trust me when I say, most abortions are done out of convenience. I’m sure there are studies somewhere to back this up.
Lastly, you made a statement in comments about outlawing masturbation, etc if we want to outlaw abortion. Um, I don’t mean to point out the obvious, but an UNFERTILIZED EGG or UNIMPLANTED SPERM is not life. It’s potential for life. There is a difference and a very clear one at that.
I think you perspective on this issue as a Christian woman is very far off-base and has no biblical foundation.
Thanks for commenting Ivy! It seems you have misunderstood my comments, so let me be more clear.1) I am not flipping back and forth between the point at which life begins. When I acknowledge that God says before I formed you in the womb I knew you, that does not conflict with the science that every fertilized egg does not attach the uterus, and even those that do, those attached eggs do not form babies. That’s just science, which I do not believe conflicts with God. Life-making elements do not always produce life.
2) I am fully aware of the history of Planned Parenthood. I am also fully aware of the benefits this organization provides many women and communities who are underprivileged. That is undisputed. It is also undisputed that Planned Parenthood’s abortion services are 1% of their total services. Do I believe that desperate women will go back to using hangers and street doctors if this is not a legal service? Yes I do. That matters to me. But as far as this being a Black issue, I certainly do not believe these congressmen are trying to save Black and brown babies, or that Black and Brown women are the main users of abortion services. I think there is a real argument to be made that these congressmen fear that White women are the ones having too many abortions and as a result is leading to a Brown majority in 2050. I think many of these congressmen fear being in the minority and I think xenophobia is a real underlying issue that should be examined when it comes to the motivation to shut down PP. Their policies and proposed legislation clearly show they could careless about protect and providing services for life outside the womb.
3) back-handed compliment! lol. thanks. And it is illegal in most states to have late term abortions when the health of the mother is not at risk. If you’d like to tell a mother that she should die so her baby can live, it’s a free country. I’m not willing to go that route.
4) You claim I made two assumptions. The first is just a fact: men outlawing abortion are actually telling women that they must have babies, irrespective of their circumstances or God-given free will. I’m at a loss as to how there can be any other conclusion. Also, you claim I said “that women do not use abortion as a way to conveniently end pregnancy caused by unprotected sex.” I never said that. I said that there are a small women who are cavalier about abortions. For many it is a difficult and heartbreaking choice that they struggle with for the rest of their life. Let’s try to not make the small number of our personal encounters equal a sample size large enough to base generalizations off of. And for the many around you who seem to be having abortions, I would pray about how God can use you in those women’s lives. How can He fill you with unconditional love and compassion for these women? What can you do to be a support to them? To let them know they are not alone and in Christ there is no condemnation?
5)To your next point about responsibility, it would be really helpful to acknowledge that we as human beings CONSISTENTLY fail our responsibility to Christ. Like Daily. HOURLY, (minutely?) so here we are again picking and choosing between the sins you can see other people doing and the sins you can keep to yourself that no one knows about but God (and so who cares! my sins in the dark!). And if the pro-life stance (politically speaking) wasn’t so ridiculously hypocritical, I’d probably count myself in that number. I’m pro-life, until the baby is born and then it is on its own! This same congress that tried to shut down PP also voted down funding to protect premature babies! This same congress wants to shut down medicare, medicaid, health care reform, ANY measure that actually helps people who can breathe on their own. Instead, they can’t wait to fry up people in execution chambers in the name of “justice.” So, sorry, I don’t buy the pro-life argument at all, and I certainly don’t consider its politics to be Christian.
6) You acknowledge that “women are just as wicked as everyone else.” I’m assuming by your name that you are included in that analysis and that is good! Acknowledge the fact that the Bible says our BEST efforts are like filthy rags! Acknowledge that Romans 6:23 tells us that the cost of sin is DEATH. We are ALL deserving of death every single day because we are ALL wicked! It is ONLY by the grace and mercy of God that we get to breathe His air! If we as Christians would only focus on the fact that, “wow! I should’ve died today, but I didn’t!” How much less judgmental would we be of others? It’s worth praying over.
7) I’ve addressed your last point in the first point: life making materials don’t always produce life, and therefore should be considered the same. Either we want to protect life making materials or we don’t. Seems pretty cut and dry to me. If you recall in Genesis 38:9-10, God killed Onan for ejaculating on the ground instead of creating heirs, and many have used that verse as reason to stop all birth control methods. I think God was more concerned with the wicked condition of Onan’s heart than the actions he used to display the condition of his heart, but I wasn’t there.
8 ) Perhaps if you had used scripture in your response as I have in this one and in my original post, your final comment might make sense to me. But, alas. Again, I think you just largely misunderstand my point, which makes me not as awesome of a writer as I thought 😛 I clearly state that abortion is a sin. But it’s THAT WOMAN’S SIN. My point in this article is how WE AS CHRISTIANS should react to someone else’s sin, and that is the way GOD reacts to YOUR OWN sin: with grace, mercy, compassion, forgiveness, and love.
The main point of my argument is that this world is wicked 1) because Christians aren’t on our job; and 2) because Christians are wicked. If you want the world to change (no wars, no killing of ANY kind, no stealing, no hate, no poverty, no destruction) WE have to get busy living out ACTS 2! Or you can point the finger at someone else’s sin. That is, after all, much easier to do.
Be blessed.
-DD