Quick thoughts on today’s Supreme Court decision striking down abortion restrictions (requiring doctors to have admitting privileges at nearby hospital):
- First and foremost I’m saddened by the result of this ruling. As someone strongly pro-life, I want every baby given an equal chance at life, and I believe that should be legally guaranteed.
- Many pro life states have tried to place restrictions on abortion that will pass judicial scrutiny while the pro life movement hopes for the eventual reversal of Roe v. Wade. This tactic has achieved varying levels of success, depending on the situation. This decision is a significant blow to those efforts.
- This is a reminder for us as Christians that we can’t place our faith or hope in government and earthy powers. Those will fail.
- At the same time this 5-4 decision lends credibility to the view that the Supreme Court should be the key deciding factor in how our votes for President should be cast in November.
I’ve got no universal answer today on how we balance #3 and #4 – and I’m certainly not telling you how that applies to your decision in November. But it certainly seems to be a factor that needs to be included in the discussion.
More than anything I hope you’ll mourn with me for the lives of millions of children who should have been our neighbors, friends, and family but were never given the chance. Let’s build a better world and nation together.
As an adoptive mom you can guess I am strongly, even rabidly, pro life! At all stages, which means I oppose abortion, and also equally strongly hold to wearing a mask and social distancing rather than risk killing someone else unintentionally. So yeah, I would happily were I Queen for a Day make no abortions and everyone masking and distancing hard in stone laws. However, I also realize that would not really change things, as people seem theologically speaking hell bent on rebelling against any and all laws. So rather than focusing on changing the laws, maybe we should spend… Read more »
Sarah, first I want to say thanks for living out your pro-life convictions through adoption. That’s amazing. As for your question on evangelism my view is that we don’t have to choose one or the other. Finding the right balance may be tricky but I think God is pleased with evangelism, personal one-on-one ministry to those considering abortion, AND working legislatively to see abortion end.
Agreed. Brent.
110% agree Brent. Great comment!
Sarah,
I too am an adoptive Dad – and also “rabidly pro life”.
Thanks for putting feet to your objection to abortion by offering a safe and loving home to children!
And – agreed – Mask up, peeps!
Anyone who is surprised that John Roberts ruled this way was not paying attention at his confirmation hearing and has not been paying attention since. Roberts is an institutionalist conservative (not really a surprise looking at who nominated him)…. meaning he would rather keep everything as close to the way it is right now and rock the boat as little as possible in almost every circumstance -look back over his rulings if you don’t believe me. However, the replacing of either or both the advanced aged Breyer and Ginsburg with an originalist/textualist would neutralize him. As far is a candidate… Read more »
These are very balanced comments, Brent. Milton Friedman said a long time ago “I used to believe that we needed to elect the right people. Now I believe we need to create a political climate in which we can elect the wrong people who will then do the right thing.” I have believed for a long time that if abortion was made illegal tomorrow, that given the technology and wealth of this country there would still be a lot of abortion. But that does not believe we need to be agnostic about appointments to the federal bench. These appointments are… Read more »
All the “never Trumpers” will vote for somebody like Bush who appoints inconsistent judges like John Roberts. I hope all the “never Trumpers” who plan to sit out the 2020 election understand Biden will appoint judges much worse than John Roberts. In fact if my memory serves me correctly, Biden led the opposition against Reagan’s Judge Bourk.
If Trump loses the 2020 election (not a prediction) it might be reasonable to lay the blame at the feet of DJT.
Yep – Joe Biden and Ted Kennedy “Borked” Justice Bork.
They also tried like the dickens to do it to Thomas too….but failed at thier “high tech lynching”.
John, are you using a valid email? I’ve emailed you on this subject. Thanks.
Hi, William. I’m not using my primary email. There is a lot of judgment about these issues, and I would prefer to hear what SBCVoices has to say.
Your email is private except to editors and will be kept so but it needs to be valid. If you got my email you would know that we’re aware of the subject. No need to put an extraneous comment in an inappropriate topic. We are easily contacted by email.
Can’t you understand my desire for anonymity? This is a touchy issue… I haven’t put forth anything controversial in what I’ve written. I’m just asking for there to be a discussion on this issue. And I really want to see the arguments for and against a change. I’m asking for the Voices to help me think through an issue. That’s all.
Voices is not an anonymous place except for special situations. Use a valid email.
Special situations such as? I’m sure there are others on this page using non-valid emails. It looks to me like you just don’t want to touch the issue of Lottie Moon in a public space, which speaks volumes about the editors/contributors of this site. It’s censorship no matter how you spin it. You deleted my comments before you even knew I wasn’t using a valid email. It’s your blog, your decision…. but it doesn’t say anything positive about your willingness to have a genuine discussion about race that could seriously affect something important to SBC (more than just the name).… Read more »
R v W brought a curse on this nation that worsens by the day. Murder of ~ 60 million children, a devastating demonic act, passes quietly by. Thanks Brett for the article….where was the ERLC or SBC leadership blistering response? No mention from the pulpit I listened to Sunday. This is perhaps the greatest indictment against the Christian community the past 47 years…..as the curse plagues our nation. May God have mercy and bring repentance.
Rudd, I am concerned about the decision as much as any one else,,,,,, but I did not blast off about it in the pulpit on Sunday, already had a sermon and it was not part of it. Most people hear politics, news, church news etc 24/7 and when they come to the House of God they do not need to be hammered again and again over things they should already be familiar with as citizens . The pulpit is not a place for virtue signaling, shaming or a call to support the right or the left. If the people do… Read more »
Trust you have the same opinion about PC cultural trends? That is sounded daily throughout by most in leadership….why less conviction for the unborn? My opinion does not matter..what would God say does.
Last point……statistics available show ~50% of abortions occur in minority communities……that is >30M people…..5x German holocaust…..one word abortion.
Rudd,
What specifically in my response to you led you to assume the worst in me? My point was that preachers should not let what is happening in society determine the content of their preaching. Preachers that let the headlines determine their sermons are not being true to their call, they are trying to please their congregations.
Take it easy Brother.
Woody
Never considered worst in you nor anyone….observation is by Pareto…we hear a lot about need to address historical sin from SBC leaders …..and miss opportunity to speak about today’s sin of abortion which they/we can impact……treating abortion as an another headline is exactly the point well made.
If you’re a pastor, your flock expect (rightly so) for you to lead and feed (not sure why you used the term “hammered”). I suspect most don’t follow news 24/7 (I don’t), But when we gather, it is helpful to hear our Lord’s leader speak to the moral issues of the day.
And I agree with you about taking it easy on the pastor. It’s a tough task.
Blessings brother!
Randall,
Brother thank you for your gentle admonition, “hammering” was a very bad choice of words.
Blessings in Christ,
Woody
Rudd, I am no abortion supporter/apologist, but I do wonder about “Murder of ~ 60 million children, a devastating demonic act, passes quietly by. Is that an accumulated total since R v W was enacted? Is that in the whole world or just the USA. I am having some difficulty with your statistics.
USA only….many sites confirm….CDC being one (with disclaimer not all reported) >60M……10x holocaust
Rudd, are your numbers correct? The CDC reports 600,000+ abortions per year in the USA and Grumacher Institute and Worldometer report between 45,000,000 and 56,000,000 abortions worldwide for the past few years. So, I m left with the question, from what verifiable source did you arrive at these figures? Or, is it a “ministerial estimate” of Sunday’s attendance at a church?
CDC statistics dating back 47 years…..the data speaks for itself….you selectively failed to report the 47 year totals….but you saw that too in your search……
Rudd, now I understand, I re-read your original post where you said 47 years,
Trust you read today sworn testimony from Planned Parenthood how they harvested organs from children born with beating hearts that were allowed to die and body parts sold……demonic you question?
Rudd, no, I did not question…what is your source for this?
And to follow up – in case you missed it.
In a 5 to 4 decision today(breaking down along conservative/liberal lines), SCOTUS struck down a Montana Supreme Court decision which allowed state scholarship funding to be denied to students who chose to attend religious schools.
Proving once again that the justices selected by the Pres make a difference in people’s lives.
People should not abandon the importance of this issue.
Louis, I agree it must be a factor. I think the views differ as to whether it should be the controlling factor, the largest single factor while considering other factors, or just one among many others. I’m concerned it’s a dangling carrot but also understand there are real consequences.
FWIW, I don’t really buy the idea that abortion is just “a dangling carrot” for the GOP or that racial justice is “a dangling carrot” for Dems — the assumption seems to be that if a party ever delivered on the base’s #1 priority, the base would be *less* loyal. I think instead the base would be /delighted/ — euphoric, even — and its loyalty and enthusiasm would shoot up. Plus, if Roe were overturned tomorrow, the pro-life movement would seamlessly transition to the next phase: pushing for a federal ban on abortion. Heck, even if the pro-life movement achieved… Read more »
Brent: I agree it is a factor. People will have to observe the changes wrought by the court in this country, and the issues that will face the court in the future, to determine what weight to give it. Other factors would be the promises and platform of both the candidates and their respective parties, as this will tell us their beliefs about how society should exist politically and the legislative platforms they hope to enact. And in the area of Presidential Power, the control over federal executive agencies is significant. More law is made via agency rules than us… Read more »
I’ve said this before and I will say it again here. No law will stop abortion! It didn’t in the 60’s and early 70’s and if the Supreme court reversed their decision it wouldn’t stop it in the 20’s. A law may slow abortion down but will not stop it. Some abortions may be necessary, but we Christians have the mentality “All or Nothing.” Some of our politicians are even against birth control. You cannot evangelize a nation by adopting laws or voting in politicians that will do our bidding. It takes falling in love with Jesus and sharing the… Read more »
Jess, Amen!
This is one of those “around the edges” decisions that doesn’t really give much to go on. The current chief justice believes Roe to be “the settled law of the land” so it’s a moot point until he retires or dies. The level of corruption and incompetence of this presidency looms as a much more serious, bigger problem.