By: Hannah Dearth
I thank God that you never encountered the possibility of becoming pregnant by a family member in elementary school.
Or by a boy who didn’t “understand” consent at 15.
Or any of the other numerous situations that you use your voice so loudly to control and silence bodies of other people in other situations that you couldn’t possibly fathom.
Instead of hatred, and judgement, try empathy, and understanding.
Adoption is beautiful, and also still traumatic.
Adoption is easy to throw out as a “solution” instead of doing the systemic work our society needs to actually help and create change.
How about putting your feet on the ground and looking at how to provide appropriate sex education and free and easy access to different methods of birth control, especially in areas of poverty?
How about working on shifting rape culture and sexualization and ownership of women and educating on consent… and then carrying out the legal consequences for those who don’t follow this?
How about easier and affordable healthcare, mental health care, childcare, and maternity leave/rights?
What about getting involved in foster-care work, and being pro life (instead of just pro birth) for the little lives that are already here (some here as a result of these systemic issues) and really need homes, and love, and support in this moment? Thousands in your own county, and counties near your home.
This isn’t a one size fits all. We have seen in the past what forced control does to others and the roads it leads down. This is moving backward.
I am a Christian. I see a lot of the religious agendas here. Is this really how Jesus would approach the issue? Or…how the Pharisees would? Is this really the solution, or do you even understand the real problems here? We love to pick apart what the Bible says, especially when it comes to the lives of others, rather than learn how to best live it out for ourselves. We love to use our voices and preach and yell and shame, instead of practicing what we are even preaching.
Probirth is not pro life. It just isn’t. Pro choice is pro life. And if you really got out into the world, and encountered these situations for yourself, and just the true brokenness we live in, I promise that you wouldn’t be seeking this avenue as the solution. It is not a solution. It’s a control tactic. It’s a coverup and a bandaid that makes others feel better about legally preventing the byproduct of a plethora of issues filtering into this. Something that will still (unsafely) continue without you. Abortion is healthcare. Because those girls and women’s lives matter too. 12 year olds forced to birth a family member’s child…hungry hurt kids looking for a home… women that will die from a medical condition to an early birth of a baby that isn’t developed enough to even survive life outside of the womb… or…how about just women in general..our lives matter too.
Christians have historically used the Bible to enslave and limit others rather than to offer grace and compassion and get to work through the hard and uncomfortable difficulties that are truly at the core of it all. I urge you to reconsider how to approach the issue. I beg you not to repeat history.
*I often do not share a direct “political” stance or agenda here, because I want everyone to feel welcome to read and engage here, in hopes that this will lead them to feel accepted and drawn into God, as they are, to develop a faith relationship with Him and His word that they will seek out for themselves. I am not the expert, and I am the first to admit that I understand the need for his mercy and grace more than most.
However, this stance walks a fine line, because if I am honest with myself, as much as I indirectly and blanket statement discuss inequality, and address injustice, if I am not direct at times in how I view and interpret my faith, than aren’t I just pushing the people that are marginalized by these large movements, often by those of Christian faith, into the corner as well by my lack of directness? Those who already don’t feel welcomed by Jesus or the Church? Who don’t feel they are redeemable, or lovable because of the hatred directed at them?
I am not here to argue. I’m not here to put out more hate. I’m here to simply offer an alternative way of viewing this that I have prayed over and had on my heart for quite some time… one that directly influences my life, and my faith, and my experiences.
I understand if this causes you to want to leave this page, but I hope that it still plants a seed of wondering how to view things in a different way other than your own life experience, how to do life in a way that will love others more, rather than push them further from Him, to draw even more into the scripture for yourself.