China's totalitarian, anti-life abortion policies continue, understandably, to upset Christians in the West. Meanwhile, America's destructive, anti-life Middle Eastern policy continues, understandably, to upset Christians in the Middle East. What proves less understandable is the disconnect certain American Christians eagerly draw between the value of a life in embryo and the value of a life once it reaches its mother's arms.
For the record, the life of a fetus is
not more sacred than the life of a human being. Christians who value
the lives of fetuses should also value the lives of the people they
become. You cannot be pro-life and pro-war without ultimately eviscerating the word "life" for the sake of political preferences. Christians who are "pro-life" must be for human life in all cases; humility should characterize their spiritual and intellectual position before God.
All life is God's sacred creation and all humans are lovingly crafted in His image. What does this mean exactly? This means that, apart from you and the members of your congregation, Christ also loves Muslims, Greeks, skateboarders, Rastafarians, Victoria's Secret shoppers, vegans, Bill O'Reilly, Ann Coulter, Richard Simmons, neo-Nazis, rapists, criminals, meth addicts, thieves, Jon Stewart, Oprah, Barbara Walters, harlots, rascists, ignoramuses, prom queens, young single mothers on welfare because they have chosen NOT to have an abortion, yoga instructors, and even old people who drive at 50 mph in the fast lane.
There is no place in the New Testament, the covenant secured between Christ and his followers, which calls upon Christians to kill other human beings. To the contrary, Christians are called upon to love God's enemies as much as they love his followers. Rather than seek revenge, the New Testament encourages us to give love and forgiveness unconditionally to those most in need. Rather than screaming "Whore of Babylon" at young girls entering abortion clinics, we should open our arms to them and show them a love which is greater than the worst sin on this earth. Rather than spit at returning soldiers, we should comfort them and urge our government adopt a more sensible, less trigger-and-death-happy foreign policy. Rather than kill horrible criminals, we should do our best to bring Christ's love to those whose sins are heaviest.
Abortion, like almost every other form of conscious killing, is a sorrowful event. In China, it is mandated. In the US, it is a legal option. In most Muslim countries, it is illegal. While Dr. Albert Mohler mourns the effects of China's policy on Chinese females, he is merely toeing the all-too-familiar conservative Christian line-- "aw shucks, those evil communists are killing again". Of course, Dr. Mohler, like any sensible, publicity-seeking American Christian, knows that criticizing the taking of life by communist regimes is a political winner. No one except a Chinese communist would find an excuse for such horrible policies.
But Dr. Mohler isn't really concerned about valuing human life-- he is mostly concerned about the loss of human life when it is someone else's fault. He prefers judgement to humility. There is no point in being concerned about the loss of human life as a result of his own country's militarist policies (i.e. "collateral damage") because "that's just the way things are" and "wars happened in the Bible too" plus "Christians are supposed to follow their leaders" not to mention that "Muslims hate Christ" and of course "God doesn't expect us to be perfect".
All of this is just another way of saying that Christianity, contrary to Jesus words', is not a radical and life-affirming faith. Instead, it is just another lifestyle trend. There are no sacred traditions, only pragmatic reinterpretations. For Christians who embrace the Christian trend movement, it is not my place to interfere in their styles and tastes. My only request bears on their moral integrity, as opposed to their denominational preference. It's very simple, really. If you oppose abortion but have no qualms about government-sponsored, publicly-funded killing sprees, stop corrupting the language by calling yourself "pro-life". The correct moniker is "anti-abortion". Alas, you cannot be pro-life and pro-war.
And you cannot purport to respect life while showing such dehumanizing photos of innocent dead babies for the sake of your political message. These babies are deceased human beings, not toys or propaganda ploys. For shame. Anyone can explain why rape is wrong without showing you the naked, bleeding body of a rape victim.
Since I can't leave you with the photos chosen by anti-abortion activists seared in your mind, I'll try to leave you with something more life-giving, like the Bible. Christians who rely on the Bible to justify their support for war often cite Matthew 10:34-36, in which Christ uses the "spiritual warfare" metaphor by saying that he "brings not peace but a sword". Anyone who reads this literally will have to explain why Jesus does not carry swords or give out swords or encourage the making of swords anywhere else in the Bible. If He meant it literally, it stands to reason that He would have a literal sword. Since He used this statement as a metaphor suggesting that His word would destroy life and society as it had previously been known, the absence of swords and weapons from Jesus' ministry makes more sense in context. In actuality, the New Testament never urges one human to kill another. Though there are references to the terrible things that God will do to human beings should they ignore His word, Christ never asks one human to do this work for God.
For more on Christianity and the pro-life movement:
- The Fellowship of Recognition is a wonderful, Christian organization based in the US that urges truly pro-life policy. FOR also has a wealth of links to peace-supporting religious groups and groupings. (Thanks to Nathan for this link.)
- "The Painful and Awful Discussion of the Death Penalty" at Start the Dialogue.
- "Does the Bible Condone Slavery" at In the Agora.
- "Pope thanks New Mexico Governor for death penalty repeal".
- Sojourner's combines faith, politics, and culture in a less-than-mainstream manner. (Hat tip again to Nathan for pointing it out to me).
- Christians For Peace.
- Christian Peacemaker Teams.
- "Fundamentalist Christians opposing peace".
- Peace Through Understanding: Christians and Muslims Seeking Peace.
- A good example of a web-site that should not be shown to children and should be properly called "anti-abortion".
