May 2022 certainly started on a contentious note! Arguments against and pro abortion have swirled around at the US Supreme court for decades. However, it seems like the highest court in the land may be ready to overturn Roe v. Wade. How do we know? Well, a draft document from justice Alito was leaked to the press.
The leaking of such document is unprecedented in American history. The uproar surrounding the content of the memo has pro-abortion activists reeling and pro-life supporters hopeful. Politico points out, “The draft opinion is a full-throated, unflinching repudiation of the 1973 decision which guaranteed federal constitutional protections of abortion rights and a subsequent 1992 decision — Planned Parenthood v. Casey.” The document contains a phrase from Justice Alito that has stirred great upheaval, “We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled” (p. 5). The draft contains the endorsement of Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett.
For further inquiry, here’s a larger portion of the section from the document,
We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled. The Constitution makes no reference to abortion, and no such right is implicitly protected by any constitutional provision, including the one on which the defenders of Roe and Casey now chiefly rely—the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. That provision has been held to guarantee some rights that are not mentioned in the Constitution, but any such right must be “deeply rooted in this Nation’s history and tradition” and “implicit in the concept of ordered liberty.” Washington v. Glucksberg, 521 U. S. 702, 721 (1997) … Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences. And far from bringing about a national settlement of the abortion issue, Roe and Casey have enflamed debate and deepened division. It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives. “The permissibility of abortion, and the limitations, upon it, are to be resolved like most important questions in our democracy: by citizens trying to persuade one another and then voting.”
In other words, the majority in the Supreme Court seem to believe biological women (because only women can give birth to children) do not have the “right” to an abortion per the prerogative of the Supreme Court. This of course, goes entirely against the notion that women have “reproductive rights.”
If you would like to understand the pro-abortion argument for reproductive rights, here’s a link to an article I wrote highlighting Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s thought on “reproductive rights”:
The “right to abortion” is absolutely contrary to Christian belief. No one has the right to give and take life, except God. Those who espouse abortion rights either lack a proper biblical worldview on the issue or choose to ignore it for other reasons.
The idea that a person has the right to terminate their own pregnancy is tied Charles Taylor’s idea of the “sovereign self.” Commenting on Taylor’s idea, Helen Orchard writes, “The turn of contemporary spirituality has been inward, resulting in expressions which are often highly individualistic and egotistical.” Neil Kramer clarifies, “To recognize oneself as a sovereign being is to acknowledge one’s own total spiritual autonomy and unconditional entitlement to self-determination. It is a primary avowal of oneself as a free and natural human being.”
It follows that if we are sovereign to make our own choices with no seeming consequences to others, then abortion is a viable option for those who choose to terminate the life of an unborn child. The devil propagated the lie that we can be like God from the beginning. In the garden he lied to Eve, “The woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ‘You will not certainly die,’ the serpent said to the woman. ‘For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil'” (Genesis 3:2-5).
Do not be mistaken, Satan is the co-author of death. Though our choice brought sin into the world, and consequently death, Satan too is responsible for the chaos in our world. He stands for death, not life. The spiritual warfare in our nation is intensifying because the enemy hates us! He wants all human beings to die and go to hell with him. He wants God’s glory diminished, and death to reign.
Did You Get the Memo? What the Supreme Court Draft Says
The leaked draft from the Supreme Court is 98 pages long. Most people will likely not take the time to read through it. However, a few highlights are important to note. I will categorize some of the arguments presented:
ARGUMENT: The right to abortion is not deeply rooted in our nation’s history, therefore it has no valid precedent.
“The inescapable conclusion is that a right to abortion is not deeply rooted in the Nation’s history and traditions. On the contrary, an unbroken tradition of prohibiting abortion on pain of criminal punishment persisted from the earliest days of the common law until 1973” (p. 24).
ARGUMENT: Roe and Casey are political cases on abortion, and therefore should not be decided upon by a body (the Supreme Court) of appointed officials, not elected officials.
The Court short-circuited the democratic process by closing it to the large number of Americans who dissented in any respect from Roe. “Roe fanned into life an issue that has inflamed our national politics in general, and has obscured with its smoke the selection of Justices to this Court in particular, ever since.” Casey, 505 U.S, at 995-996 (Scalia, J, concurring in part and dissenting in part). Together, Roe and Casey represent an error that cannot be allowed to stand” (p. 40)
ARGUMENT: The Supreme Court believes states should be the arbitrators of decisions on abortion, because it gives the people through their representatives, the choice to decide on whether abortion should be permitted in their perspective states or not.
Neither decision has ended debate over the issue of a constitutional right to obtain an abortion. Indeed, in this case, 26 States expressly ask us to overrule Roe and Casey and to return the issue of abortion to the people and their elected representatives. This Court’s inability to cnd de- bate on the issue should not have been surprising. This Court cannot bring about the permanent resolution of a rancorous national controversy simply by dictating a settlement and telling the people to move on (p. 64).
We can only do our jobs, which is to interpret the law, apply longstanding principles of stare decisis, and decide this case accordingly. We therefore hold that the Constitution does not confer a right to abortion. Roe and Casey must be overruled, and the authority to regulate abortion must be returned to the people and their elected representatives (p. 65).
The Abortion Issue from a Christian Perspective
Abortion is a serious issue even though some treat it casually. For instance, reports Katie Jerkovich, “Superstar Phoebe Bridgers told followers she recently got an abortion while on tour, calling it ‘easy’ and said ‘everyone deserves’ access in response to the leaked draft from the Supreme Court indicating the Roe v. Wade decision could be overturned.” Bridgers said she simply walked into a Planned Parenthood clinic, got an abortion pill, having easy access to terminate the life of her child in the womb.
As I have previously written, human life is precious. I believe every baby in the womb has the right to live. But of course, many disagree. Discussions on abortion are plentiful and complex. However, as a Christ follower I stand for the right of every unborn baby to have the right to life. God is the author of life (Genesis 1:27; 2:07; Ruth 4:13; Job 33:4; Psalm 71:06).
The most significant verses in all of Scripture regarding God’s design for human life in the womb are found in Psalm 139:13-16:
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
The Psalmist demonstrates the care the Lord of the universe takes in creating every single life on earth. Each life, no matter the circumstances of conception is precious before God’s eyes. No one has the right to destroy any human life, because each person is created in the image of God.
It is important to note, that God does forgive us when we fail. If you’re reading this article and had an abortion, God stands ready to forgive you and to heal you.
Now, some have tried to make the argument that there is no life in the womb until a baby is fully formed. However, even staunch proponents of abortion know that the life in the womb is not simply a fetus, but in fact a child. President Biden even said yesterday, “The idea that we’re gonna make a judgment that is going to say that no one can make the judgment to choose to abort a child based on a decision by the Supreme Court I think goes way overboard.” Again, to be clear, the Supreme court is not banning abortion, it is simply giving states the power to decide whether or not they want abortion to be legalized in their particular context.
It is no secret that the abortion issue is entrenched in politics. Barak and Michelle Obama said yesterday, ““Today, millions of Americans woke up fearing that their essential freedoms under the Constitution were at risk … If the Supreme Court ultimately decides to overturn the landmark case of Roe v. Wade, then it will not only reverse nearly 50 years of precedent — it will relegate the most intensely personal decision someone can make to the whims of politicians and ideologues.” Furthermore, senator Elizabeth Warren was clearly angry and agitated:
Note that behind the senator is a sign that reads “Thou shall not steal my civil rights, thou shall not steal my reproductive rights.” Talk about taking Scripture out of context, or worse, rewriting Scripture altogether!! Furthermore, why is there also a sign that says “Catholics support abortion process”? Nothing could be further from the truth. Though I do not agree with Roman Catholic theology, I share their stance on abortion:
Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person – among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life. Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. Formal cooperation in an abortion constitutes a grave offense – Catechism of the Catholic Church
Senator Warren clearly does not possess a proper biblical worldview. In her rant she remarked, “I am angry, because of who will pay the price for this!” Her remark was directed at the fact that poor women now will have a harder time terminating their pregnancies. But, what about the price every aborted child pays? Namely, their life!
Warren also tried to make the case for abortion for those who are raped, but then turned around to also say that mothers who are struggling and working three jobs should be able to kill their child in the womb for their own convenience. Nowhere is this argument supported by Scripture. In the case of rape and abortion (If you have been a victim of rape, or sexual abuse, find help here!), the Religious Institute provides a reasonable response, “While the emotional arguments for abortion in these situations might seem compelling, the fact of the matter is that it is wrong to take the life of one innocent victim (the unborn child), and further burden the life of the other victim of these horrible situations, the mother. It is indeed a strange logic that would have us kill an innocent unborn baby for the crime of his father.”
This indeed is a complex issue. Will justice for the unborn be served? I pray so. I am hopeful for the days ahead. I am hopeful Roe v Wade will be overturned at the Supreme Court. Let us commit to pray for our nation and the highest court in our land. Life is precious. May life always win and the Author of life be glorified! (Acts 3:15)
All things were created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together” – Colossians 1:16-17
Written by Daniel Messina