Michigan
Christians for Life
Michigan
Christians for Life
WHEN LIFE BEGINS
Life does begin at the point of conception. We should protect human life, the foundation of our civilization. It defines us as much as anything does, as to how we treat and how we even view another human life, as to whether it has intrinsic value or worth or whether it does not. Those of us who are pro life believe that we must do everything possible to protect that life, because protection of life is the centerpiece of what makes us unique as Americans. We value the life of one as if it's the life of all. That's why we search non-stop for that missing Boy Scout, or that missing young mother. That's why we search for the 13 miners in Sago, West Virginia after a mine explosion, or the hikers on Mount Hood. We value life and it is part of what separates us from the Islamic jihadists who celebrate death. They have a culture of death. We have a culture of life.
The clear science of when life begins is "When the male sperm and female egg join, a new and unique life form is created." Not at birth or viability, or when a lawyer says so. This happens at conception. This life is either human or something else. Science irrefutably would declare that the life which is starting from that moment is human. It's not a parrot, squirrel, or dolphin. It will never become a tree-it can only become a human. It has the entire DNA sequence that it will have for the rest of its life right then. In days it will begin to take on increasingly observable human characteristics and form, but at conception, it is biologically human.
A FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT TO EXIST
If this life
is human, then the only issue left is whether this human life falls
under the notion that it has a fundamental right of existence or not.
If not, it is because we as a culture have decided that some human
lives are simply not worth living. If we can decide that about an
innocent and unborn baby, we can also decide it on the basis of less
absolute criteria than that. If we make that choice (and this is all
about "CHOICE," isn't it?) then someone may decide that a terminally
ill person is not a life worth living. Maybe a severely disabled child
is a life not worth living; what about a person with a limited IQ?
Some might say that's absurd--that an educated and enlightened society would never be so audacious as to begin to terminate life based on such arbitrary excuses? Well, Germany fell into just such a moral chasm in the 1930s. The murder of six million Jews, and millions of others, was justified because of their religion and millions of others were murdered because of their politics. Germany was not a primitive, superstitious culture. It was filled with those deemed to be intelligent and enlightened. But in the end, the truly good people were overwhelmed by the truly evil people.
THE
VALUE OF HUMAN LIFE - FROM CONCEPTION TO DEATH
At the core of our society is the
sanctity of human life. It is rooted in who we are as a culture and as
a civilization. And should we turn our back on this fundamental truth,
we have turned our back on the very essence and foundation of who we
are as a people. We should always err on the side of life. We as a
society believe life is precious. As Christians we believe that God is
the creator and instigator of life.
At the heart of our belief in life is the understanding that if we are indeed equal all of us have intrinsic worth, and no one has more than another. But those of us who are pro life must recognize some fundamental facts. Life begins at conception but it doesn't end at birth. If we're really pro-life we have to be concerned about more than just the gestation period. Real pro-life people need to be concerned about affordable housing, safe neighborhoods, access to a college education. Every child deserves a quality education, first-rate health care, decent housing in a safe neighborhood, and clean air and drinking water. Every child deserves the opportunity to discover and use his God-given gifts and talents. That is what pro-life has to mean.
The issue of right to life is an issue of principle and conviction. If we value each other as human beings and believe that everybody has equal worth, and that that intrinsic value is not affected by net worth, or ancestry, or last name, or job description, or ability, or disability, then the issue of the sanctity of human life is far bigger than just being anti-abortion. Those of us who believe so strongly in the sanctity of life recognize that we became involved in politics because of our strong pro-life convictions. It's about being pro-life and exercising that deep conviction held by our founding fathers that all of us are equal and no one is more equal than another, recognizing that once we ever decide that some people are more equal or less equal than others, then we start moving that line, and it may include us some day. Every human being has value. Every decision we make should always be on the side of life without equivocation.
A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
Passage of a constitutional amendment written specifically to protect the right to life is a central issue for all of us who value life. Our convictions regarding the sanctity of life are clear and consistent, without equivocation or wavering. Our founding fathers said we're all equal. The Unborn Child Amendment, Amendment 65 to the Arkansas Constitution, states it is the policy of the state to protect human life from the time of conception until such time as the natural cessation of life occurs through natural processes.
Those who are pro life believe that Roe v. Wade should be over-turned. We applaud the Supreme Court's recent decision in Gonzales v. Carhart forbidding the gruesome practice of partial birth abortion. While we are optimistic that we are turning the tide in favor of life, we still have many battles ahead of us to protect those who cannot protect themselves.
WHAT CAN BE DONE
When former Governor Mike Huckabee helped pass Arkansas' Unborn Child Amendment, which requires the state to do whatever it can to protect life, he subsequently used that Amendment to pass pro-life legislation. he banned partial birth abortion, he required parental notification, he required that a woman give informed consent before having an abortion, he required that a woman be told her baby will experience pain and be given the option of anesthesia for her baby, he allowed a woman to have her baby and leave the child safely at a hospital, and he made it a crime for an unborn child to be injured or murdered during an attack on his mother.
That was the part of his gubernatorial record that he is proudest of. Having signed numerous pieces of pro-life legislation, including a ban on partial-birth abortion. Another bill established a woman's right to know, ensuring her consent to an abortion is an informed one, based on the same information she would be given if she were removing her tonsils instead of her baby. Equally important was legislation mandating parents be informed and provide consent before the serious surgical procedure of an abortion could be performed on a minor. The Huckabee administration also pushed through legislation requiring doctors to inform the mother that the unborn child will feel pain, and provide the option to anesthetize the baby prior to abortion.
What Mike Huckabee accomplished as Governor proves that there is a lot more that a pro-life President can do than wait for a Supreme Court vacancy, and our next President must do everything they can to promote a pro-life agenda and pass pro-life legislation. The next President should veto any pro-abortion legislation that Congress passes. Our next President can use the bully pulpit to change hearts and minds, to move this country from a culture of death to a culture of life. It should not be our policy to throw women in jail, it should be our policy to do everything we can to stop throwing babies in the garbage.
We should provide
for every person who is contemplating the termination of her child
during pregnancy that she has information, knowing fully and completely
the procedure that is taking place and what it will mean. Commonly
called the woman's right to know legislation, it really goes back to
educating people.
Special thanks to Vertical Politics