Partial-Birth Abortion: Sounds “worse than it is”?

The other day I was at a library book sale. . .my heaven on earth.  I was browsing in the Politics section for that perfect find–a new release hardcover from one of my favorite authors or commentators and all for the bargain price of $2 (never found one, by the way).  A woman and her friend were across the row of books from me and I overheard the following statement:

“Partial-birth abortion is just a made up term in order to sound worse than it really is.”

I’m not kidding.

And I wanted so desperately to ask her, “Just what part of the partial-birth procedure is not EXACTLY as the name (aka “made up term”) implies?”  But I didn’t.  And now I’m blogging about it (venting about it) here.

I understand that not everyone accepts the name of this procedure–the AMA, for example, or Planned Parenthood (big surprise), which calls it an IDX, Intact Dilation and Extraction.

But what I take issue with is the complete spin that pro-choice proponents, activists, politicians and abortion providers perform here.  If you are upset that pro-lifers are calling it partial-birth abortion (upset that we are calling apples apples instead of papayas), then tell me exactly and specifically where a partial-birth abortion is NOT a partial-birth abortion.

Here is a description of the partial-birth abortion procedure, as appears of the National Right to Life website: 

“This procedure is used to abort women who are 20 to 32 weeks pregnant — or even later into pregnancy.* Guided by ultrasound, the abortionist reaches into the uterus, grabs the unborn baby’s leg with forceps, and pulls the baby into the birth canal, except for the head, which is deliberately kept just inside the womb. (At this point in a partial-birth abortion, the baby is alive.) Then the abortionist jams scissors into the back of the baby’s skull and spreads the tips of the scissors apart to enlarge the wound. After removing the scissors, a suction catheter is inserted into the skull and the baby’s brains are sucked out. The collapsed head is then removed from the uterus.”

If you would like a definition from a neutral group, rather than pro-life advocates, here is the definition put out by the Congress in the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act:

“The Congress finds and declares the following:  (1) A moral, medical, and ethical consensus exists that the practice of performing a partial-birth abortion–an abortion in which a physician deliberately and intentionally vaginally delivers a living, unborn child’s body until either the entire baby’s head is outside the body of the mother, or any part of the baby’s trunk  past the navel is outside the body of the mother and only the head remains inside the womb, for the purpose of performing an overt act (usually the puncturing of the back of the child’s skull and removing the baby’s brains) that the person knows will kill the partially delivered infant, performs this act, and then  completes delivery of the dead infant–is a gruesome and inhumane procedure that is never medically necessary and should be prohibited.”

Wikipedia says, “The U.S. Supreme Court has held that the terms ‘partial-birth abortion’ and ‘intact dilation and extraction’ are basically synonymous” (see original source here).

Do I need to go on?  Would I have had to show this woman pictures and diagrams of partial-birth abortions to prove to her that babies really are partially born before they are brutally aborted? 

I get frustrated when people would rather believe political spin than use their God-given intellect to acknowledge the facts.  I get frustrated when I see on people’s Facebook page the day after Dr. Tiller, the late-term abortionist, was murdered, “flags at half staff in honor of a hero.”  I get frustrated when people would rather hold on to things they incorrectly think are their “rights” rather than acknowledge that these innocent babies are born in God’s image and it’s their right to be protected.  But I have to remember that God calls me to love, even those people that frustrate me.  And I know that as much as he hates abortion, and as much as I believe he wants us to stand for truth, defend life and get actively involved to varying degrees, I also know that he also (not instead, though) wants us to love.

So I press on to love, even though I’m frustrated.

The Fragility of Life

People pass away every day, but unless we lose someone that we know personally, our own death may not be something that we think about frequently.  And yet when in the course of one week, we lose 4 public figures–Michael Jackson, Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, and Billie Mays–we are faced with a very real and haunting (for some) thought:

Life is fragile.

We work hard to achieve success, acquire wealth, fill the aching voids in our heart, and to look good in society.  But often times, we give very little thought to what is beyond this life.  We get caught up in preparing a comfortable life for ourselves here and now and forget about the comfort of our afterlife.  And then one day when it hits us that life is fragile and fleeting, we find that all we have chased after here on earth will not save us when it comes to eternity.

In Ecclesiastes 2: 10-11, the author (who some believe is King Solomon) says, “I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure.  My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor.  Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done, and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.”

Blogger Tim Challies says this about Michael Jackson:

“More than any other celebrity he embodied the “vanities” of Ecclesiastes.  He was at one time known for what he did so well and then was known for being a freak; he was at one time fantastically wealthy and then utterly broke; he was once loved and then despised.  He had it all and yet, it seemed, he had nothing.  All of it was meaningless, a chasing after the wind. . .But I hope now that he has finally found peace.  Sadly, though, his life showed no evidence that he had found the One who is peace, the one who offers true peace.  And if that is the case, the true horror of it all is that Jackson will spend all of eternity in the same twisted mind that tortured him for most of the fifty years he was given here.  Those fifty years seemed to drive him to the brink of utter insanity; the thought of an eternity in that state is too horrific to imagine.  We may like to think that death inevitably brings peace to a tortured existence.  But Scripture gives us no reason to find hope except in the One who offers hope.”

This makes me terribly sad.  Likewise, I watched Farrah Fawcett’s documentary about a month ago and although she spoke of God, she never spoke of a personally relationship with Jesus Christ nor of a peace she had knowing that she would spend eternity in heaven with her Father.  I can only hope at this point that any of these 4 talented individuals that passed away this week found peace with the Lord before they died.  Yet again, I’m reminded of how fragile life is.  Here today, gone tomorrow.

Are we ready?

While our culture has no problem discussing death on a daily basis–news tickers, sensationalized stories, crime reports, health watches, and funeral arrangement announcements–there seemsto be a shortage of news stories on what happens after death, especially from a biblical worldview.  We have become so “politically correct” that talking about God as the only way to heaven has become increadibly taboo. . .in fact, it’s seen as discriminatory.

Yet the facts remain.

In John chapter 14, Thomas asked Jesus, “‘Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?’ Jesus answered, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me’” (verses 5-6).

Some do not believe in an afterlife.  Some do not believe in God.  Many do not believe that there is only one door to heaven.  Many believe that you can get through that door by good works, rather than by simple grace (Ephesians 2:8-9).  But as Pete Briscoe points out in his book, Belief Matters, “In the end it doesn’t really matter how much you believe.  What matters is what you believe.”  He goes on to say that regardless of our sincerity about what we believe, if what we believe is false, where does that get us?

“If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).

If you would like to take that step of faith, click here.

Reality TV

I’m embarrassed to say that I am at all caught up in the reality TV couple Jon & Kate.  And a disclaimer:  I’ve only watched the show about 5 times total, but I have read their book, so keep that in mind when I offer my opinions. 

Part of me feels quite played by those two, as well as TLC which airs the show.  How much of what we see between them is for entertainment purposes. . .drama for the camera?

But for the part that is not a performance–and given the fact that the “big announcement” that is all over the media scheduled for tonight is rumored to be a divorce–here is what I feel:

I feel very sad for this couple.  They are obviously in pain about their relationship.  Marriage is tough, and I can only assume those difficulties are magnified when you have 8 children and a camera in your face all day.  However, I am also very sad for those children.  Media reports say that these kids do not want this intrusion into their lives and it is the parent’s job to put raising their children ABOVE financial gain.

Which brings me to why I’m angry, and I will express myself while still reserving judgment, since I do not know all the facts.  I’m upset because, if in fact a divorce is in the works, a family is being broken apart without the very obvious best option of all being tried–stop doing the show and focus on your marriage!  (Ok, there was a little judgment in that)  Have they given that  a try?  It seems like such an obvious, common sense choice and yet, it seems that option was skipped right over on the road to divorce court and broken families.

After reading Multiple Blessings by Jon & Kate, I know that they have a personal relationship with the Lord.  We know that through Christ we can do all things.  I’m not saying that they may not have very real issues of pain and anger and difficulty between them. . .most marriages go through that to some degree. . .I’m just saying why can’t they go through these things OFF camera, and see if that makes a difference.  Give God a chance to repair the damage in their marriage without the seemingly stronger pull of financial gain (reports are that they are paid quite well for each episode). 

“No one can serve two masters.  Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and Money.”  (Matthew 6:24).

This leads me to my 2 new favorite words that I read this weekend in a Max Lucado book called Facing Your Giants.

BUT GOD

No matter what it is that tempts us, scares us, pains us, derails us, or ails us. . .no matter why we want to give up or give in. . .and no matter how seemingly insurmountable the odds. . .

BUT GOD

There is nothing more to say, right?  And that’s not because our problems are small, it is because our God is huge!  For those of us who know the awesome power of Creator God, Savior God, Redeemer God, those two words stop whatever “what if,” “if only,” or “but” we can possibly say.  And so, to Jon & Kate, or to any of you out there that are suffering deeply in a marriage, with a physical ailment, or are in emotional turmoil, I think God is asking us to remember Him. . .His power, His omniscience, His omnipresence. . .because He “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20).  That is Truth.

I’m praying for Jon & Kate. . .and for the marriages all over the U.S. and world that are crumbling at the Enemy’s suggestion and to his great delight.

What Road Will We Choose?

We are at a crossroads.  We are standing at the intersection of two radically different ideologies and being pulled, pushed, coerced, and encouraged to go in one of these two directions (depending on where the pressure is coming from).  The question at hand is:  Will the traditional family survive or will it crumble?  What road will we choose?

Jimmy Evans, founder of Marriage Today, calls our attention to a Harvard sociologist named Carle Zimmerman in his article “The Harvard Prophecy.”  He says that Zimmerman

“published a report called The Family and Civilization.  In his report, he documented that major civilizations from long ago had begun and ended in almost identical ways related to the family and its relation to the social infrastructure.  He found that virtually every major civilization that arose–Assyrian, Babylonian, Sumerian, Greek, Roman, and Western–all began with a strong family unit resembling the biblical model.  He also found that the downfall of each society was directly associated with the breakdown of the traditional nuclear family unit.”

The definition of a traditional family (including traditional marriage) is under attack.  If you were to turn on nearly any news station, you would hear yet another culture-war over marriage and family at some point during the day.  Although, according to a recent Gallup poll, a majority of 57% of Americans still oppose gay marriage, that number has dropped significantly in the last decade.  What road will we choose?

At the risk of being unpopular as I speculate about this, when I first heard that President Obama was encouraging moms to go back to school, I thought this could potentially be yet another thing that drives apart traditional families.  And while I won’t ascribe any impure motives to President Obama, and while I certainly don’t discourage higher education for any man or woman in many circumstances, taking stay-at-home mothers away from their children by enticing them with financial help is, in my opinion, another defeat for the nuclear family.  What road will we choose?

This past  Mother’s Day, I learned about the objection that the United Nations has to our celebration on this day.  Their “Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination (CEDAW) basically has declared Mother’s Day to be sexist.  ”The Committee is concerned by the continuing prevalence of sex-role stereotypes and by the reintroduction of such symbols as a Mothers’ Day and Mothers’ Day Award, which it sees as encouraging women’s traditional roles.”  This is shocking to me!  But you may ask, “Why do we care what the U.N. does?”  Well, in most cases, I wish we didn’t but let me remind you about another issue involving the family that some in our government want the U.N. to dictate.   The U.N.C.R.C.  The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child essentially says that a U.N. Committee could determine how you parent your children, and it has grabbed the attention of the Obama Administration and Democrat-led Congress.  What road will we choose?

 “Out-of-Wedlock Birthrates are Soaring” says one news article, with “4 out of every 10 babies born in the United States in 2007″ being born to unmarried mothers. 

“Census: 6.4 Million Cohabitating Couples. . .” says another source, which equals 10% of all couples. 

“The Rise of Child Abuse as a Result of Abortion” by Randy Alcorn

“Is Marriage in Jeopardy” by Glenn T. Stanton

What road will we choose?

My concern is with the overall attitude towards and acceptance of these ideologies and lifestyles.  Little by little we are chipping away at traditional marriage and family.  Each day that we choose to turn our faces away from what is happening before our very eyes and stay ignorant or uninvolved is a day we might lose a foundational and transformational element of our society.

 

One Nation Under God

The Pledge of Allegiance. . .the Declaration of Independence. . .our Founding Fathers. . .God Bless America

These documents, people, and songs are a part of America’s history and heritage.  They have been the foundation of this country for centuries. . .and what’s more, God has been the foundation of this part of history.  There are some out there today that want to deny that fact, and although it is undeniable that God has been a large part of our past as a nation, there is a strong possibility that He will not be our nation’s future.  Are we sure we want that?  And are we ready for the fight that could ensue as well as the ramifications of denying God?  Our great country will go to “hell in a hand basket”.

The Lord says in Isaiah 65:1, “I’ve made myself available to those who haven’t bothered to ask.  I’m here, ready to be found by those who haven’t bothered to look.  I kept saying, ‘I’m here, I’m right here’ to a nation that ignored me.  I reached out day after day to a people who turned their backs on me, people who make wrong turns, who insist on doing things their own way.  They get on my nerves, are rude to my face day after day, make up their own kitchen religion, a potluck religious stew.  They spend the night in tombs to get messages from the dead, eat forbidden foods and drink a witch’s brew of potions and charms.  They say, ‘Keep your distance.  Don’t touch me.  I’m holier than thou.’”

Our self-centered culture, obsessed with New Age and Humanism, is stiff-arming God, essentially saying, “I don’t need God.  I rely on myself and myself alone.  I’m holy enough.”

Jeremiah 7:27  “Tell them, ‘You are the nation that wouldn’t obey God, that refused all discipline.  Truth has disappeared.  There’s not a trace of it left in your mouths.”

Truth is, in fact, disappearing.  It still exists, as surely as God exists, but it is being denied, refused, and squelched in society today.  Obedience and discipline are fading virtues as well.

Psalm 59:8  “But you, God, break out laughing; you treat the godless nations like jokes.”

Do we really want Almighty God laughing at us and treating us like jokes?!  Yet we continue to desire godlessness.

Galatians 6:7  “Do not be deceived.  God cannot be mocked.  A man reaps what he sows.”

We will sow what we reap. . .individually and as a nation.  That is enough to scare me.

Psalm 33:12 “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.”

Oh, how I long for the United States of America to be a nation whose focus is again on God our Lord!  How I long for a revival so powerful that God and God alone will be praised!

“If we ever forget that we’re One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under.”  Ronald Reagan

How true, and my fear is that we are headed there. . .and headed there fast under President Obama’s leadership, a liberal Congress, activist judges, and corrupt local governments.

Get Ready for the Backlash

Sunday afternoon, George Tiller, the well-known late-term abortion doctor, was gunned down in Wichita, Kansas. As a pro-life advocate who has, from a very early age, stood up for the rights of the unborn in the public arena, I would like to personally condemn this act of murder. The truth in the Word of God is this: “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge, I will repay,’” says the Lord (Romans 12:19).

You will read and hear many “pro-choice” talking points in the next day or two. You will watch as the left-leaning media paints all pro-life advocates with a very broad brush–a brush that is now defined by this one man (Scott Roeder) who took the law into his own hands and committed an act of violence that 99.99% of pro-life proponents will also condemn. You will hear statistics such as how there have been 17 attempted murders on abortion providers since 1977 and 7 murders in that same time.  Although those 7 lives that were lost were precious to God, let me draw attention to the number of babies murdered in roughly that same amount of time:  49, 915,603.  So as you listen to bloggers (I’ve already read some), media reports (read those too), and talking heads on the news, keep this in perspective.  Yes, we adamantly distance ourselves from taking the life of any abortion provider, no matter how heinous his practices, but we also cannot shy away from the good fight of protecting those innocent babies from their own untimely death.  Let’s resolve to continue the work, but in a respectable, legal, and non-violent way.

Freedom for All, If. . .

It seems to me (and I’ve only been closely watching the political and cultural climate for about 10 years now) that this is an incredibly hostile atmosphere for freedom to survive in long-term.  It is under attack from every angle, and I’m not taking about our War on Terror (oh, excuse me, our Overseas Contingency Operations).  I’ve noticed that at an alarming rate, our freedoms as conservative, Christian, traditional men, women and children are in grave danger.  There is a growing group out there (that includes the mainstream media) that wants to believe that the U.S. Constitution does not protect us “right-wing extremists.”  They are doing everything in their power (never underestimate that power, by the way) to selectively strip away freedom from a majority.  In their world, freedom is only “for all” if. . .

. . .If you are not a born-again Christian (unless you are willing to keep your mouth shut about it)

. . .If you are not a conservative 

. . .If you are not trying to keep marriage traditionally defined, between one man and one woman

. . .If you are not Carrie Prejean, for example

. . .If you are not for smaller government and less taxes

. . .If you didn’t attend a Tax Day Tea Party

. . .If tolerance is your god

. . .If you aren’t fighting to overturn Roe v. Wade

. . .If the DNC or MoveOn.org received contributions from you in the last 8 years

. . .If you hate George W. Bush more than any other individual on this earth

. . .If you are a pacifist

. . .If you are in adamant denial of the existence of absolute truth

. . .If you are ok with radical, liberal, activist judges legislating from the bench

. . .If you want to stay ignorant about what the Founding Fathers actually set in motion for this country

. . .If you boycott the Fox News Channel

But I don’t fit the mold on any of those things, therefore, my rights and freedoms are in jeopardy.  The Bible says that many scary things will happen in the end times, and although I have no idea if the “end times” are 10 years away or 1,000, I do know that this world is not my home (Ephesians 3:20) and I rejoice in my eternal destination.  At the same time, I know that while I am here, I can gently and lovingly stand on the truth of the Word of God and fight to preserve what the Founding Fathers (and our Heavenly Father) intended this great nation to be, and I can do it without apology.  And I have a feeling that those who feel their freedoms are in jeopardy, those who don’t fit the above either, are starting to rise up and fight again with confidence and conviction, and it’s a beautiful thing to see.

Noteworthy News. . .Even If It Infuriates You

This is one of those days where I already have a headache, but then when I look in the news, I find these infuriating stories:

NIH Spends $178,000 to Study Why Prostitutes in Thailand Have High HIV Risk

My retirement money is being spent to study transgendered prostitutes in Thailand who, because of their Buddhist faith, are particularly unphased by the possibility of contracting HIV (which they do). . .and the government wants to spend your tax dollars to figure out why.

Red Hot Lies About Global Warming (”How Global Warming Alarmists Use Threats, Fraud, and Deception to Keep You Misinformed”)

More and more well-researched people are coming forward and telling the public that global warming is not only a myth and hoax, but a strategic effort on the part of many to expand government and take more of your money (and in some cases, pay these global warming alarmist quite well).

A Moment of Real Pride and Hope

As I’ve been watching the news the last couple of days, I’ve seen something wonderful — something that makes me so proud and also hopeful that conservatism can rise again in America. 

I saw seniors at Notre Dame preparing to peacefully protest President Obama’s visit there this weekend.  Many pro-life students are disappointed over the school’s decision to invite a radically pro-choice president to speak as a guest of honor.

I saw Miss California, Carrie Prejean, standing up in defense of traditional marriage. . .and allowed to keep her crown. 

I saw that Chad Farnan, a student at Capistrano Valley High School, is suing the school district over his European history professor’s daily anti-Christian tirades and indoctrination of his students.  Chad Farnan is standing on truth, no matter the opposition.

I see groups like Family Research Council being a loud voice around the world (and frequently in the media) as they stand up for faith, family and freedom.  Others such as the National Right to Life, Randy Alcorn’s Eternal Perspective’s Ministries and Watchman Fellowship are groups that make me proud to be fighting for the causes I believe in, no matter the popularity – causes that I believe to be straight out of the Bible.

In these days where it seems like our culture, morality and freedoms are falling prisoner to political correctness, tolerance and an “anything-goes” mentality, I am encouraged to see people standing up for truth.  Following the Lord is not about winning a popularity contest, it is about living our lives grounded in the Word of God, regardless of the world.

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.  If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own.  As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.  That is why the world hates you” (John 15:18-19).

National Day of Prayer

Family Research Council is a ministry that I respect and support.  They are an organization that has been defending faith, family and freedom since 1983.  Last night, I got my daily email from them, and this was what FRC’s president, Tony Perkins, had to say about today’s National Day of Prayer.

“[Today] marks the National Day of Prayer (NDP), which was first proclaimed by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1952.  Since that time Presidents have routinely proclaimed the first Thursday of May as a National Day of Prayer (NDP).  It has been reported that the Obama White House will issue an official NDP proclamation, but the text has yet to be released.  A presidential spokesman did make it clear that there would be no NDP event at the White House.  That, of course, is a break with the tradition of the Bush administration, which hosted an annual NDP event at the White House. 

Should we be surprised? Concerned? No and yes. While there is a long history of Presidents praying and calling the nation to prayer (dating all the way back to George Washington), a de-emphasis on prayer in this administration should not come as a surprise. What can we expect of an administration whose policies cheapen human life, increase dependence upon government and threaten religious freedoms? But just because there is no official White House event shouldn’t lessen [today's] significance. To the contrary! First, this should help us realize we need to pray even harder because leaders who do not seek God’s leading are hampered in their ability to lead others. Secondly, we must recognize that God’s call for people to humble themselves and pray (2 Chron 7:14) is not a call aimed at political leaders and those with great power and influence, but rather it’s a call to the Church.

I want to encourage each of you to participate in a NDP gathering near you.  Even if you can’t attend an event on Thursday, please make it a priority to pray for the Church, for the country, and for our nation’s leaders.”

To find a NDP location near you or to link to the source of this quote, go to Family Research Council (www.frc.org).

To read a wonderful prayer by Beth Moore, click here.

To see a list of things the New Testament tells us to pray for, visit Randy Alcorn’s blog here. 

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