On the Sacrifice of Abortion

An unborn baby’s heart starts beating at 18 days after conception, typically before a mama even knows there is life inside her womb. And, yet, it is completely legal to stop these hearts. I won’t go into the gruesome details about abortion in this post, but make no mistake that as the pregnancy progresses, the methods to kill the unborn baby become more and more gruesome. What I can’t understand is why anyone would be a part of this.

What continues to scroll through my mind is 1 Timothy 6:10, which reads, “For the love of money is the root of all evil.” No, money is not the root of all evil…but the love of money is. You see, once you put money above everything else, you have made it a god and you are willing to sacrifice anything for this god. Unbelievably so, people are willing to sacrifice unborn babies for this god.

What is really tragic is that Planned Parenthood and other abortion clinics promote abortion. They fight against having to show ultrasounds because they know this information sways a woman’s decision. So much for a woman’s right to choose. So much for informed consent. So much for life. And, of course they promote abortion…this is how they make money. There is no money in referring someone to an adoption agency. Look at the numbers: 327,653 to 1,880. Those are Planned Parenthood numbers for abortions versus adoption referrals …per year.

If you don’t believe it’s all about the money, look up Carol Everett. She became rich off of abortions, until her conscience could not stand the convictions any longer and she left the industry. Thank God she has now devoted her life to the pro-life movement.

Pro-choice folks claim they care about women, and that this is why they support a woman’s right to choose. They used to say the baby is not a baby, but many have turned away from that tired rhetoric. They know it’s a baby, but still believe the woman should be able to choose. They claim the baby cannot survive without the woman and that no woman should be held captive. If they care so much about women, how can they ignore the 2011 meta-analysis published in the British Journal of Psychiatry that reports post-abortive women are at an 81% increased risk of developing mental health problems? (Want to read more? I’ve includes a few studies at the conclusion of the blog.)

Yet these same people continue to claim that abortion should remain legal for the rape exception (although pregnancy as a result of rape is rare) and for women to be able to kill their unborn child if it is disabled (so much for the fact that disability can happen at any point in life and no humane person would support killing a child who becomes disabled after birth). They even claim that this is out of compassion for the woman and the child. And did you know that the overwhelming majority of babies with downs syndrome are aborted. THIS IS WHAT THEY ARE FIGHTING FOR!

Aren’t you tired of this? I most certainly am. This is not about condemning women who had made this choice. The past cannot be changed. However, we can and we must do something about the present and the future. We can and should fight to defund Planned Parenthood. We can and should support pro-life ministries and adoption agencies. We can and should pray and minister to women in crisis pregnancies. And we should not be afraid to speak out about the benefits of abstinence outside of marriage – since 86% of those seeking abortion are not married. Abstinence is the only fool-proof way to prevent unwanted pregnancy.

We should be willing to stand up on behalf of the most vulnerable. These unborn children are relying on their mothers, and yet because of choice or coercion, at the hands of the mother and the abortionists, they are being killed by the millions. What a sad testimony to our society. The pro-choice community certainly does not care about the unborn…do those who claim they are pro-life? Or will we stand by while the unborn continue to be a sacrifice made to the god of money.

Articles:

Coleman, P.K. (2011). Abortion and mental health: Quantitative synthesis and analysis of research published 1995-2009. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 199, 180-186. doi: 10.1192/bjp.bp.110.077230

Coleman, P. K., Coyle, C. T., & Rue, V. M. (2010). Late-term elective abortion and susceptibility to posttraumatic stress symptoms. Journal of Pregnancy, 1-10.

Curley, M, & Johnston, C. (2013). The characteristics and severity of psychological distress after abortion among university students. The Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research 40(3), 279-293.

Fergusson, D. Horwood, L. J., & Boden, J. M. (2008). Abortion and mental health disorders: Evidence from a 30-year longitudanal study. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 193(6), 444-451. doi: 10.1192/bjp.bp.108.056499

Gissler, M., Hemminki, E., Lonnqvist, J. (1996). Suicides after pregnancy in Finland: 1987-1994: register linkage study. British Medical Journal, 313, 1431-4.

Layer, S. D., Roberts, D., Wild, K., & Walters, J. (2004). Postabortion grief: Evaluating the possible efficacy of a spiritual group intervention. Research on Social Work Practice, 14(5), 344-350.

Reardon, D.C., Ney, P.G., Scheuren, F.J., Cougle, J.R., Coleman, P.K., Strahan, T.  (2002). Deaths associated with pregnancy outcome: a record linkage study of low income women. Southern Medical Journal, 95(8), 834-841.

Rue V.M., Coleman P.K., Rue J.J., & Reardon D.C.  (2004). Induced abortion and traumatic stress: A preliminary comparison of American and Russian women. Medical Science Monitor, 10(10), SR5-16

Shuping, M. (2011). Wantedness & coercion: Key factors in understanding women’s mental health after abortion. Association for Interdisciplinary Research in Values and Social Change, 23(2), 1-8. Retrieved from http://www.abortionresearch.us/images/Vol23No2.pdf.

Shuping, M. (2016a). Abortion recovery counseling: Pro-choice, Pro-life, and pro-voice common cround. In Rachel M. MacNair (Ed.),  Peace Psychology Perspectives on Abortion (pp.   115-136). Kansas City, MO: Feminism and Nonviolence Studies Association.

Shuping, M. (2016b). Counterpoint:  Long lasting distress after abortion. In Rachel M. MacNair (Ed.),  Peace Psychology Perspectives on Abortion (pp.   115-136). Kansas City, MO: Feminism and Nonviolence Studies Association.

Suliman S.,  Ericksen T., Labuschgne T., de Wit R., Stein D., & Seedat S. (2007). Comparison of pain, cortisol levels, and psychological distress in women undergoing surgical termination of pregnancy under local anesthesia versus intravenous sedation. BMC Psychiatry, 7(24). doi:10.1186/1471-244X-7-24.

Sullins, D. (2016). Abortion, substance abuse and mental health in early adulthood: Thirteen-year longitudinal evidence from the United States. SAGE open medicine, 4, https://ssrn.com/abstract=2813546