Moving Pro-Life Forward

You know, it isn't a stretch for us all to estimate that 2009 is going to be a monumental year. From the election of President Obama to the Arizona Cardinals being in the Super Bowl, one has to ask what celestial elements are aligning for such things to occur simultaneously.

On January 20, an estimated 2 million people converged on the nation's capitol to see history in action and welcome President Barack Obama into office. Two days later, an estimated 200,000 people will converge on the National Mall to protest Roe vs. Wade, and participate in the March for Life. Since 1974, the numbers have grown from 20,000 to now 200,000. Lately I've been praying and thinking about where the pro-life movement is headed. And where, in my humble opinion, should it be headed?

Four years from now, at the end of Barack Obama's term, I hope that the pro-life movement won't exist. Rather, I pray that it won't have to exist; and I think that proponents of the movement would, in theory, share the same sentiment. Pro-life needs to become a value of society rather than a so-called "movement." But, until it does, it has a mandate; that is to promote the dignity of every person, from conception until death. In my opinion, there are some ways the movement needs to grow in order to make a real impact on culture, people and the national (and global) conscience:

One:
The pro-life movement needs to be more than a Christian/spiritual movement.
There are people of other faiths and belief systems as well as from the scientific community who agree with the moral and ethical imperative of safeguarding all human life. This should not be and is not just a "Christian" thing. Representatives of the human race, not just specific segments of society, need to raise their voices. The American people need to hear stories and passions that represent a larger contingency than just the Christian community. With that comes...

Two:
New leadership and new methodology.
There are constantly new stories, new experiences and fresh ideas in our society from young men and women who are passionate about life and the dignity of the human person. They need to be more proactive in making themselves heard, and there needs to be more opportunities for them to take part in social dialogue and consensus of understanding. The old methods of showing an aborted fetus to someone won't work. Picketing and yelling from across a street or parking lot won't work. In a society over-saturated with violence, we need a new way to reach the conscience and the soul. This will not come from a current movement. We need a new wineskin for new wine, which is;

Three:
A new Jesus movement.
A poignant quote from noted author of Christian literature, Brennan Manning (whose most popular book was "The Ragamuffin Gospel") said, "The Greatest single cause of Atheism in the world today are Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable." Similarly, Gandhi once said, "I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. They are so unlike your Christ". Ultimately, our society needs people who are radically faithful, radically humble, and radically relational. The word "radical" originates from a Greek word, meaning "to be rooted," (like a Radish, hence the word).

What would it look like if the Church today consisted of whole communities of people - men, women, families, singles, the young and the elderly - who were faithful to Church teaching, not just the stuff they personally approve of? Maybe poverty wouldn't be such an issue. Maybe there would be more than 200,000 people at the pro-life march, perhaps two million simply gathered to celebrate life. Imagine those people speaking the mercy of God, truth, all-the-while being hidden in Christ. Imagine them drawing attention to God by serving the people around them, instead of attention to themselves. That's...

Four:
Radical humility.
After being beaten to near-death by scourging, Jesus Christ was brought before the local political leader - a Roman governor named Pontius Pilate. While standing before him, broken, bleeding, abused, abandoned, mocked, made fun of (so beaten that he was unrecognizable), Jesus chose to answer Pilate's question to Him by engaging in a philosophical conversation about the truth. Quite simply, He met Pilate where he was, not where he should be.

Jesus could have said anything. He could have told Pilate that he was going to hell for not believing He was the Son of God; He could have called him a blasphemer and a sinner for washing his hands of the crucifixion. He could have said so many things.

But instead, God had a conversation. I believe this is where the church today has an opportunity, as exemplified in the actions of Christ I mentioned above. We are standing before the world - in many ways, broken and beaten up - by scandal, by our own failings, by a growing hatred of organized religion and increasing secularization; and in that moment, we have the opportunity to respond the way our God did, and talk about the truth, and in doing so, we have the opportunity to be radically relational with people. Instead of responding via violence, protest and radical self-imposed piety, let us be used to shed some light onto a situation that would help someone realize that a life is worth celebrating.

As this week unveils its mark in history, let us be intentional about our responsibility to take action - whether that's simply by building relationships where we haven't built them before, or by using our voices to rally others to petition communities to come together by focusing on the tenets of love and relationship, bringing our commonalities together for the cause of celebrating life. Let us put forward our best attempts at dismantling the divisive hurdles that keep us, as a society, running in circles. Let us be good stewards of our moral, ethical and civic duties in the form of radical love, radical faith and radical relationship.

Addendum: After writing this article, I read that news media sources indicate that President Obama will in fact, reverse the Mexico City gag policy of 2001, thereby enabling U.S. tax dollars to fund abortions and family planning services internationally. My question to President Obama is quite simple: "Aside from the obvious moral and ethical implications, we are In the middle of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. How does it make any possible sense to spend U.S. tax dollars on funding family planning around the world, when we are losing money every day?" It doesn't. I think for the next 4 years, the march for life will be a protest against death.

By Matt Maher  |  January 21, 2009; 10:35 AM ET
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Posted by: CCNL | January 21, 2009 12:31 PM
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