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Enemy is Us: Evangelical Women and Abortion
Abortion providers have long known that women ignore the official stance of their religion when they need abortion services. Abortions are not limited by liberal beliefs or religious ones. Based on current trends, one in three women in the U.S. will have an abortion, according to the Alan Guttmacher Institute. Every clinic has a story about a woman who picketed outside until one day she needed an abortion, as often as not asking for her identity to be shielded. These women may justify their circumstances as different. But there they are, needing a basic healthcare service, despite religious prescriptions. This is the truth that Focus on the Family is finally acknowledging. They have looked at the enemy, and a big chunk of it is them.
Kim Conroy, who bears the title of Sanctity of Human Life Director for Focus on the Family, cites studies by the Guttmacher that show many women of evangelical faith get abortions. As churches prepare to celebrate Sanctity of Human Life Week, January 15-22, 2006, Focus on the Family has challenged clergy members to consider recent statistics on abortion in the church when addressing their congregations. Conroy believes that "it's time for churches to be proactive on this issue" according to a press release. Focus on the Family refers to Guttmacher research that one in five women who have abortions are "self-identified" as "Evangelical Christians." I need to take a little detour here. The study that FOF seems to rely upon dates to 1994-1995. That study, did report that twenty percent of abortion patients are born-again or Evangelical Christians. A Guttmacher release at the time said: "ABORTION COMMON AMONG ALL WOMEN, EVEN THOSE THOUGHT TO OPPOSE ABORTION." But why Focus on the Family chose this statistic over an updated and lower one published in 2002 is a mystery. The update on socioeconomic characteristics of women obtaining abortions in 2000-2001 found that 13 percent of women who sought abortions identified themselves as "born-again" or evangelical:
The majority of women older than 17 who obtained an abortion reported a religious affiliation. The highest proportion (43%) identified themselves as Protestant. Twenty-seven percent of women having an abortion identified themselves as Catholic, and 8% as a member of another religion; 22% reported no religious affiliation. Thirteen percent identified themselves as "born-again" or evangelical, three-fourths of whom were Protestant. Nonetheless, Kim Conroy insists that "it is vital that churches prioritize talking about this growing problem." Despite the fact that the problem is not growing, and that the overall number of abortions has also decreased, the stats show that from 110,000 to 125,000 evangelical women are getting abortions each year. The 'they' who get abortions could be in the next pew.
In keeping with the most recent messaging inside the anti-abortion movement, Conroy tells pastors that they should express this "challenge" in terms of concern for the women. "Every post-abortive woman sitting in our churches needs to know that there is help and forgiveness available--and it's our hope during this Sanctity Week that pastors and other clergy will extend that to her." This approach of showing concern for women was honed by David Reardon of The Elliot Institute, a religious right organization. Reardon convinced many in the anti-abortion movement that the general public would be more sympathetic if messaging were presented in the context of concern for women instead of concern for fetuses.
Since the mid-1990s, at Reardon's instigation, rhetoric is consciously used to display "concern" about "damage" to women. Even the dire anti-abortion legislation is falsely portrayed as serving the health and welfare of women.
I must insert here that abortion does not unduly harm women; it saves lives. Abortion is physically one of the safest medical procedures. It is not a procedure that causes inordinate psychological trauma to women. The American Psychiatric Association has rejected such suggestions. (But this is a subject for a future post.) This is not to say that women don't experience feelings about abortion, or childbirth, for that matter. But anti-abortion organizations are ready to stigmatize women and stoke any feelings of insecurity about abortion. They insist that women must feel bad. Women are encouraged to repent, and part of repenting is to join the anti-abortion movement.
There is another reason for this approach. Reardon states: And so there is a tremendous opportunity and I think it is a great evangelization opportunity for the Church. January 22 marks the 33rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade. You can bet you will hear more of this talk in the coming weeks.
Enemy is Us: Evangelical Women and Abortion | 9 comments (9 topical, 0 hidden)
Enemy is Us: Evangelical Women and Abortion | 9 comments (9 topical, 0 hidden)
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