"People need to look at this topic in a way they probably have never done before."
Most of us do not enjoy talking — let alone preaching — about abortion. This issue touches a deeply personal and painful memory for many people in our congregations, and many of us would prefer to avoid it. But doing so does not help anyone. Instead, people on all sides of the issue need to look more deeply at this topic in a way they probably have never done before.
Some who are pro-life can learn greater compassion and understanding about why women have abortions, including the fact that most abortions are unwanted or coerced. Most can better understand what women and others involved in abortion may have gone through before or after abortion. Heaping shame or scorn on those who have had abortions is both counterproductive and unjust. It creates resentment and drives away those who may strongly need assurance of God’s healing love.
At the same time, many of those who have been directly or indirectly involved in abortion will need support and understanding. Some will need help to see how they can break through the walls abortion may have created in their lives. Many need to hear God’s Word directly addressed to their own experience with abortion so that they can turn with confidence to the hope of being fully healed in Christ.
Finally, abortion defenders who have not personally experienced the reality of abortion can learn that abortion is not a panacea for problem pregnancies. It is not a simple “do-it-and-forget-it” procedure. For many involved in abortion, it has a profound and lasting effect on how they see themselves, God and others. In many cases, it has a disastrous impact on every aspect of their physical, emotional, and spiritual lives, as well as on their families and others around them. The experience of abortion is a tragedy for everyone involved.
In short, we will never heal the division that abortion is causing in our churches by ignoring it. On the other hand, unless this issue is addressed in just the right way, it is guaranteed to increase resentments, arouse passions, and ultimately push people away from your community.
This book, then, is not about confrontation. Instead, it is about addressing the abortion issue in a healing and reconciling way. We must become diligent in tearing down the walls that often make those who have been directly or indirectly involved in or affected by abortion feel excluded from full participation in our faith communities. We want them to hear a welcoming message of support and healing, not the driving-away message of judgment and condemnation.
Defusing Tensions
Is it possible to speak about abortion in a way that does not antagonize members of your church? Yes.
Do our leaders and faith communities need to know that — contrary to conventional wisdom — most abortions are unwanted or coerced? Certainly.
Should the problem of forced abortion — even in free nations — be acknowledged and addressed by our faith communities? Yes.
Is it possible to preach about hope and healing after abortion without the risk of encouraging it, or angering pro-lifers? Of course it is.
Is it possible to lead a congregation to greater compassion for both those who have had abortions and the unborn children who die from abortion? Absolutely.
Drawing on more than 20 years of involvement with those who have been involved in abortion, and speaking to mixed crowds of people on all sides of this issue, I want to share with you what I have learned about opening hearts and defusing some of the emotional anger often surrounding the abortion issue. It is possible to do all of the above, and more. And it’s really not that hard to do.
What it takes is an understanding of the factors that often surround abortion — perhaps most importantly, that most abortions are unwanted or coerced — and what they may experience afterward. By better understanding these issues, you can speak to what many individuals and families among us know and have experienced. And your acknowledgement of these issues will help them to know that they are not alone in their experiences and their pain and give them hope that they can find support and healing.
At the same time, by sharing this understanding with your congregation, you will help the whole community to better understand:
- that most women do not want abortions and many have them due to direct or indirect coercion;
- whatever the pre-abortion circumstances, many struggle with emotional, psychological and spiritual wounds after abortion; and
- that many need various types of help or desire understanding and healing. This understanding will help create a more healing environment—and a less judgmental one.
Our Long-Range Goal
Our goal is simple. We want to create a society that is more supportive of individuals and families facing pregnancy-related challenges and more conducive to post-abortion healing. We want to make our society both more pro-life and more pro-woman. And the place to begin this revolution is within the church. Who better than our pastors can, and should, promote help, hope, healing and reconciliation? Who better than our pastors can help people to better understand themselves and others?
Read more in your free copy of The Jericho Plan: Breaking Down the Walls Which Prevent Post-Abortion Healing by Elliot Institute Director, David C. Reardon.
