In an earlier post, I wrote about why the Church cares about bioethics. Here are five things Christians can do to further the pro-life cause.
- Pray. Prayer gets a bad rap in this age of “thoughts and prayers.” People mock Christians for responding to tragedy with prayer, as if prayer is the same thing as doing nothing. They say work for change. Take action. That’s better than prayer because it gets results. Christians, however, believe that God hears their prayers, for the sake of Christ. Prayer is simply going to our Father with our cares and needs and that is always appropriate, not just at times of crisis. When you pray, remember the woman who feels as if she has no other options that a door would open. Pray for the parent, boyfriend, or husband who might be pressuring her toward abortion that they relent. Pray for the doctors and personnel of the clinic to come to their senses. Pray for politicians to enact just laws. Pray for our nation and the world for this holocaust to end. Pray for mercy for all who awaken with blood on their hands. Prayer does not take the place of action on our part (which we will come to momentarily), but our every task needs to be amply covered in prayer.
- Learn. Take some time to become more familiar with the issues. The Lutherans for Life website is full of excellent gospel-focused articles. There are many worthy pro-life organizations that offer training and material. Becoming better informed is not just for your personal benefit but will help you to be a more persuasive witness to your neighbor when the occasions arise.
- Give. First, generously support your local congregation. Attend a church that defends human life in the womb. But above and beyond that, I would also direct your attention to Lutherans for Life again. They’re able to do good work because people support them financially. Furthermore, in your community there is probably a Crisis Pregnancy Center, a pro-life agency which offers counseling and other services to women considering an abortion. Many of these are expressly Christian in nature and they give much needed help. Your church could organize a drive to collect diapers or baby clothes and supplies.
- Adopt. Adoption is a beautiful expression of the gospel, unmerited love, welcoming the orphaned into families. It is a powerful picture of grace. It is a godly and Godlike thing. So it’s no surprise that caring for orphans has been important to the work of the Church since its early days. Writing in about the year 110, Ignatius warned the church in Smyrna:
“Now note well those who hold heretical opinions about the grace of Jesus Christ that came to us; note how contrary they are to the mind of God. They have no concern for love, none for the widow, none for the orphan, none for the oppressed, none for the prisoner or the one released, none for the hungry or thirsty” (Ignatius, Smyrnaeans 6.2).
Polycarp, a disciple of the apostle John himself, wrote:
“The presbyters, for their part, must be compassionate, merciful to all, turning back those who have gone astray, visiting all the sick, not neglecting a widow, orphan, or poor person, but always aiming at what is honorable in the sight of God and of people” (Polycarp, Philippians 6.1, c. A.D. 110).
Further support is found in Justin Martyr, from the mid-second century (c. 100–165), who recounted:
“those who are well off and are willing to do so give as much as each desires, and the money thus collected is deposited with the bishop, who takes care of the orphans and widows, and those who are in straits through sickness or any other cause, and those in prison, and our visitors from other parts — in short, he looks after all who are in need” (Justin Martyr, 1 Apology 67).
So you can see from these ancient fathers that church leaders were expected to oversee works of mercy.
See how closely orthodoxy is tied to life. Right doctrine is displayed in right action. A right understanding of “the grace of Jesus Christ” moves us to love one another. This one deserves a number of dedicated blog posts of its own. I know many Christian families do adopt and many are unable to, but what can we do to make adoption more prevalent in our church communities?
- Vote. You know what to do.
Remember, in all things, love one another. This is by no means an exhaustive list. What are some of your ideas for steps we can take to advance the pro-life message? Comment below.