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Two Great Issues Converge

It is that time of year where two great moral crises of modern life converge at one time.   On January 22, 1973, the Supreme Court of the United States voted to overturn state laws that made the termination of unborn children criminal acts.  There were a few states at the time where abortion was legal.  In most states, there were restrictions against elective abortion, the taking of unborn human life where there was no threat to the mother’s life, and where the pregnancy had not been caused by a rape.  In Texas, where Norma McCorvey lived, abortion was allowed in those limited situations.

It is beyond my expertise to write about the ins and outs of the legal decision.  I find the comments of the two dissenting justices interesting:

"I find nothing in the language or history of the Constitution to support the Court's judgment. The Court simply fashions and announces a new constitutional right for pregnant women and, with scarcely any reason or authority for its action, invests that right with sufficient substance to override most existing state abortion statutes. The upshot is that the people and the legislatures of the 50 States are constitutionally disentitled to weigh the relative importance of the continued existence and development of the fetus, on the one hand, against a spectrum of possible impacts on the woman, on the other hand. As an exercise of raw judicial power, the Court perhaps has authority to do what it does today; but, in my view, its judgment is an improvident and extravagant exercise of the power of judicial review that the Constitution extends to this Court."

The result of this decision, and subsequent legal developments, is that abortion on demand has become a popular form of birth control.  Since 1973, over 50 million abortions have been performed legally in the United States.  While a small percentage of those abortions may have been for problem pregnancies (where the mother's life was in danger) or in the case where a rape resulted in pregnancy, the vast majority were elective in nature.  The women involved did want to have sex, but they didn’t want to have children.  We will never know how many Einsteins, Beethovens, George Washington Carvers, or Mother Teresas were aborted.  A great deal of creative genius, labor and ingenuity has been lost.  Countless billions in tax dollars by wage earners was lost.  Perhaps we aborted the cure for cancer?  Did the mind that would have found next breakthrough in space travel wind up aborted? We won’t know in this life.

In an amazing historical irony, Norma McCorvey renounced her position as “Jane Roe” and became a follower of Jesus Christ.  She is a practicing Roman Catholic Christian and is active in the pro-life movement.

In the same generation, a decade earlier, another key moral issue came to light: the civil rights movement.   Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. became the key figure in the peaceful branch of the civil rights moment.  In the vein of Gandhi and others, he sought to use nonviolent protest to bring to light rampant discrimination against black Americans, and to seek social change through both legislation and conscience.   Drawing from the Biblical prophets, Dr. King spoke to these issues.

Grace Community Church is involved in both of these issues.   I won’t fully develop the Biblical case for the sacredness of unborn human life, but suffice it to say it starts with the truth that human beings are created in the image of God.  We are invested with dignity and majesty because we are made in the image of God, by God, and for God.   To express our commitment to the unborn, we supply funds and volunteers for the Pregnancy Centers of Central Virginia.  This ministry provides care for women with unwanted pregnancies.  This care includes prayer, medical tests, counsel, evangelism, and material assistance.  The women who come are encouraged to consider life for their child, and are assisted whether they choose to give their child to adoptive parents, or raise the child.  PCCV is a very positive way to express our belief in the value of human life.  Additionally the centers assist fathers of unborn children, and provide counseling for women who experience trauma from their abortions.

On the civil rights side, we host the Greene County Ministerial Association's Martin Luther King Celebration at 7:00pm on Sunday Jan.19th.  Churches from Greene County will join with us in the celebration. The offering from that evening will support the MLK, Jr. scholarship fund and the Dragon Support and Success Club at William Monroe High School.  The scholarship fund is available to students at William Monroe from any ethnic background who plan to pursue a life of community service.  The Dragon Support and Success club is a new beneficiary of the offering.  This club, led by a fellow believer, helps students with significant life challenges who may run a high risk of dropping out of school.  Our local ministers were encouraged by the vision and passion of Daphne Tynes who leads this club.

The service Sunday night lives out the best of Dr. King’s vision.  Christians of different ethnic and denominational backgrounds join together in worship and fellowship at this service.  This year we will have the step team from Culpeper, a mime, various music groups, and an inspirational message.  GCC will have something surprising to offer as well.   Can you help out?  Please bring some finger foods to share with our friends after church.  One of the most meaningful times is the conversation after the service around some food and drink.

The two issues are at different places at this point.  America has made strides to give people of all races fair treatment.  Abortion is declining, but as a culture we have not recognized the value of human life.  In both cases we continue to work and pray, awaiting the return of the King who will make all things new.

 

In Him,

Don

Don Ward

Senior Pastor

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