Rowan Williams has weighed in on the growing issue of abortion law in the UK. Channel 4 reportedly showed a film illustrating the graphic reality of abortions, with the remains of babies a powerful testimony to their humanity.
The Archbishop is ostensibly against abortion, and he argues that a shift has taken place in society, creating an odd tension that means we frown upon a woman who smokes in pregnancy, and talk about 'foetal rights' to stop her affecting her unborn child through smoke; but she may have the child killed with impunity and a fanfare of 'women's rights'.
This isn't a paradox, as he claims, though. It's hypocrisy. We know the unborn child is a child. We know that the minute a woman is pregnant, she needs to be aware of whats she consumes, because it will have an effect on the child she now carries.
We've just been conditioned, by the very fact that 40 years ago the government said it was ok to kill babies in certain circumstances, to believe that a woman possesses an inalienable right to something abhorrent.
We need to shake out of our stupor, and acknowledge reality. When a pregnancy is terminated, a child is killed. This is not something we need to be encouraged to debate. This is simple fact, as the growing uneasiness about the topic among the British public, illustrates very well.
I'm glad the ABC has written his article, but I'm saddened to see him liken the legislation about the deliberate killing of children to the divorce laws, or civil partnerships. This kind of relativity ethic is the very last thing that will make people acknowledge what they already know.
Rowan Williams, as hard as it may be for the leader of the Anglican church to do - talk about an absolute, because you certainly have the skill with words to do so. Stand up for those whose voice is only that small, insistent nudging of our conscience.
HT
ukok
10/21/2007
The abortion debate continues in the UK
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8 comments:
Thanks for sharing this.
We are in the midst of an election campaign here in Australia at the moment, and I already feel frustrated that this is an issue that many Christians just don't want to touch or if they do it is just seen as another one in the same league as fairer industrial relations laws. It needs to be seen as an absolute as you say - when we're talking about abortion, we're really talking about murder.
Actually, we have experience where the state will not intervene when a mother puts her unborn child in danger. Say, for example, a mother was known to be delusional and paranoid, to be taking diazepam, heroin, cannabis and cocaine, smoking and drinking strong lager, to have a life that was in no way safe and to have not had any prenatal care until 28 weeks, to have lost the amniotic fluid but refuse intervention, and what do you think would be done to protect the precious one in her womb?
NOTHING. Well, sending the police to knock on the door and make sure the baby wasn't born yet, but also if she told them to go away for them to just go away. The child had no right to protection until born. Nice. I love life in a civilised society where the rights of a criminal and insane adult come before the rights of an unborn child.
The day when babies are protected properly as human beings will be a wonderful day.
I have serious doubts about RW, have for a while now...his comments after the big tsunami were, well, I don't have words...
None of it seems to make very much sense does it...unless you believe the bible, and the unavoidable doctrines within it like, original sin and man's total depravity.
Oh, and remember to mix in the world's essential doctrine of "whatever makes you happy".
Combine all that together, and what you get is the murderous stew of abortion and the like.
Ah, but MrsPea, most people would agree with you that this woman did a terrible things by her child. If that same woman had asked a Doctor to kill, those same people would say she had made a good choice for her and her baby.
Let's pray that one day this dreadful, dreadful thing won't be allowed to happen anymore.
Next time you meet a poor child from a poor neighbourhood, or a physically or mentally disabled person, or a person who has a cleft lip or club foot, or perhaps someone from an ethnic minority where males are more valued than females but were unfortunate to be born female instead of a wanted male….ask them as simple question, are you glad to be alive or do you wish your mother had excercised her right to choose; to abort you?
Why on earth would I ask such a ridiculous and deeply offensive question, Simon?
Hi Libbie,
I enjoy your blog on the occasions that I think to drop in and read.
I wrote a rather lengthy (but honestly pretty good) poem about abortion a number of years ago. If you'd like to see it, you might drop me an email or put a comment on my blog. I'd be happy to send it to you. I don't want to bombard you with unwanted emails.
God bless you and yours.
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