Abortion & Euthanasia etc. resources

On Sunday I made some comments about abortion and euthanasia (amongst other things) from the 6th Commandment, "You Shall Not Murder". You may find some interesting stuff on these subjects on The Christian Institute website (link on the right). The Institute is a kind of public policy lobbying think tank resource type thing. I also linked to The Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child yesterday.

I would also highly recommend Rev'd Dr David Field's ethics notes which cover subjects such as abortion, euthanasia, just war and a whole lot more, as well as quite a bit of stuff on how to think (ethically), meta-ethics.

On our church website sermons page, you can find (evangelistic) talks by my predecessor as curate, Rev'd Jeremy Hobson (who is a medical doctor) on abortion, euthanasia, stem cell research and other topics besides.

As ever, John Frame's The Christian Life (P&R Lordship Series) would be a great place to go to think more about the Commandment and the issues it raises, though arising out of and more oriented towards a US context than a UK one. Get that book - its impressively fat but pretty readable!

A ball of cells?

Images of unborn children from The Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child (SPUC).

Murderous judgements

Abortion is a suicidal frenzy. The wrath of God is coming against it. But abortion itself is also a judgement of God. Is that not obvious? How could it be otherwise? These people are so mad that they will murder their own babies and God will let them do it. He will give them over to it. They must be under the judgement of God. (See Romans 1).

Get some tissues

Sit down and go and watch this video - it takes less that 7 mins.

Wipe your eyes.

Now tell me that you believe in abortion?!

Pray:

Sorry that we are not grateful for our children as we should be and that we fail to care for them and love them as we might. Sorry that we tolerate their murder.

Thank you for Eliot and for the Lord Jesus, that he said, "let the little children come to me and do not hinder them because to such as these belongs the Kingdom of Heaven."

Please bless and help Eliot's family and frieds and all who mourn. Be with those who know the pain of loss or who have never received the gift of children for which they long.

Loving heavenly Father, God of life and death, have mercy upon us.

No murder

Murder is unlawful killing - killing that is not authorised by God, that is contrary to his law.

Some forms of killing are good - the execution of some criminals by the state, for example.

The murder of the unborn child. Life begins at conception. The Bible proves that in the womb a child can be a believer in covenant relationship with God. We should work on the assumption that the children of believers are believers.

Some facts and statistics. You can see their heartbeat and little fingers. Many women have abortions, some have multiple abortions. Many babies are murdered in this way. God will not hold us guiltless.

Abortion has been introduced by stealth. We have a system of abortion on demand.

My wife was more or less offered an abortion when she went to the GP to say she was pregnant with our son: "what do you want to do now / do you want to have the baby?"

Viable babies are aborted.

Disabled people are not worthless and better off dead.

Rape is awful but two wrongs don't make a right.

Abortion is not the woman's right to choose. What about the Father? What about the child? What about God? Society? etc.

Some so called feminist Christians celebrate abortion as the liberation of women. Better for them to have a mill-stone strapped to them and to be thrown into the depths of the sea.

Abortion is a gross sin and a terrible crime which should be illegal.

Abortion is not some kind of unforgivable sin. God is rich rich rich in mercy.

Christians must stand against abortion, loving mothers and babies. They should provide information and help including adoption e.g. for children born as a result of fathers raping their daughters.

The only circumstance in which an abortion is acceptable is if the mother's life is at risk. Even then it is not required.

No suicide. God is the Lord of Life. He gives and he takes away. Blessed be his name.

No character assasinations.

We often murder people in our hearts.

Repentance is a kind of lawful death to self. For the murdered and the murderer there is the hope or terror of resurrection.

Jesus was murdered but he rose again and is the Lord of Life and death.

Anti-Abortion Petition

You can sign the Alive and Kicking anti-abortion petition at:

http://www.aliveandkickingcampaign.org/petition/

Background

Since 1967 there have been almost 7 million abortions, now 200,000 a year, with one in four pregnancies ending in abortion. The 1967 Abortion Act is open to amendment during the passage of the current HFE Bill, so there is now a genuine opportunity to reduce abortion numbers. We must be alert as well to the agenda of the pro-choice activists, abortion providers and some MPs who will push for further liberalisation of the law.

Petition

We believe that 200,000 abortions a year in Britain is far too many. We urge Parliament to SUPPORT amendments to the Abortion Act which will reduce substantially the 24 week upper time limit, end discriminatory abortion of the disabled up until birth, and provide balanced evidence-based information, independently of the abortion service, that gives women a properly informed choice, along with the offer of counseling.

We also urge parliament to REJECT proposed amendments seeking to liberalise the abortion law further such as ending the requirement for two doctors' signatures, allowing nurse-led medical abortion in GP surgeries with completion at home, barring pro-life doctors from seeing women with unplanned pregnancies and extending the Abortion Act to Northern Ireland.