An alarm goes off. I
wake up. I put my feet on the
floor. I go into the bathroom and take a
shower. I get dressed. I go downstairs, make coffee, prepare my
lunch for the day, then make my breakfast.
I eat my breakfast. I read my
Bible or watch a video or simply sit quietly contemplating various matters or
praying.
I finish my breakfast, take care of my dishes, brush my
teeth, and leave my house. This often
involves me putting on my home alarm. It
definitely involves me locking my door as I leave.
Note what happened here: I engaged in approximately 16
volitional acts before walking out of my door.
Yes, the act of an abortion frequently contains its own
significant psychological punishment. I
had a friend who confessed to me he and his then girlfriend had, at one time,
procured an abortion, and he (not just her) was still feeling the overwhelming
guilt the act had engendered in him. Feeling that guilt, shame, and emotional
trauma does not mean, however, a woman who procures the death of her baby has
no culpability. She has to take numerous
steps before she gets the abortion clinic (or obtains an abortion pill prescription)
and, even upon arrival, remains in control of the decision until right before
it happens (or until she takes the pill).
To argue “women are victims of abortion” as the “Open Letter to
Lawmakers” signed by numerous pro-life agencies does, is not correct.
I am not in favor of significant criminalization for a woman
who has an abortion. The emotional
impact is often enormous and gut wrenching.
But if I happen to have a certain blood alcohol level, even though it isn’t
truly impacting my driving, and I’m involved in a traffic accident where I
inadvertently strike a pedestrian and kill them, I can be held accountable and may
be found guilty of the felony of involuntary manslaughter. This is true no matter what my motives, or my
lack of intent, or even if I’ve never been intoxicated before in my life. In addition, I will feel the guilt of that
death the rest of my life. No one would
reasonably refer to me as a victim.
There is an irony that because my BAC in the prior example
is 0.081 instead of 0.079 I am suddenly deemed a potential felon, despite
having no intent to harm whatsoever, whereas some within the current
evangelical intelligentsia seem to think a woman who has taken active steps to
intentionally procure someone else’s death has no culpability. Just because someone feels guilty and badly
about doing something awful doesn’t turn them into a victim. Just because someone has listened to bad
advice or had their conscience seared by popular culture doesn’t absolve them
of responsibility for their actions. A
woman who procures an abortion has to take numerous volitional steps to get there
and should have some consequences for killing her child. Laws can be written to take the circumstances
of the abortion into account in order to make the punishment fit the crime,
should a woman procure an illegal abortion.
Treating a woman who has had an abortion as merely a victim
(regardless of the legality of the abortion) is, oddly and ironically,
stripping her of dignity, rather than helping her – much like the person who
acts as an enabler to someone else’s addiction or other bad actions. The open letter to lawmakers proclaims
abortion is evil. A willing participant
in an evil should repent of it. Forcing
the woman to account for what she’s done beyond simply acknowledging her pain
is not merely appropriate but necessary for her to recognize the moral
indecency of her actions and repent of them.
If she’s just another victim, then she has no moral obligations and
therefore no repentance to make. Failing
to permit her to repent by telling her she is just as much a victim and has no
accounting for it whatsoever fails her in a most egregious way. Frankly, this is as equally despicable as
simply labeling her a murderer and acting as if she deserves no sympathy or
concern.
The ”victim” position is out of touch with Scripture, as
well. Jesus told the invalid at the pool
of Bethesda and the woman caught in adultery to “sin no more.” (John Ch. 5 and
John Ch. 8). Should not the woman who
has procured an abortion, which the letter labels as an evil, be told to “sin
no more?” Isn’t the whole point of
repentance the relief of placing that burden at the cross where it can be
properly and permanently dealt with? The
letter’s position is taking this joy away from a woman who has had an abortion. Does God not know what’s best for her? The letter claims to be a Christian response
– frankly, I’m not sure the signers have fully considered the good it often
does for someone to face outside consequences of their sinful behavior.
Perhaps there is another possibility? First, if a woman procures an illegal
abortion, both she and the other participants in the abortion (including the
man who got her pregnant) should face legal consequences. This does two things. First, it provides a disincentive since it’s
illegal. While not everyone responds to
legal restraints, many do. That’s why
our country is not completely lawless. Most
people obey the law out of fear, out of respect, or out of self-preservation. But they obey. So while it’s true laws don’t stop people
from doing what they want (it’s illegal in every state in the United States to
commit murder, but murders still happen), for many people the cost/benefit analysis
of committing the crime typically weighs against the crime.
Second, it creates an incentive for people to exercise some
restraint and forethought. If I know I’m
prone to letting my temper get out of control but I don’t want to ever kill anyone,
I may well decide to avoid carrying around a weapon that will make it easier for
me to kill someone. The same would be
true for abortion. There are women who
will decide not to engage in risky sexual ventures because the idea of becoming
pregnant and possibly needing an illegal abortion outweighs the value of the
sexual encounter. There are men who will
decide it’s not worth it to take the gamble, as well.
Third, if the punishment for the abortionist is
significantly higher than that for the woman and other abortion procurers (husbands,
boyfriends, parents, etc.) that will create significant disincentives for health
care providers to offer such services. I
would urge voluntary manslaughter (a very serious felony) or higher for the
abortionist and some non-felony offense for the woman and others involved in
procuring the abortion (heavy on fines, modest or no jail time, lengthy probation,
and significant community service).
I know this scheme will infuriate many. Offer other solutions. I’m just trying to get a reasoned conversation started. Clearly, the “pro-life” movement isn’t willing to have the conversation at all. Denny Burk Appealing to Southern Baptists.
