How Do We Protect The Unborn?

About 3 years ago I had a FB conversation with a young lady I knew and some of her friends. They’d been upset with a pro-life meme I had on my FB page, and they decided to gang-up on me and show me the error of my ways.

Some of their tactics were - they’d say that if I cared about the unborn I’d have taken in a foster child. Well, they didn’t know me very well, because my wife and I HAD taken in a foster child (a nice young man named Chad). Then they declared that if I cared about the unborn I’d have adopted a child. But they didn’t know me very well. I explained to them that I had indeed adopted a baby boy we named Jonathan about 29 years ago and he became my “first born” son. When those two arguments didn’t work, these girls resorted to making snide & insulting comments about me and my beliefs (I wasn’t really offended, just not quite sure what they felt they could accomplish by doing that).

But the one girl in the group who DID know me – wrote this: “I am not so sure you are aware of how women were treated by society and church that led to legalizing abortion. You also, apparently, are not a woman. We don’t live in a perfect world. If we did, every pregnancy would be joyful.”

My reply: “I was wondering when you’d resort to the ‘you are not a woman’ argument... but you’re right. I’m not. And you are also right that society and the church have not always been as protective of women as they should have been. It’s not right for those - who have the power to do so – to not protect those who are vulnerable. But let’s turn your rationale around. In a pregnancy, it’s the unborn child that’s vulnerable, and it’s the abortionist who does vile things to such a child. Rarely is this about protecting the woman... it’s more about removing an obstacle for a ‘joyful’ life for the woman. And yes, we don’t live in a perfect world but taking the life of the most vulnerable is NOT the way to accomplish that.”

Shortly after that conversation, she and her friends blocked me

Now, the question tonight is this: why are we here? Some might say that we’re here because of Roe v. Wade that was passed in 1973. And that’s true… up to a point. If it weren’t for Roe V. Wade, our nation would never have reached the point where we have pro-life groups. Roe v. Wade mobilized the pro-life movement as nothing else could have done.

But that’s only part of the reason we’re here. A lot of people don’t realize how anti-child the world has been over the centuries.

ILLUS: In the Bible we read about folks who worshipped Molech, and who would sacrifice their children to this pagan god. They’d build a fire under the hands of their god, and as they placed the child in those hands, I’m told the heat would eventually contort the child’s face into a grotesque smile that would tell the worshipper that Molech was pleased with their sacrifice.

Another horrible practice was what they called ‘foundation sacrifices.’ When a house was to be built, a child would be sacrificed, and its body built into the wall to bring good luck to the rest of the family.

But God told Israel “DON’T YOU EVER DO THAT… Leviticus 20:2-3 "Say to the Israelites: ‘Any Israelite or any alien living in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech must be put to death. The people of the community are to stone him. I will set my face against that man and I will cut him off from his people; for by giving his children to Molech, he has defiled my sanctuary and profaned my holy name.”

Years ago, I had a subscription to a magazine called Biblical Archeological Review.” The year was 1984, and I read an article in that magazine entitled “Child Sacrifice at Carthage—Religious Rite or Population Control? (Biblical Archaeology Review 10:1, January/February 1984 “Child Sacrifice at Carthage—Religious Rite or Population Control?”) and they were discussing the city of Carthage in northern Africa.

Carthage was where Hannibal came from, and it was a major military power that challenged the might of Rome. Archeologists had been doing some digging around the city Carthage and they were surprised at what they’d found there.

You see, many archeologists view religion as something that has evolved. The thinking is that early religion was crude and barbaric, and human sacrifices were the norm. And (they thought) as religion evolved people became more “humane” and substituted animals for the children they once sacrificed.

But that’s not what they found at Carthage. It seems that the early sacrifices were animals, and as time went on human sacrifice became more common (replaced animal with children).