Beyond Today Daily

Roe v Wade - Part 4: The Defining Debate

Language is conditioning us to accept things that are sinful as a normal part of life. 

Transcript

[Darris McNeely] Language is very important in any discussion in any debate because it defines the terms and it defines an understanding of what is taking place. It actually conditions us. And as I've read a lot of the media coverage on this topic about the Supreme Court decision, their view is very persistent and consistent, and it's very direct in using terms about abortion as healthcare or reproductive rights. I even read one particular story that was talking about a citizen's right to healthcare or a person's right to abortion, defining it down to where it's just a person and not just a woman because you see it's just a woman who can become pregnant.

And yet the language is tilted to meet the standards of a different view about gender that is a part of a larger sexual revolution that is taking place in America. But many companies are providing now as part of their healthcare benefit package, the funds for an employee that may be pregnant living in a state where abortion is forbidden to travel to another state where abortion is permitted. And it's now a part of their healthcare package that can pay for that. But the language that is being used to describe this is what I'm really talking about here.

Proctor & Gamble, Target, Chase Bank are among the many, many huge American corporations that are a part of this saying that they will cover the travel expenses for employees who cannot access abortions where they live, and going through. Proctor & Gamble has made this statement that, "This is an important issue to many people and we recognize the broad range of views. As we have for many years, Proctor & Gamble supports our employees in having access to a wide range of healthcare options so they can determine what's best for them and their families."

Healthcare options, what's best for their families. Taking a life from the womb of a mother destroys families. How can it be even considered to be in the same sentence as something that is the best for a family, or just like another healthcare option? Like you might have a heart procedure or another operation dealing with cancer or some other type of illness, abortion is just lumped into this as part of a healthcare package.

You see how the language is conditioning us to think that's something that is a sin in God's eyes and morally wrong is just like another part of our healthcare and a part of life, and something that we should feel as a part of our liberty and even as it has in the past, at least been considered legally a constitutional right. And so it is something to think about. It reminds me of the Scripture in Ezekiel 44:23, where it speaks about the role of the priests in the temple and in the community of Israel, the religious teachers. And our ministry and our religious teachers today should be just as clear as God said His priests should have been and were to be in the Old Testament.

It says that "They shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the unholy." A priest was to teach the difference between what was holy and unholy. A minister has to do the same thing, a church has to do the same thing. And we've been very consistent in Beyond Today and how we have taught on this particular subject to help people discern, as it goes on to say, "Between the unclean and the clean."

Language is very important. As you read various reports and media outlets about abortion, keep in mind how they may be conditioning you through words and through language to redefine matters on abortion, transgender, sexual issues, and the whole package. It's very important. God's Word is not so ambiguous, it's pretty clear.

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Darris McNeely

Darris McNeely works at the United Church of God home office in Cincinnati, Ohio. He and his wife, Debbie, have served in the ministry for more than 43 years. They have two sons, who are both married, and four grandchildren. Darris is the Associate Media Producer for the Church. He also is a resident faculty member at the Ambassador Bible Center teaching Acts, Fundamentals of Belief and World News and Prophecy. He enjoys hunting, travel and reading and spending time with his grandchildren.

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Most of the people in this country did not understand the devastation that was going to follow Roe v. Wade. Babies are now having their lives taken inside the womb, or in what is called a partial birth abortion, all the way up to full term. 

In the United States, our Constitution and the amendments are the rule of law. Each state has their own set of laws, but the federal laws override them. The separation between the senate, judicial and presidency are supposed to hold each other in check, but with Roe v. Wade that was upended. On anything so critical, delegates should have had a say, but a trumped-up case based on lies made abortion-on-demand the law of the land. Even the woman used as a pawn to bring this about regretted her role in it. The original ruling was passed off as protecting women if they had been raped, in cases of incest, and the life of the mother. Did you know those account for a tiny percentage of abortions performed? Most of the people in this country did not understand the devastation that was going to follow this ruling. Babies are now having their lives taken inside the womb, or in what is called a partial birth abortion, all the way up to full term.

One common response to stopping this is: ‘Who is going to raise all of these unwanted babies?’

This is a component usually ignored in that response: “Nearly two million infertile couples in the United States are actively trying to adopt a child. Each of those hopeful couples would give their right arm for the privilege of parenting children, whose lives are being ended prematurely by a scalpel or a pill.

"Since the dawn of time there have been pregnant women who could not parent the child in their wombs, and there have been infertile couples longing for a family. Never has it been harder to bring those two parties together—birth mother and adoptive parents. The basic problem is the growing scarcity of babies due to the culture of abortion.

"Think about the current adoptive couple’s plight. After years of failed infertility interventions, a couple decides to adopt. Now they face a whole new set of challenges, including as much as $45,000 to an adoption agency in a process that could take two or three years. For every eligible baby, an invisible queue of 36 couples waits for the chance to take that baby home” (source: The Federalist).

What is our "culture of abortion?" From a study by Guttmacher Institute: “The reasons most frequently cited were that having a child would interfere with a woman's education, work or ability to care for dependents (74%); that she could not afford a baby now (73%); and that she did not want to be a single mother or was having relationship problems (48%). Nearly four in 10 women said they had completed their childbearing, and almost one-third were not ready to have a child. Fewer than 1% said their parents' or partners' desire for them to have an abortion was the most important reason. Younger women often reported that they were unprepared for the transition to motherhood, while older women regularly cited their responsibility to dependents.

"While a small proportion of women who have abortions do so because of health concerns or fetal anomalies, the large majority choose termination in response to an unintended pregnancy.

"In light of the public debate over the morality of abortion, it is notable that the women in our survey emphasized their conscious examination of the moral aspects of their decisions. Although some described abortion as sinful and wrong, many of those same women, and others, described the indiscriminate bearing of children as a sin, and their abortion as 'the right thing' and 'a responsible choice.' Respondents often acknowledged the complexity of the decision, and described an intense and difficult process of deciding to have an abortion, which took into account the moral weight of their responsibilities to their families, themselves and children they might have in the future.

"Just 1% of women obtain an abortion because they became pregnant through rape, and less than 0.5% do so because of incest.

"This study is subject to some limitations. Our sample is not strictly nationally representative. Also, only 58% of the abortion patients seen by the participating facilities completed the survey, and non-response on some variables—notably, income—was high. However, the social and demographic characteristics of respondents were similar to those of two nationally representative surveys, which provides some reassurance that the findings are representative of abortion patients in the United States."

This is one woman’s response on social media to this going before the Supreme Court once again: “I believe in separation of church and state. In trying to reverse Roe v. Wade, people are crossing that line. I believe in pro life and pro choice. Legally we can't force religion on people, but this is EXACTLY what is being done. Very sad! Very illegal and goes against Founding Father [sic] Principals. Since Trump took office we have no separation of powers. We no longer have a Constitution. He said he is the law of the land...and he is. My military family fought and died for nothing.”

Can we not see that this kind of reasoning would say any murder is basically a matter of religion and cannot be policed? Or thou shalt not steal? Thou shalt not bear false witness? Etc. Where do we draw the line? When someone steals from us, perjures themselves to convict us for a crime we did not commit, murders our child outside the womb? These babies feel excruciating pain during the processes used and now some states have passed laws that it can happen all the way up to full term.

The woman on social media is somewhat correct: we cannot legislate morality and we are sexualizing our children at younger and younger ages. Pandora’s box has been opened and is it possible to put all of the evil back in?

This is where our culture of death has led us: people no longer see the truth that this is murder. It is not just a blob of cells! Many who have had abortions believe it is not a baby at the point they had the abortion. Babies born prematurely are kept alive after 21 weeks and 5 days gestation. Science has come a long way since Roe v. Wade in proving those in the womb have the nerve endings to feel all that is being done to them as an abortion is being performed.

Another thing that is mostly considered not even debatable is a case where a father wants his child, is willing to raise it, but is denied that choice.

One percent of women obtain an abortion because they became pregnant through rape, and less than 0.5% do so because of incest, according to the Guttmacher Institute. Yet both of these and the concern for life of the mother in danger (also a small percentage), usually become the focus of attention in the national abortion debate.

“My entire professional life has been devoted to saving and enhancing lives. Thus, the thought of abortion for the sake of convenience does not appeal to me. Many of us turn a blind eye to the wanton slaughter of millions of helpless human babies who are much more sophisticated than some of the other creatures, when nothing is at stake other than the convenience of one or both parents. I am not saying that we should abandon our efforts to save baby seals and a host of other animals. Rather I am saying shouldn't we consider adding human fetuses and babies to the list?” - Dr. Ben Carson

Many women come to regret having had an abortion, and at least one person I am aware of slowly fell apart and eventually took her own life. If someone reading this has regret over having an abortion, please know that God forgives anyone who turns from mistakes of the past.

"So you shall put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you when you do what is right in the sight of the LORD" (Deuteronomy 21:9).

"I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live" (Deuteronomy 30:19).

"What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, 'You shall not covet'" (Romans 7:7).

Now it has come before the Supreme Court once again to decide how to handle abortion. May we end the slaughter of the innocents, choose life and remove this blood stain from our land!

Darris McNeely works at the United Church of God home office in Cincinnati, Ohio. He and his wife, Debbie, have served in the ministry for more than 43 years. They have two sons, who are both married, and four grandchildren. Darris is the Associate Media Producer for the Church. He also is a resident faculty member at the Ambassador Bible Center teaching Acts, Fundamentals of Belief and World News and Prophecy. He enjoys hunting, travel and reading and spending time with his grandchildren.