Pro-Life, Death, and Violence

How unhappy I am today, learning as I came to work this morning that someone murdered Dr. George Tiller down in Kansas.  As you probably know, Dr. Tiller was a late-term abortionist. He was killed by someone in the lobby of the church he attended.

You cannot be pro-life and advocate violence.  No way, no how.

This is even more disturbing to me this morning because I had a very stimulating conversation late last night with a friend whose car stalled yesterday, and he and his wife spent the night at our house. He and I got into this very issue last night  — the pro-life movement and the advocacy of violence/war in national and international relations.  My friend is a pacifist, and he practices what he preaches.  He has radically altered his life to live as a pacifist.  It has cost him dearly in many ways.  Our conversation was spirited and delightful.  How can one say, “I am against abortion!” and support capital punishment or war as it is fought in today’s world?  How can one say, “I am against all war and violence to others!”  and advocate for the “right” to choose abortion?  Either position is inherently inconsistent and the arguments made by both camps collapse if looked at with any moral or intellectual honesty.

As I have said to many over the years: 1. I have no real political home.  2. I am about two inches from being a pacifist myself.  3. I am totally against abortion.  4.  Abortion needs to be outlawed because a well-legislated law would protect our freedom and ability to orient ourselves toward life and to choose it.  5. Legislating against abortion is only part of the task.  (We must get this right.)  We also must develop just social, political, economic and legal structures that support life, especially for vulnerable women and the poor.

One cannot be consistently pro-life and advocate for the right to choose abortion.  One cannot be pro-life and fail to work toward a more just social and political and economic reality that will support life.

One cannot be pro-life and then murder someone.

Life is sacred.