Before I became a Christian, I was a supporter of abortion.I was exposed to the media telling stories of single mothers who became pregnant through horrible circumstances such as rape, incest, or sexual violence, and stories of pregnant women whose lives would be endangered if they gave birth to a child.
The reason that I found myself supporting abortion was that I strongly believed that having a child should be within the secure bounds of marriage, coming from the love between a man and a woman.Otherwise, women who got pregnant out of wedlock, women who faced financial difficulties, or married women facing life-threatening pregnancies, were cases in which abortion was justifiable.
However, once I learned and grasped what the Creator teaches me through His Word, my perspective on abortion completely changed. The One in control of human lives is the Creator God and not the creatures themselves. In addition, the most important fact to be remembered is that life begins at conception. Therefore, aborting a child is equivalent to murdering a human being.
In 1976, Rep. Henry Hyde (R-Illinois) sponsored the annual amendment that prohibited federal funding for abortion except for cases involving the life of the mother.In 1989, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Hyde Amendment did not violate the Constitution. In July 2010, Rep. Chris Smith (R-New Jersey) introduced H.R. 5939, the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act, to prohibit taxpayer funding for abortion.The legislation already has over 180 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives, and abortion supporters are already contacting representatives to express their opposition to the bill.
Abortion supporters are focusing on the issue of economics on how pregnant women are financially insecure. Its not about the life of the mother. Instead, its all about womens rights (i.e., the right to abortion). Well, like it or not, the reality is that abortion is killing a living human being. Pregnant women with low incomes do need help, and there are pregnancy centers around the country that need more support in order to equip these women with the things that they need to keep their children. Women should also be educated about the value of life and not be told that abortion is an innocuous procedure without consequences.
Pro-abortion groups such as Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights secure womens rights under the umbrella of human rights, while disregarding the rights of children in the womb.However, the concept of human rights refers to humans in general; and that includes the unborn.
After I became a Christian, I realized that abortion is not only morally wrong, but is also a human rights issue.It is denying the right of an unborn human being to live.Because of this reality, it is important that Congress pass legislation such as H.R. 5939 in the name of human rights.
Jiin Choi is an intern with Concerned Women for Americas Ronald Reagan Memorial Internship Program.To learn more about internships with CWA, click here.