THOUGHTS
News stories about a senator who recently changed his long-held position on the cloning issue has left many wondering how such a seemingly startling transformation in his priorities took place. Other formerly pro-life politicians are somehow trying to walk a narrow cliff’s edge regarding embryonic stem cell research that gets more slippery by the minute. The art of trying to navigate a mind-field of public opinion is nothing new to politics; however, when one switches to the middle from a clearly-defined path it is disconcerting to those watching the balancing act. If there is anything our culture needs right now it is leadership that does not have to test the winds of public opinion; the time for making those decisions is at the bottom of that upward journey of life, not halfway up.
The sanctity of life is not negotiable
It occurs to me that whether human life is intrinsically precious is not a negotiable position. A once-declared position on that subject should set a course that is without wavering in its purpose. Debating over how to fund a highway system or how to best protect bald eagles are issues that do lend themselves to compromise and abrupt changes in direction based on pragmatism. However, when one is faced with the dignity of human life we find ourselves embarking on a path that has very narrow parameters. One has to have a map and follow the directions carefully or disaster could be the result.
Pleasing others or ourselves?
People who try to please everyone and who end up pleasing no one are not to be envied. Most of us admire one who has carefully thought out his/her position and adheres to it whether or not we agree. We can respect that person for their steadfastness to positions they hold. Those who waffle on the path of ideals, particularly those that affect such bed-rock values as the intrinsic value of life often want to do the right thing, but they do not want to experience the harsh consequences of holding an unpopular opinion. They seem not to be able to look beyond the rough spots to the inviting glade on the other side of the precipice . . . the precipice itself is daunting enough. What they don’t realize is that things outside their control of the “middle way” tend to pop up along the path . . . the rocks of public opinion, the boulders of self-deception and the slippery slope down that most compromises of that type bring. They can’t seem to bring themselves to look ahead to the goal---they merely want to negotiate the path in their own way; in their own strength; in other words pleasing others is the paramount goal. They forget that public opinion is capricious at best; the path men’s opinions alter the course and adjustments are perilous. They forget that the majority is not always right.
Being alone is not the worst thing that can happen
We all are faced with obstacles in our path that look pretty formidable. There are not many of us that like to be the “odd man out” in a conversation about any controversial subject. None of us like to be framed by those that know as “religious nuts” and “against science” or withholding cures as in the case of cloning for research. We abhor walking the path alone; somehow the aloneness seems more fearful than the awful rocks below and the crashing descent if we make a misstep.
I just won’t decide
Sometimes we refuse to get on the path at all, hoping that somehow we will be transported to a happy journey’s end. Our hope is that if we never venture outside of our comfort zone, nothing bad can happen. This may seem prudent at the time, but decisions of others and their consequences have a way of pushing us over the edge, producing more hazards than we even imagined. The fallacy of this philosophy is that there are always many who are more than willing to intrude on our comfort zone and even take our comforts from us. Since we never ventured out or prepared ourselves to walk the mountainous path of decision we will languish by the side of the road, stripped of comforts, trodden down by those who will make the decisions for us.
Life or death?
Jesus made it clear; a man cannot serve two masters. When it comes to life issues we, like the children of Israel, are faced with either choosing life or death. The middle of the road was never an option when Moses spoke to them from Mount Nebo before their entrance into a land flowing with milk and honey. In fact, Moses’ successor, Joshua, was told to be strong and courageous . . . to let the Lord go before him, with the assurance that he would never be abandoned or forsaken. In those hard paths of decision, can we do any less?
In Him,
Judy Smith
State Director
Concerned Women for America of Kansas
P. O. Box 11233
Shawnee Mission, KS 66207
Phone/Fax: 913-491-1380
Email: director@kansas.cwfa.org
Web site: kansas.cwfa.org |