“A Christianity of charity without truth would be more or less interchangeable with a pool of good sentiments, helpful for social cohesion, but of little relevance. In other words, there would no longer be any real place for God in the world.” – Pope Benedict, Caritas in Veritate
Truth is so often misunderstood today, and some want to use it interchangeably with personal preference. In reality, truth means “the real facts about something” or “the body of real things, events, and facts.” Truth is not malleable. Something is either true or it’s not true.
But in our increasingly selfish world, more and more people are pushing God out of their lives as they seek to redefine truths, especially when it comes to threats to life such as abortion or the existence of a preborn baby. Yet anyone who has studied embryology knows that a baby exists from the moment the sperm fertilizes the egg, and this is the truth we must teach to our friends and family.
But many want to alter this truth, and they want to pull others into their duplicity. We see it on social media, on TV, in movies, and in books. The truth about the existence of a preborn baby has been replaced with the phrase “reproductive rights” or a woman’s own personal “truth” (which is actually just a belief) that she can and should do whatever she wants with the baby inside her body.
However, what’s even more disturbing is that we see this obfuscation in our laws, where people have replaced God and His teachings with a love of self and are openly advocating for the death of vulnerable people, including the preborn.
The overturning of Roe v. Wade was a hollow win, if you can even call it a win. All it did was send the decision to the states and allow them to decide whether killing a tiny preborn baby could be justified. It cannot. But legislators and their followers have chosen to make laws all about “choice.” They say a woman should be able to do what she wants with her body, even though a baby’s body is not part of a woman’s; the baby merely resides and grows in her body.
They don’t consider the baby’s rights or the father’s rights or the fact that murder is still murder regardless of how small the victim is.
Now, in nearly every election cycle we see additional states adding “reproductive rights” to their ballots and phrasing the wording of these proposals in ways that deliberately cause confusion to the uneducated.
To make this tragedy even more unspeakable is the fact that many Catholics in state legislatures support these laws. Abortion is certainly incongruent to our faith, but many politicians care more about votes than about their souls. Or maybe they are ignorant. Maybe no one ever told them about the horrors of abortion and what really happens when that suction machine turns on or the mother ingests a pill. Maybe no one ever showed them images of a baby whom the doctors had to piece back together because his limbs were torn off his body. Maybe they just don’t care.
Regardless of their reasoning, their actions are incompatible with Catholic teaching. The truth is that the Church teaches that abortion is a grave sin. As we read in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law.”
It cannot be any clearer. And that is why it’s so disturbing that some Catholic legislators advocate for abortion.
In an effort to create awareness of these upcoming state ballot measures, American Life League created a campaign to alert voters about what’s going on in their states so that they can truly understand these proposals and vote against them. Currently, three states have put abortion “rights” on the ballot this November: Virginia, Nevada, and Idaho.
Additionally, ALL created the Save Virginia Campaign for the commonwealth of Virginia, where ALL is located, in an attempt to teach voters exactly what the proposal says and to make clergy aware of the fact that several Catholic politicians live and vote in direct opposition of Church teaching. The site explains that the new “proposal [on the ballot] would establish a constitutional right to ‘reproductive freedom,’ which includes abortion and contraception, allowing abortions to be committed in the third trimester” and that it would also “allow lawmakers to regulate abortion in the third trimester without prohibiting abortion based on fetal abnormalities and the life or physical and mental health of the mother.” This law not only “devalues babies with disabilities,” but it “implies that they lack value because of their disability.”
Full of information about this ballot measure (and one on marriage), including explanations about its wording and implications if passed, the Save Virginia site is a crucial tool for all Virginians.
Katherine Van Dyke, a researcher for American Life League, explained the importance of understanding what’s on the ballot:
Preborn lives are truly at stake this November, and many Virginians will not even realize it when they go to the polls. This amendment is worded so deceptively to deliberately confuse and lead Virginians to believe that it is not directly attacking the most vulnerable of our society. ALL has studied the proposal and designed our resources to educate Virginians, specifically Christians, on what these amendments would really permit if enshrined into the state constitution.
Voters must recognize the dangers inherent in this ballot measure and vote to protect life. To help spread the word, ALL’s site offers downloadable information cards for Virginia and Nevada so that people in those states can teach the truth. Cards for Idaho will be added soon.
For nearly 50 years, American Life League has been a voice for the babies, and we will continue to be their voice until every abortion is unthinkable. But now it is time for people in states with abortion on the ballot to also stand up and be a voice for the babies. We must never deny that a baby exists at that first moment of creation. To do so is not only rejecting the truth but creating a world that has left no place for God.
This article first appeared in LifeSiteNews at lifesitenews.com/opinion/murder-is-still-murder-regardless-of-how-small-the-victim-is/?utm_source=most_recent.
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