The Child who was Never Born ~ Innocent Blood – Closing Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

We claim to be the nation that protects the innocent.  There is uproar, rightfully so, over abuses and misconduct that violates the rights of others.  Long concealed crimes of abuse and misuse come to light and we are outraged that women are treated with such disregard. 

School shootings where innocent children are killed bring us to great grief.  We mourn the lives lost to senseless violence.  We cry for an end to the violence and search for ways to insure the safety of the defenseless.  We are willing to do what it takes to protect the children in our society.

We are willing to do this unless they have not yet been born.  I realize that this is purely a discussion of reason and not scientific or data driven.  Still to me there is a vast hypocrisy in our lack of outrage over the constant march of murder of the most innocent in our world. 

There is always a price to pay when we fail to protect those who are defenseless.  It will be much that we approve of the slaughter of the innocent.  There is not a valid reason to kill children for convenience.  I will never force that view on others but I have yet to hear from anyone a reasonable explanation that justifies murder on demand.  It weighs heavily that those who approve cannot even call it what it is.  If I have to make up euphemisms and create neutral language to mask what I am doing, how can I be sure that it is good?

I will not condemn anyone that participates in this practice.  It is not my place.  I feel great sadness for those who carry this burden.  I also know that my own failures are enough for me to address.  I do, however, have to condemn the practice.  There will be a price to pay for this great holocaust.  One cannot be honest and say otherwise.

If I have offended you Dear Reader, I beg your forgiveness.  That is never my intent.  This is one of those things that scars my heart.  I know you may or may not agree with me.  I will remind you that I do not hate anyone and that I can only speak what I believe to be true.

Spirit of the Age – Michael Card

I thought that I heard crying coming through my door

Was it Rachel weeping for her sons who were no more

Could it have been the babies crying for themselves

Never understanding that they died for someone else

A voice is heard of weeping and of wailing

History speaks of it on every page

Of innocent and helpless little babies

Offerings to the spirit of the age

No way of understanding this sad and painful sign

Whenever Satan rears his head, there comes a tragic time

If He could crush the cradle, then that would stop the cross

He knew that once the Light was born, his every hope was lost

A voice is heard of weeping and of wailing

History speaks of it on every page

Of innocent and helpless little babies

Offerings to the spirit of the age

Now every age has heard it, this voice that speaks from Hell

Sacrifice your children and for you it will be well

The subtle serpent's lying, his dark and ruthless rage

Behold, it is revealed to be the spirit of the age

A voice is heard of weeping and of wailing

History speaks of it on every page

Of innocent and helpless little babies

Offerings to the spirit of the age

Soon all the ones who seemed to die for nothing

Will stand beside the ancient of days

With joy we'll see that Infant from a manger

Come and crush the spirit of the age

We'll see Him crush the spirit of the age

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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The Child who was Never Born ~ Legality and Morality

Greetings Dear Reader,

I wish to begin this with a singular thought.  God does not force us to accept his rules, his love, or his reclamation.  He does not take away our choice in any aspect of accepting or rejecting him.  Anyone who says different may be trying to manipulate you. 

What this means for this issue is that he gives us the choice to set up society as we think fit.  He asks us to be motivated by love, kindness, and compassion but does not even force that upon us.  He allows us to build the world as we wish it and we have chosen to build one in which it is legal to abort children we do not want.

To further the confusion, we have laws that protect the rights of “unborn victims” in the event of a violent act.  The Unborn Victims of Violence Act (2004) states that the penalty for harming the unborn child during violent acts against the mother shall be the same but charged under a separate offense.  This means that unborn children are recognized as legal victims.

We have the wisdom to recognize that unborn children have rights to be free from assault and murder by others.  We become very divided when we allow the mother, however, to do whatever she wishes to that child.  Her right to kill the child ends as soon as he is born.  I do not understand how we can see this as a moral choice. 

We acknowledge the child’s rights as a human relative to everyone but his or her mother.  This may be lawful but that does not make it expedient or good.  Remember our numbers from yesterday, Dear Reader.  I cannot compartmentalize my thinking enough to say that one person has the power or authority to terminate another human’s rights if she wishes to do so. 

I will not violate the law by forcing my will on someone else.  I will call attention to the hypocrisy of saying that a mother may hire someone to commit violence on her child when anyone else doing so would be charged with murder.  I cannot in good faith call this evil a good thing.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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The Child who was Never Born ~ Some Honest Analysis

Greetings Dear Reader,

There are enough lies on both sides of the abortion debate that it can be difficult to see the truth.  Instead of weighing in on the arguments that are questionable I would like to offer some simple facts.  I am not going to tell you what to think or believe.  I will draw some of my own conclusions for you to ponder.  I will also include some links so that you may verify my information.

Planned Parenthood declared in 1960 that even illegal abortions were mostly safe.  In the article cited they explained clearly that deaths from abortions were on the decline even though the birthrate and safe deliveries were on the rise.  (Mary Calderone, “Illegal Abortion as a Public Health Problem,” American Journal of Health 50 (July I960): 949.)  The myth of the back alley coat hanger was the image that drove the argument.  I am not saying that it did not happen.  I am saying it was not the norm even though it has mythological status.

Dr. Alan Guttmacher of Planned Parenthood said in 1967,” Today it is possible for almost any patient to be brought through pregnancy alive, unless she suffers from a fatal illness such as cancer or leukemia, and, if so, abortion would be unlikely to prolong, much less save, life.” (Alan F. Guttmacher, “Abortion—Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow,” in The Case for Legalized Abortion Now (Berkeley, Calif.: Diablo Press, 1967).  This leads to the idea that saving the life of the mother being a prominent reason for abortion is a weak position at best. 

Then there is the idea of vast numbers.  There is no proof that life does not begin at conception.  There is more information every day that babies learn in the womb at an earlier stage than we consider.  In light of the possibility that the unborn are humans then these numbers are staggering:

Since 1974 there have been over 40 million abortions (CDC report).  Just to be clear this number is reported differently by many organizations.  I have chosen the lowest ones so as not to be dishonest.  If the life expectancy is weighed at 60 years (that too is conservative as the current number is 78), then we have aborted 2.5 BILLION years of potential life in the United States alone.  Let that sink in for a moment.

If there is a chance that these are human lives I cannot for a moment say that abortion is the right choice.  I realize that everyone has a story and that we feel circumstances outweigh what is right.  If, however, we live that way in everything we soon see that it is unjust and dangerous.  In almost every other arena we hear the cry to protect the innocent and downtrodden.  In this, however, we condemn the innocent to death and they have no voice.  I cannot accept this and say that I am being faithful to Christ.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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The Child who was Never Born ~ The Church

Greetings Dear Reader,

Before I dare address my concerns about abortion as an issue, a wider context is needed.  I believe that the church is largely responsible for the circumstances that led to abortion on demand being a viable option.  We do not need to be prefect to call something wrong but we do need to acknowledge our own wrong if we are to address any issue with integrity. 

The way in which I think that the church has aided in creating this problem is the way in which they have stigmatized pregnancy before marriage.  For centuries we have treated this result of a wrong choice as something shameful and rejected those who find themselves in dire need of grace and mercy.  Is there wrong in the act outside of marriage?  From the perspective of a Christ follower the answer must be yes.  It the resulting pregnancy a sin. NO!

Just like any life that child is a gift from God.  The church should be leading the world in caring so well for single mothers that abortion seems foolish.  Instead we drove women in need underground and heaped shame and judgment upon them.  Our sin in being so very judgmental leads to the great crime of killing the innocent.  It does not excuse it but we must accept that in part this holocaust is of our making.

What we need to do is remove the judgment and shame from the equation and deal in grace and love.  We need to stop protesting with our signs and voices and do so by acting to care for women with the courage to see the pregnancy through.  If we chose to we could care for them in a way that made the choice for life the obvious one. 

We also need to stop expecting those who do not share our faith to live our faith.  We would not accept that from other faiths.  Instead we demand that those who do not believe live as if they do.  We even try to legislate them into such belief.  That is not how the Gospel works. 

I am required to live in such a way that everyone feels loved no matter the situation in which they find themselves.  In moments of fear and difficulty I need to be the one who is kind and a comfort.  I do not have to approve of what is wrong to show love to those in the grip of the consequences of their wrong doing. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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The Child who was Never Born ~ Opening Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

I going to walk through a mine field in hopes of creating some better understanding for my own faith and following.  This is one of those discussions I do not often have with others because it almost always leads to arguments, strife, and dissension.  First let me lay down some ground rules and a reminder of two.

First the ground rules:

• I do not ever intend to nor will I participate in condemning someone for what has already been done.  It is in the past and, therefore, prologue to what matters.  There are consequences for our past choices and lessons to be learned.  For me to condemn anyone for his or her past is to neglect my own failures and the ripples of consequence that echo into this moment and onward.
• Remarks that are anything but reasonable discussion will not be tolerated and will be deleted.
• Personal attacks are heinous and will be deleted.
• You do not have to agree with me but you must be reasonable and civil.

Reminders:

• This blog is my space to work through the things I ponder about following Christ.
• It is never me telling anyone else how to live.
• I welcome opposing views.
• I love you even if you hate me.

With those covered I will stop being cryptic.   My spirit is very burdened over the issue of abortion/choice/reproductive rights in our nation.  I am going to think through this to make sure that I know what I think and why.  I am going to weigh in on some things and I am going to analyze some data.  I am going to say some things as a conservative (not the type that one thinks) Christ follower that may anger other conservatives (specifically the type that one thinks).  That is not my wish but must be acknowledged as a possibility.

I want to thank my beloved friend Lyric for the moment that made it clear to me that I had to address this.  She posted an article that I will reference later in an attempt to give accurate apologia for my position.

I am going to journey through this on several fronts.  I need your company as I am determined to do so without attacking anyone.  If I say things that you do not like please take a beat before assuming that I hate anyone.  I do not.  Please journey with me Dear Reader.  If this is too much for you I understand.  I promise to respond with kindness to every comment.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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