Abortion a divisive issue among some churches

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This article was published 09/05/2022 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Following the leaked draft of a U.S. Supreme Court opinion suggesting Roe vs. Wade is about to be overturned, some Christians in that country are celebrating.

They have lobbied, prayed and protested for decades for an end to legal abortion in America. And now it appears they are on the verge of victory.

But before they start their celebrations, they might want to consider the uncertainty in their own ranks, and also prepare for an unsettled and challenging future.

One of the groups at the forefront of the anti-abortion movement is the Roman Catholic Church. But while it is officially opposed to abortion, over half of American Catholics don’t agree with their church.

That’s the finding of a recent Pew survey, which found 56 per cent of American Catholics say abortion should be legal in all or most cases.

As Thomas Reese, a Jesuit priest and commentator for Religion News Service, put it: “The bishops have been trying to convince their own people and have failed. Catholics don’t listen to the bishops.”

American evangelicals are another group that wants to end legal abortion in the U.S. They are more united the issue, with 73 per cent telling Pew it should be illegal.

But even there they aren’t all united, with 51 per cent saying it should be legal if the mother’s life is threatened.

Other Christian groups have more nuanced views as well. The United Methodist Church, for example, is officially pro-life, but says abortion should be legally available in some cases.

Some other Christian groups are pro-choice, such as the United Church of Christ, the Episcopal Church, Presbyterian Church U.S.A. and the Unitarian Universalist Association.

So while some Christians might think the issue is black and white, Pew said: “One commonality across these groups is that sizable numbers in all of them see the issue of abortion in shades of gray. Large majorities in every group say abortion should be legal in some circumstances.”

As for other religions, another survey in early May found 56 per cent of American Muslims and 75 per cent of American Jews believe abortion should remain legal. The two largest American Jewish movements — Reform and Conservative — favour a woman’s right to have an abortion with few or no exceptions.

Not only are many Christian groups divided over abortion; some members of those groups have had them, too.

That was the finding of a 2014 study by the Guttmacher Institute. It reported over 60 per cent of women who had abortions reported a religious affiliation. This included 13 per who identified as evangelicals, 17 per cent identifying as mainline Protestants, 24 per cent who said they were Catholic, and eight per cent of other affiliations.

“The bottom line is that people of all religions use reproductive health services, including abortion,” the study stated.

As for what this all means for faith groups in the U.S., Religion Unplugged, an online religion magazine, asked some religion reporters in that country to weigh in.

Kate Shellnutt of Christianity Today noted the decision to legalize abortion in the 1970s caused many religious groups, including evangelicals, to start the crisis pregnancy centre movement — which offers various services to mothers — as an alternative to abortion.

She wondered: If Roe vs. Wade is overturned, will that energy wane and volunteers drop off? Will many of those centres close?

Clemente Lisi of Religion Unplugged noted abortion became a unifying issue for Catholics and evangelicals, even though they disagreed on other points of theology. With a reversal of Roe vs. Wade, will that close inter-church collaboration lose steam?

Lisi also noted millions of children who might otherwise have been aborted could be born if abortion is made illegal in many states. That prompted him to wonder: Will churches that demanded an end to abortion now also demand the federal and state governments do more to support these children and their families with things like paid time off for new mothers, better wages, childcare and other family support?

Kelsey Dallas, who writes for the Deseret News, echoed that sentiment, asking what those churches will do to help women and children born when abortion is illegal. “

What will the church look like in this moment?” she asked. “If they are really pro-life, what will it mean for them to be pro-life through all life?”

Added Bellynn Hollers of the Dallas Morning News: “Will churches step up, say we got this, and be totally pro-life? Will they say ‘we won, we’re done,’ at the same time women all over the country need help and there’s no one there to serve them.”

What they all agreed on is the issue isn’t over; there are 50 states which are potential battlegrounds one way or the other. And there could also be challenges from religious groups that support abortion, saying it violates their freedom of religion—an interesting idea to consider.

As Shellnutt noted, “very few Americans want abortion outlawed in all circumstances … it’s hard to imagine this issue is settled.”

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