www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Who's Getting Abortions?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22689931/

35 years and counting...

1.2 million a year is a disaster! Why doesn't this bother more people? This is this issue of our time! The basis of all Catholic social justice is the right to life!

It's a fascinating article. It gives a lot of insight on who is getting abortions in the U.S. (mostly people over age 25, mostly poor, with a high proportion being black and other racial minorities) and why people are getting (money, timing).

I'm going to the March for Life this coming Tuesday. It will be very interesting to hear other people's points of view.

What I'm afraid of is that a lot of people might only see as far as protesting abortion and wanting to make it illegal.

In other words, is there as much angst and effort in trying to solve the problem of why people have abortions in the first place?

For example, most of these pregnancies come from consensual sex. In other words, most abortions are not for reasons of rape or incest; instead, the people involved willingly had sex. Maybe one thing the Church could do is more forthrightly preach the value of chastity and (at least as important) how to develop it (by prayer, fasting and almsgiving).

For another example, a lot of people are using abortion as birth control. Maybe it would help people were educated about contraception.

For another example, a lot of people have a false choice in their minds: keep the baby (and be poor) or kill the baby. There is a third option: adoption. Maybe the churches could co-ordinate their resources to assist women in keeping their babies alive till they can be adopted? A lot of women have abortions because they either cannot afford to have another child or it would greatly inconvenience their lives to have another child. If adoption was presented as a real alternative that would not impact them badly financially, this could save a lot of children.

I don't think we will ever get rid of abortion, but I think we can reduce abortion. (Another interesting point of the article is that the number of abortions --at least, reported abortions-- is going down.) I think it is good to keep protesting abortion, but I think we also have to better address the main initial causes of abortion: unchastity, no or ineffective contraception, a hamstrung adoption network, and a fear that having a baby at the wrong time will make a person poor. If we can address those causes, people might not have as many abortions.

Or, maybe I'm just wrong; and abortion is now just considered another basic right. Maybe people just don't care until the consequences of their conduct catch up with them, and then abortion is seen as the easiest "fix."

-- John

You know John, you always say the right thing and this time, its no different. I've always wanted to say what you've just said but I've been shut out once. Thank you again!

Dear John,

A very good post. In reading it, I had a thought...what if financial incentive was given to a woman to put her baby up for adoption? I have often heard that there are almost no infants available in this country for adoption!!!

Let's remember, however, that forty percent of those having abortions are still unmarried and probably teens and young adults, so a culture of chastity would definitely help that...this is the casual sex generation. Even the Pope referred to that when he said that there is a 'trivialization' of sex in society. One only watch t.v. or go to the movies to see that every single show and movie includes unmarried sex...the problem is that in moviedom and tvdom, unlike real life, there don't ever seem to be consequences to this behaviour.

Alice

John,

An excellent post, very well said. I will also be at the March for Life on Tuesday, it is my first time going.

Alice,

Also a very good point. There is definately a trivialization of sexual relations all over the media and pop culture. As you said, working for a culture of chastity is so very important!

God bless and keep you....

John,

Its a shame that more people are not aware of Natural Family Planning (NFP). This is a more advanced and scientific variation of the old rhythm method that was used before the birth control pill. Unlike the pill NFP is permitted by the Church.

With regard to adoption, as a Pro-Life leader who wanted to hear the other side's arguments, I attended a Planned Parenthood talk to college students. While I philosophically disagreed with much of what she said, there was much truth in her comment about adoptions being rare. I believe she was sincere when she said that she encouraged women to give the baby for adoption; however, this was a rare event. This is because single mothers are now socially acceptable and not uncommon; women would rather keep the child. While this is not our ideal, this is an improvement in morality compared to the late 70's.

Planned Parenthood's main misconception (in my opinion) is that they consider a mistake any pregancy which is not planned. The human race would barely exist if this was the prevailing opinion prior to the 1960's.

Regarding women's repeat abortions (which is a good percentage of the abortion industry's clientel) much of it is due to "Post Abortion Syndrome", that is a woman becomes depressed because she subconsciously realizes that she was wrong when she aborted her child and becomes pregnant again, but isn't strong enough to bring the baby to term and repeats her mistake. These unfortunate women truly need our prayers. Read more about PAS at this link
http://www.priestsforlife.org/postabortion/pasbrief.htm

May God bring you abundant blessing at the March for Life. It is truly an amazing event which reinforces confidence that America will eventually rebuke abortion.

Fr. Deacon Paul

Once when praying in front of a local Planned Parenthood I saw a woman of maybe 38-45 walking in to the clinic with her children and husband in tow. I got the impression that she was seeking an abortion because she was wearing a skirt and had a wrap (in summer), and a guy who I took to be her husband to take her home. What really shocked me was that her children, 4 and 8 yrs old with an infant in her husband's arms, came with her. There's no way for me to have been certain that she was getting an abortion, but I was saddened by what I saw.

My dad has adopted twin girls, it was finalized last week! =)

Terry

Oh, some pro lifers I know are skeptical of the abortion statistics which come from the Guttmacher Institute. They cite a conflict of interest with its connection to the pro-choice movement and Planned Parenthood.

It would be within the interest of Planned Parenthood to show a great need for abortionists so that they can influence medical boards to require ob/gyn students to preform abortions. Hence, they recruit more abortionists to fill in the gap their aging lot leaves with retirement and death.

Terry

EWTN have been showing some great programs about human sexuality lately, and they've been correctly placing a big portion of the blame for abortion, where it belongs, on our sexually obsessed culture. Television, magazines, and even educators are making young people thoroughly obsessed with sex before they're even old enough to get a drivers license. So refreshing to hear the message come out of your TV that you can actually live without sex, as opposed to hearing degenerates like Dr Ruth Westheimer tell cheering teenagers "It's unrealistic to expect you to abstain from sex"

I've thought about cancelling cable, but I can't with ETWN out there.

Oh, I can live without cable and have EWTN. Depends on how fast your connection is but this is a good link: http://origin.ewtn.com/audiovideo/index.asp

Terry

The good thing about that too is that you can pause and return to the program, or rewind a point you've missed.

Terry

Thank you Collin, Alice, Doubting Thomas and Fr. Deacon Paul. I am gratified and humbled by your remarks, as I was gratified and humbled today by people at my parish who wished me well at the March for Life this week.

I'm seeing it as a privellege to represent those who can't go. I've wanted to go for years, but I could never work it out in my schedule. Now I can go, and I am aware of so many people who can't go . . . but who earnestly desire that the murder madness STOP. I will be thinking of you and praying on your behalf while I am there. And I will be feeling quite humbled to do so.

If people don't protest, then the government will conclude that it isn't big deal to kill little kids and other inconvenient people. Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. Most Holy Theotokos, pray for us.

-- John

Another perspective on the issue:

http://www.blackgenocide.org/

_______
Terry,

May God grant your Dad and your new sisters many happy and blessed years!

How long did the adoption take? How old are the girls? Are they from the US?

A wonderful conclusion (and beginning) to what must have been an effort requiring great patience. It's sad that this doesn't happen 1.2 million times a year.

Fr Deacon Paul