Is Your Faith like a Bowing Wall or a Tottering Fence?

By Dennis Edwards

In Psalm 62, David prays against the enemies of God and says they are like “a bowing wall, and a tottering fence.”[Psalms 62:3] What exactly does he mean? A bowing wall is receiving pressure from somewhere that is causing it to buckle and is in danger of collapsing. It is often a foundation wall that is not strong enough to withhold the exterior forces or the weight or height of the building that rests upon it. A tottering fence is ready by the slightest force to give way and fall. But that should not be the state of our faith. For we have a sure or solid foundation in Christ and His resurrection from the dead.[1 Corinthians 15:1-8, John 20:30-31] But, alas, the foundations have been destroyed, and now what shall the righteous do?[Psalms 11:3]

Since the late 1700s the foundations of faith have been attacked and Christianity and its truth denied. Such were the men like James Hutton, and Charles Lyle whose work in geology attacked Moses and got men to doubt the Biblical account and age of the earth. “They did not like to retain God in their knowledge, so God gave them over to a reprobate mind.”[Romans 1:28] “Millions of years” soon became the acceptable interpretation, the scientific interpretation. These men were “willingly ignorant”[2 Peter 3:5-6] of the Biblical creation record and historical Genesis flood. Thus they helped pave the way for Charles Darwin to later present a 19th century rendition of the classical Greek idea that life evolved from the sea spontaneously. Like Solomon had written some 2800 years before, “There is nothing new under the sun.”[Ecclesiastes 1:9]

It was in the same year 1859 in which Darwin published his book that Louis Pasteur scientifically proved that spontaneous generation was impossible. Life comes only from life, not from a primordial soup. However, "true science" would take a back seat to "assumed science." Darwin would fantasize on the possibility of life developing in a warm pond during earth’s early history. 19th century man wanted freedom from the moral constraints of religion. The war against God would continue and false faith and nominal religion would be its springboard. 

In politics Karl Marx was writing and wanted to dedicate his book “Das Kapital” to Darwin. But Darwin, coming from the financial elite of that age, felt it not wise to have his name together with that of Marx. Nietzsche with his “God is dead” in theology, along with Germany’s “higher critics,” did their best to destroy confidence in God’s word. Freud began the “science of psychology” based on Darwin’s evolutionary ideology. Together these attacks led to the weakening of the Christian foundation in the minds of the masses. “Had God really said?[Genesis 3:1]

Whereas from the time of Christ, Christianity had influenced and changed the surrounding culture, now atheism was gaining the upper hand and convincing the general public that God was indeed dead and in no need of fearing. In 1962-3 the Supreme Court removed prayer in school which children had traditionally prayed each morning before beginning class. In 1973 the American Supreme Court passed “Roe vs Wade” and opened the door to legalized abortion. Soon other laws originally formed off of Christian and Biblical doctrines were over turned. Man was being freed from the superstitions of the past. Reason was ruling over faith. Indeed the truth that God was dead was at last setting men free! 

Thus the foundations of faith in God were destroyed. Faith became obsolete and a thing of the past. Reason and science became the hallmarks of the enlightened man. And yet the call of Nietzsche's “Madman” rings in our ears.

 “Whither is God? he cried, I will tell you. We have killed him – you and I. All of us are his murderers. But how did we do this? How could we drink up the sea? Who gave us the sponge to wipe away the entire horizon? What were we doing when we unchained the earth from its sun? Whither are we moving? Away from all suns? Are we not plunging continually? Backward, sideward, forward, in all directions? Is there still any up or down? Are we not straying through an infinite nothingness? Do we not feel the breath of empty space? Has it not become colder? Is not night continually closing in on us? Do we not need to light lanterns in the morning?...God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers?...Who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?”[Nietzsche and the Madman, allaboutphilosophy.org, from Gay Science, 1887]

Yes, indeed it is colder and we have lost our moral compass -- God’s word. We and our own ideas and opinions have become our gods. We are left directionless, like a ship on the open sea with no rudder to use to guide us to safety. God’s word asks, “And what shall the righteous do?” Now that we have destroyed the foundations of our faith, now that we don’t believe God’s word is trustworthy, now that we doubt the Christian story and resurrection of Christ. What shall the Christian do? Where do we find moral fibre? Where do we find truth? Is there any right or wrong? 

But God’s word encourages us, “If my people who are called by my name shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”[2 Chronicles 7:14] Shall we not turn from the false doctrines of men and back to faith in the Living God? Shall we not turn from the false ideologies of man which have caused us to lose our way and our relationship with the Lord? Shall we not cry unto the Lord for His mercy and truth and light in midst of gross darkness? Or will we continue to grope in darkness and yet believe we are walking in the light? As Christ has said, “If the light that is in us is darkness, how great is that darkness.”[Matthew 6:23]

Our time is short. Our times are in His hands.[Psalm 31:15] Please let us call upon the Lord while he may be found. For darkness shall cover the earth and great darkness the people.[Isaiah 60:2] But God’s light shall shine out upon them that call upon His name and walk in His truth and follow His law of love. Apostle Paul calls us to be steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord;[1 Corinthians 15:54] not like a bowing wall or tottering fence. For we have a sure foundation, a precious corner stone, Jesus Christ, the stone of offence. The stone which the builder’s neglected has become the chief corner stone.[1 Peter 2:7-8, Acts 4:11, Ephesians 2:20, Psalms 118:22, Isaiah 28:16, Mark 12:10, Matthew 21:44. Luke 20:17]

Call upon Him and He will answer you. He will be with you in trouble. He will honour you and show you His salvation.[Psalms 91:15-16] He is the strong tower which the righteous run to and are safe.[Proverbs 18:10] Trust in Him. Believe His word and not the vain and proud ramblings and traditions of men. Remember, if you continue in His word, believing it, receiving it, and following its light, you will be His disciple indeed. And ye shall know the truth, not my truth nor your truth, but the truth; and the truth shall make you free![John 8:32] Don't be a bowing wall!

---

Originally published December 3, 2019

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Abortion Was the Leading Cause of Death Worldwide in 2023

 https://www.lifenews.com/2024/01/02/abortion-was-the-leading-cause-of-death-worldwide-in-2023-killing-73-million-people/

More human beings died in abortions than any other cause of death in 2022.

A heartbreaking reminder about the prevalence of abortion, statistics compiled by Worldometers indicate that there were over 73 million abortions world-wide in 2023. The independent site collects data from governments and other organizations and then reports the data, along with estimates and projections, based on those numbers.

Worldometers bases its daily abortion figures on a fact sheet from the World Health Organization, which estimates an even higher figure for abortions per year than Worldometers. “Around 73 million induced abortions take place worldwide each year,” the WHO says.

Abortion is also the leading cause of death in the United States.

“In the USA, where nearly 30% of pregnancies are unintended and 40% of these are terminated by abortion, there are between 1,500 to 2,500 abortions per day. Nearly 20% of all pregnancies in the USA (excluding miscarriages) end in abortion. Guttmacher Institute reports 930,160 abortions performed in 2020 in the United States, with a rate of 14.4 per 1,000 women,” Worldometers reports.

When contrasting the abortion numbers to other causes of death, including cancer, HIV/AIDS, traffic accidents and suicide, abortions far outnumbered every other cause. By contrast, an estimated 10 million people died from cancer in 2023, 6.2 million from smoking, 17 million from disease, and 2 million died of HIV/AIDS. Deaths by malaria and alcohol are also recorded.

With 67.1 million people dying last year from a cause other than abortion and 140 million people dying in total from abortion and all causes, that means abortions accounted for almost 52% of every death around the world last year.

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Unborn babies are not recognized as human beings even though biology indicates that they are unique, living human beings from the moment of conception and they die brutal, violent deaths in abortions.

The abortion number is incomprehensible, but each of those 73 million abortions worldwide in 2022 represents a living human being whose life was violently destroyed in their mother’s womb. Each unborn baby already had their own unique DNA, making them distinct from their mother. That DNA indicated if the child was a boy or girl, their eye and hair color, their height, possible genetic disorders and other disabilities, and much more. In most cases, the unborn babies’ hearts are beating when they are aborted, too.

In America, just under 1 million babies are aborted every year. Though abortion rates have been dropping in the past decade, abortion remains the leading cause of death in the United States as well.

An estimated 65 million unborn babies have been killed in abortions in the U.S. since Roe v. Wade in 1973. In January, pro-life advocates will gather for the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. to remember the anniversary of that infamous decision and call for restored protections for the unborn.

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Supreme Court Still on Track to Overturn Roe, No Conservatives Have Changed Position

A new report today from Politico says the Supreme Corut is still on track to overturn Roe v. Wade and an ultimate decision on the Dobbs case is expected by the end of June.

Politico, which initially published the news of the leaked draft of a Supreme Court decision overturning Roe, indicates no conservative members of the Supreme Court have changed their position. In fact, no competing draft has been authored and there is not even a single written dissent that has reportedly been published.

Although Americans are in favor of overturning Roe and 11 recent polls show Americans are pro-life on abortion, abortion activists have engaged in violence, vandalism and heated protests in response to a leaked draft opinion from the U.S. Supreme Court that overturns Roe v. Wade.  They hope to somehow persuade one or more Supreme Court justices to change their mind.

Apparently they have failed in their mission.

The Supreme Court is set to gather Thursday for the first time since the disclosure that it voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, and there’s no sign that the court is changing course from issuing that ruling by the end of June.

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Justice Samuel Alito’s sweeping and blunt draft majority opinion from February overturning Roe remains the court’s only circulated draft in the pending Mississippi abortion case, POLITICO has learned, and none of the conservative justices who initially sided with Alito have to date switched their votes. No dissenting draft opinions have circulated from any justice, including the three liberals.

That could explain why no second draft of Alito’s majority opinion has been distributed, as typically the two sides react to one another’s written arguments and recast their own.

Politico reports that the Supreme Court justices are very angry by the threats, harassment and violence from the left in response to the leaked draft as well as the leak itself.

“This is the most serious assault on the court, perhaps from within, that the Supreme Court’s ever experienced,” said one person close to the court’s conservatives, who spoke anonymously because of the sensitive nature of the court deliberations. “It’s an understatement to say they are heavily, heavily burdened by this.”

A second person close to the court said that the liberal justices “are as shocked as anyone” by the revelation. “There are concerns for the integrity of the institution,” this person said. “The views are uniform.”

Chief Justice John Roberts was not counted in the vote in the 5-3 draft that was initially released and is thought to be trying to persuade one member of the conservative majority to abandon the position overturning Roe in favor of upholding Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban and allowing states more latitude to ban late abortions without overturning Roe entirely.

But, according to Politico, he’s not finding any takers. That likely means he will side with liberals against overturning Roe but upholding the law.

“However, the draft majority opinion wound up being written by Alito, and its strident text signals it is unlikely Roberts will be on board,” it reports.

As all this is happening, Altio and his family have reportedly been moved to a location that will not be revealed. Last week, Alito canceled an appearance at the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ judicial conference. Although no official reason was given for the cancellation, the move came only days after the leak.

Late Friday, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas had a message for the radical abortion activists who think they can bully the Supreme Court into revising its draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade: You can’t bully us.

Thomas spoke at the 11th Circuit judicial conference in Atlanta where he discussed the Supreme Court’s leaked draft opinion for the first time.

As a society, “we are becoming addicted to wanting particular outcomes, not living with the outcomes we don’t like,” Thomas said.

“We can’t be an institution that can be bullied into giving you just the outcomes you want. The events from earlier this week are a symptom of that.,” Thomas said, according to reports.

Chief Justice John Roberts spoke at the same conference Thursday, where he called the leak “absolutely appalling.” He, too, said the violence and attacks form pro-abortion activists would not influence the Supreme Court’s final decision.

Pro-life pregnancy centers and pro-life advocates already have been the targets of vandalism, violence and harassment this week in response to the news. At least one Catholic church has, too, and more seems likely in the days ahead. Abortion activists bombed a pro-life group’s office, causing extensive damage.

Abortion activists are trying to intimidate U.S. Supreme Court justices to change their mind and uphold Roe after the leaked draft opinion showed the majority voting to overturn the infamous 1973 ruling. The draft is not final, judges can change their minds, and it is not clear when the high court will issue its final ruling on the abortion case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, but many believe the court will overturn Roe and allow states to protect unborn babies again.

Along with the violence of abortion against unborn babies, threats and violence against pro-life advocates also have increased in recent years. LifeNews.com has documented reports of hundreds of incidents in recent years, including bomb threats, assaults, death threats, arson and vandalism.

And violence by abortion activists likely will continue as the U.S. Supreme Court gets ready to issue its final ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health this summer. If the court overturns Roe, the Guttmacher Institute predicts that 26 states would ban abortions.

Since 1973, more than 63 million unborn babies and hundreds of mothers have died in supposedly “safe, legal” abortions.

Polling data shows Americans are decidedly pro-life.

https://www.lifenews.com/2022/05/11/supreme-court-still-on-track-to-overturn-roe-no-conservatives-have-changed-their-position/

 

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Leftists Publish Home Addresses of Conservative Supreme Court Justices

 Threaten Violent Protests

National | Steven Ertelt | May 5, 2022 | 6:04PM | Washington, DC



Leftists have published the home addresses for the conservative members of the Supreme Corut online and are threatening to engage in potentially violent and illegal protests against them. The move comes after a draft of a Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade was leaked on Monday.

A group named “Ruth Sent Us” is now calling for disruption and violence in Catholic churches, as well as protests outside the private homes of Supreme Court justices and their families. These radicals even published the justices’ home addresses.

As National Review reports, “a leftist group called Ruth Sent Us posted what it claims are the home addresses of the Court’s six conservative justices online in preparation for an organized “walk-by protest” set to take place outside the justices’ homes next week.”

Here’s more:

Ruth Sent Us plans to dispatch demonstrators to “the homes of the six extremist justices” on Wednesday, May 11, according to the group’s website.

“ANNOUNCING: Walk-by Wednesday, May 11, 2022! At the homes of the six extremist justices, three in Virginia and three in Maryland. If you’d like to join or lead a peaceful protest, let us know,” the website states.

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“Our 6-3 extremist Supreme Court routinely issues rulings that hurt women, racial minorities, LGBTQ+ and immigrant rights. We must rise up to force accountability using a diversity of tactics,” the group adds.

In collaboration with Vigil for Democracy, Ruth Sent Us generated and posted a Google Maps graphic pinning what it claims are the home addresses of Justices Barrett, Kavanaugh, Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, and Roberts, where they presumably reside with their families. Vigil for Democracy titled the map, “Extremist Justices,” adding, “Where the six Christian fundamentalist Justices issue their shadow docket rulings.” The map has 3,185 views so far.

In Virginia, where three of the six justices live, protesting outside a private home is illegal.

The pro-life group CatholicVote is asking Joe Biden to condemn the protests. In an email to LifeNews, it said Biden “has failed to condemn these domestic terrorist threats against his own people.”

“Anti-Catholic zealots are plotting to intimidate and harass Catholics across the country, along with justices and their families. This country was built on freedom of speech and freedom of religion. The President of the United States must stand up for both,” Brian Burch of CatholicVote said. “These threats follow a record number of attacks on Catholic churches, shrines, and symbols over the past two years.”

“Just this week another Catholic church in Boulder, CO was desecrated by pro-abortion activists. We call on responsible leaders in Washington to unequivocally condemn these dangerous threats before they lead to violence, or worse,” he added. “They’re coming for our churches. But we will not be discouraged. We will not back down.”

As NR reports, other violent leftist groups are getting involved with the protests outside the homes of Supreme Court justices.


The website also links to a different organization, “Strike for Choice,” which has been endorsed by radical leftist groups including Black Lives Matter, Code Pink, Women’s March SF, Kavanaugh Off Our Court, and Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights.

On the fundraising page for Strike for Choice, called the Open Collective, Justin Russell and Snowden Bishop, who seem to be affiliated with the leftist website JustResisting.com, are listed as either administrators or core contributors.

https://www.lifenews.com/2022/05/05/leftists-publish-home-addresses-of-conservative-supreme-court-justices-threaten-violent-protests/

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Chief Justice John Roberts Confirms Draft Overturning Roe is Real

 

Chief Justice John Roberts has issued a statement confirming the leaked draft of a Supreme Court decision overturning Roe is genuine and he says the nation’s highest court will launch an internal investigation about the leak.

As LifeNews reported, in a monumental decision that could finally end an era of abortion on demand and 63 million babies killed in abortions, the Supreme Court has reportedly issued a decision overturning Roe v. Wade. This is according to a release of a draft of the decision.

“Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote in the draft opinion of the court dated February 10.

Today, in a statement issued by the Supreme Court, Roberts condemned the leak.

“Although the document described in yesterday’s reports is authentic, it does not represent a decision by the Court or the final position of any member on the issues in the case,” he says.

He calls it a “singular and egregious breach of that trust that is an affront to the Court and the community of public servants who work here” and says he has asked the Marshal of the Court to investigate.

Roberts promises that the leak and subsequent intimidation campaign from the left to get the Supreme Court to change its potential vote to overturn Roe will not affect the eventual outcome.

“We will not allow this leak to undermine the work of this Court.”

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There was speculation previously that Roberts was not writing the case and concern that he could try to influence the other justices to oppose overturning Roe. Since he confirmed the draft is genuine, the former appears true.

According to Politico the decision is not final and could change but the leaked draft of the opinion has four justices — Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett — joined Alito while three — Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan — dissented.

“We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,” the opinion reportedly continued. “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”

Roberts has yet to cast his vote and it is unknown which side he will vote with, Politico reported.

Leading pro-life groups today are celebrating the possible end of Roe v. Wade after a leaked first draft of a Supreme Court opinion overturning Roe surfaced last night.

Joe Biden has released a statement in response to the draft of a potential Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade and the statement makes it appear Biden believes the nation’s highest court is on the verge of overturning Roe.

Leading pro-life advocates and pro-life Republican senators condemned the leak of a draft of a decision to end Roe v. Wade as an attempt by leftists to intimate the Supreme Court into keeping the radical pro-abortion decision in place.

Polling data shows a majority of Americans are pro-life and want all or most abortions made illegal.

Since 1973, more than 63 million unborn babies and hundreds, perhaps thousands, of mothers have died in supposedly “safe, legal” abortions. If Roe is overturned, researchers predict more than half of states would strongly restrict or ban abortions and hundreds of thousands of unborn babies’ lives would be saved from abortion every year.

If Roe is overturned, researchers predict as many as 26 states would ban abortions, saving hundreds of thousands of unborn babies’ lives.

https://www.lifenews.com/2022/05/03/chief-justice-john-roberts-confirms-draft-overturning-roe-is-real-will-launch-investigation/

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Federal Court Blocks Government Policy That Would Have Forced Christian Doctors to Do Abortions

https://www.lifenews.com/2021/08/10/federal-court-blocks-biden-policy-that-would-have-forced-christian-doctors-to-do-abortions/

A federal court has blocked a harmful Biden administration policy that would force Christian doctors and hospitals to kill babies in abortions.

In June 2020, President Donald Trump issued a pro-life rule to protect pro-life Americans and help save babies from abortion. His administration implemented a rule to block the effects of a dangerous Obamacare provision that could be used to compel doctors to participate in abortions.

In May, Joe Biden reversed it.

But late Monday, a federal court in Texas just blocked the policy, which would also force religious doctors and hospitals to perform gender transition procedures on their patients—including children. The Biden administration will have 60 days to decide whether to appeal the court’s ruling.

The case of Franciscan Alliance v. Becerra was brought by a religious hospital, an association of over 20,000 healthcare professionals, and nine states, and it is now the second court ruling blocking the Biden administration from enforcing the policy.

“Today’s ruling is a victory for compassion, conscience, and common sense,” said Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket. “No doctor should be forced to perform controversial, medically unsupported procedures that are contrary to their conscience and could be deeply harmful to their patients.”

“These religious doctors and hospitals provide top-notch medical care to all patients for everything from cancer to the common cold,” said Goodrich. “Everyone benefits when doctors are able to follow their professional medical judgment and their Hippocratic Oath to ‘Do No Harm.’”

During the Trump administration, the Department of Health and Human Services finalized a rule that revises 2016 provisions of the Obamacare section 1557 rule that had redefined discrimination “on the basis of sex” to include “pregnancy termination.” The new rule protected doctors, nurses and medical professionals from being compelled to assist abortions.

Biden’s decision overturned the Trump rule, which had defined “sex” as gender assigned at birth and clarified that sex discrimination does not include abortion when it comes to health care and coverage.

“HHS respects the dignity of every human being, and as we have shown in our response to the pandemic, we vigorously protect and enforce the civil rights of all to the fullest extent permitted by our laws as passed by Congress,” Roger Severino, former director of OCR, said in June 2020 when the pro-life Trump rule was initially put in place. “We are unwavering in our commitment to enforcing civil rights in healthcare.”

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The Biden administration’s new interpretation, if court allow it to be implemented, would guide OCR in conducting investigations and processing complaints, an HHS press release said, but will not “itself determine the outcome in any particular case or set of facts.”

Assistant Secretary for Health Rachel Levine also said in a statement that HHS seeks to “enhance the health and well-being of all Americans.”

Before the November presidential election, Biden indicated he would eliminate conscience protections for pro-life health care providers, forcing them to adhere to pro-abortion ideology even if it conflicts with their medical judgment.

Terry Schilling, executive director of American Principles Project, told LifeNews.com that this is a radical pro-abortion agenda out of step with most Americans.

After Trump adopted the rule, a leading pro-life group praised him.

“President Trump is the most pro-life president our nation has ever seen, and today he delivered another important victory for conscience in America. Abortion is not health care and should never be mandated by the government,” said SBA List President Marjorie Dannenfelser.

She told LifeNews.com: “The Obama/Biden administration sought to expand abortion at every turn, even trying to reinterpret federal law to define abortion as a civil right. Since serving in the Obama administration, Joe Biden’s views on abortion have become even more extreme, as he now supports forcing taxpayers to pay for abortion on demand – even brutal late-term abortions. We thank President Trump and Secretary Azar for standing firmly on the side of the majority of Americans who reject taxpayer funding of abortion, and for the action taken today to roll back the Obama/Biden-era assault on conscience.

Mary Beth Waddell, who serves as the Senior Legislative Assistant for Family Research Council, told LifeNews.com that the Trump rule protects doctors, nurses and medical professionals from being compelled to assist abortions.

Waddell said that, “Under the old Obama rule, medical professionals could have been forced to facilitate … abortions — even if they believed this was a violation of their conscience or believed it harmful to the patient.”

The Heritage Foundation’s senior research fellow Ryan T. Anderson, who submitted comments on the Trump rule and wrote on the Obama-era HHS and HUD regulations, had the following response after Trump adopted it:

“Truth matters and words have meaning. The Trump administration is right to formally rescind Obamacare regulations that radically altered the meaning of ‘sex’ to mean things it doesn’t. Today’s action follows the precedent of a federal court issuing a 50-state preliminary injunction that blocked these unlawful regulations from ever taking effect.”

“When Congress passed the Affordable Care Act, it prohibited discrimination on the basis of ‘sex.’ Several years later, the Obama administration redefined ‘sex’ to mean … termination of pregnancy. In addition to being an unlawful abuse of agency power, these rules would have caused serious harm.”

“They would have required doctors, hospitals, and health care organizations to act in ways contrary to their best medical judgments, their consciences, and the physical realities of their patients, or face steep fines and become easy targets for unreasonable and costly lawsuits.”

He concluded that federal law should not “force anyone to violate their prolife conscience or the privacy and safety of others in the name of political correctness.”

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Is Abortion Before Implantation Biblically Permissible?

By Greg Koukl at Stand to Reason

I recently spoke at a church on the topic of embryonic stem cell research and was challenged by an audience member who gave a biblical defense for killing the early human embryo. The attendee cited Leviticus 17:11, which says, “For the life of the creature is in the blood.” She argued that shortly after conception, the developing human embryo is still travelling down the fallopian tube and has not yet implanted in the uterus (the woman’s womb). Prior to implantation, she argued, there’s no blood. And without blood, there’s no life, as Leviticus 17:11 suggests. Therefore, killing the embryo before implantation should not be described as killing a human life.

Since January 22 is the 47th anniversary of Roe v. Wade (the landmark Supreme Court decision that made abortion the “law of the land” in the United States), I thought it would be appropriate to address this claim that challenges a component of the pro-life position.

There are several ways to respond. You can challenge the facts of the claim, or you can accept the claim and follow it to its logical—and possibly absurd—conclusion. Let’s begin by challenging the facts.

First, scientifically speaking, an individual human life begins at conception, not at implantation. This is a biological maxim. It’s even the opinion of most scientists. A recent survey of biology professors at over 1,000 institutions around the world revealed the following result: 5,337 biologists (96%) affirmed that human life begins at conception. Only 4% rejected that view. Therefore, the claim that the pre-implanted human embryo is not a living human being goes against scientific understanding.

Second, the human embryo before implantation is identical to the human embryo after implantation. There’s no difference in kind, only in degree of development. The pre-implanted embryo is not a different creature with different DNA than the post-implanted embryo. Rather, both are the same kind of organism with the same DNA. That means if it’s permissible to kill the human embryo before implantation, there’s no morally significant reason why we shouldn’t be able to kill it after implantation.

These are scientific considerations, though. They challenge the facts of the claim. It turns out, however, that you can also respond to this challenge by employing a tactic we teach at Stand to Reason: Taking the Roof Off (also known as reductio ad absurdum). This approach begins by accepting their claim as true and then asking what logically follows. If their claim leads to a ridiculous outcome, then we can reject their rationale. As you’ll see, there are at least three absurd consequences to their view.

First, assume it’s true that Leviticus teaches humans are alive only when they have blood in them. It turns out there’s no blood in the human embryo even immediately after implantation. In other words, according to the rationale that a human is alive only when he or she has blood inside, that would mean even an implanted embryo isn’t alive. It isn’t until day 21 (or 2 weeks after fertilization) that red blood cells form and a heart begins to pump blood.On this view, not only would killing the pre-implanted human embryo be permissible, but so would killing the human embryo after implantation and, indeed, during the first three weeks of gestation.

Second, if life is in the blood, then some animals that don’t contain blood are not alive. Jellyfish, for example, lack a brain, lungs, a heart, and blood but are clearly alive. Insects, amoebas, and many other animals that don’t have blood are also living. How does this understanding of Leviticus 17:11 make sense of living creatures that don’t have blood? It can’t.

A third absurdity is that if life is in the blood, then anything with blood should be living. For example, a fresh human corpse would still be “alive.” After all, immediately after death, a dead body still contains living red blood cells (alive for a limited time, of course). Surely we wouldn’t say it’s possible to kill a human corpse simply because it has blood in it. That would be absurd.

At this point it’s reasonable to wonder what the Leviticus passage actually means if it doesn’t mean what was suggested by the attendee of my event. That’s a fair question, but let me offer a thought. Even if we don’t know the correct interpretation of Leviticus 17:11, that doesn’t mean we can’t be confident of the incorrect interpretation. Surely the passage can’t mean that only humans with blood are living human beings who deserve protection because of the absurdities that arise given that understanding.

Reading the passage in context, however, gives us a clue as to the meaning of the words in verse 11. God tells Moses, “I will set my face against any Israelite or any foreigner residing among them who eats blood.” The principle: Don’t eat blood. Why? God explains His rationale in the next verse: “For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life.” (Emphasis mine.) God forbids eating blood because it gives the animal life and, during animal sacrifice, the blood is spilt to atone for your sins and give you life.

This is a picture of the atoning work of Christ, whose spilt blood washes our sin away and gives us life. Since we now have life, we’re called to protect the life of every human being, no matter their stage of development.

Original document found at Is Abortion before Implantation Biblically Permissible? https://standtoreason93.tumblr.com

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