Letter: The abortion dichotomy
I’m a Christian who believes that abortion is murder. I’m also a patriotic American who believes in a woman’s right to “choose.” Why? Because, at its heart, the abortion debate is about separation of church and state. The U.S. Constitution guarantees freedom of religion, and any law banning abortion is a clear violation of that right.
People who believe that abortion is murder usually believe that life begins at conception, or even before. Jeremiah 1:5 reads, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you....” People who believe this verse believe that contraception should be banned also. It’s like a “proactive murder” that goes against God’s will. A person becomes a person “with a twinkle in dad’s eye” as the saying goes.
But America has always been a secular society founded by people who were in search of religious freedom. People have always had the freedom to worship (or not worship) any way that they please, as long as it does not harm others. We are not a nation of just Christians. We have Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, Druids, Atheists, etc. What if they do not believe in Jeremiah 1:5? What if they do not believe that life begins until birth?
People who do not believe that a fetus is an “other” yet honestly feel that they are doing no harm. They do not believe in murdering children, but rather, that a fetus is not a child. They are following their own conscience based on the morals and values that they believe in. That is the very definition of religious freedom.
Many fear that this Supreme Court decision is only the first shot in what will become a religious war against contraception, same-sex marriage, in vitro fertilization and other matters of morality which are based on religious beliefs. Justice Clarence Thomas already signaled as much in his opinion on the case. Conducting a Christian jihad at a time when many in America talk of revolution and civil war is about the last thing this country needs right now. May God help us all.
Randall Rousselo
Roscommon, formerly of Tecumseh and Monroe
This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Letter: The abortion dichotomy
