Review-The Faith of Barack Obama (Stephen Mansfield) Pt. 3
The Issue (Abortion)
In The Faith of Barack Obama, Mansfield does a great job pointing out that while Barack is unapologetically pro-choice (but “anti-abortion”), some modern Evangelicals don’t consider this the deciding issue in the same way it was with Bush v. Clinton. He points to the decline of the Religious Right with the deaths of D. James Kennedy and Jerry Falwell, the crazy pronouncements of God’s judgment on Ariel Sharon by Pat Robertson, and the moral failure of Ted Haggard as key factors in its decline of influence.
Mansfield also points out, similar to Frank Schaeffer (son of Francis Schaeffer) in this article, that with nearly two decades and millions of dollars, the Religious Right has done little to help solve the abortion issue, all the while building their own empires. Which makes people wonder why casting a vote for someone based solely on this issue makes any difference. Finally, he points out that when you have Pat Robertson endorsing Rudy Guilianni, the only pro-choice Republican candidate that ran in this election cycle, it sends all sorts of mixed messages.
I have to say that this issue, more than any other, is the single toughest hurdle for me to overcome in considering a vote for Barack Obama. It has led me to do quite a bit of research (which is a good thing). What I find interesting (see chart below), is that from the early 70’s up until 1990, with three different Republican presidents in office, the abortion rate grew steadily (with an identifiable plateau under Jimmy Carter).
Even more noticeable is the steady drop in abortions under the Clinton administration. But, the most troubling statistic is the fact that the drop in abortions all but stopped under George W. Bush. This is the President that won the Evangelical vote because he was an openly Pro-Life, Christian candidate.
While I was on the Clinton-hating bandwagon with the rest of the Religious-right, throughout the nineties, it’s pretty hard to argue with the statistics. Now we have a candidate in John McCain who said in the recent Saddleback Forum that he is pro-life and his administration will be a pro-life administration, a statement that makes for a great sound byte. However, Senator McCain has always been a proponent of stem-cell research and has openly admitted that he believes repealing Roe v. Wade would not be a smart move (although he says he’s for it - huh?) Watch him say it here. So, he’s against abortion and wants to see the number of abortions reduced.
Obama on the other hand is openly pro-choice and I have to say I am quite bothered by his support of such organizations as Planned Parenthood. But, when I stop and listen to what he is saying, he too wants to see abortions reduced, and understands that it is never a good situation. See what he said at the Saddleback Forum, here. Most Christians I have heard comment on this have said Barack blew it here. But did he really? While I disagree strongly with him, I have to say that I think it took a greater amount of courage to speak thoughtfully and from his convictions than to simply tell a crowd at a church what they wanted to hear. Remember, John McCain has said he has been solidly pro-life during his 25 years in the senate, yet the National Right to Life Committee won’t give him a 100% rating (primarily because of his views on embryonic stem-cell research).
If you listened closely to Barack Obama at Saddleback, he said that he is in favor of education and resourcing women to make a choice not to have an abortion. He also said that if a person believes that life begins at conception, and they are consistent on this point, then he cannot debate with them about it. What does he mean by being consistent? Well, how many Christian couples, that say they believe life begins at conception, are using such birth control as the mini-pill? This is a form of contraception which is partly effective by preventing implantation of a fertilized egg. In essence, taking this pill would flush the fully conceived child from the woman’s body, is this consistency?
Consistency on this issue is important for sure. In fact, while Christians are willing to cast their vote for John McCain because he says the right things on this issue, the fact is abortion rates in the Christian community, while not as high as outside, are still significant. It appears that our tactics are no more effective inside the church walls as they have been in the public forum. Believe it or not, some would argue that the Liberal politics of Barack Obama are actually more effective in reducing the number of abortions than Conservative politics. When you have the time, take a peek at this article from Glen Stassen, a professor of Christian ethics at Fuller Theological Seminary, you will be surprised.
To sum this all up, would I like to see abortion eradicated, absolutely - wouldn’t we all. Is the President going to be able to make that happen unilaterally, no - and John McCain knows this. So what options are we left with? Vote for someone who pays lip service to the Evangelical community, but will continue to do the same as our current President in shifting the tide (little to nothing) and instead only focus on the traditional Republican platform that some contend actually creates a ripe environment for more abortions. Or, choose someone who admits that abortion is a moral and ethical issue that needs to be reduced to a minimum (less than ideal, but probably more realistic) and will implement programs that the statistics point to as being more effective in actually reducing the number of abortions?
As you can see, Mansfield’s book has me doing some more serious thinking, and I pray it does the same for all who read it. At the end of the day, no matter who we vote for, being sure of why we are voting the way we are is what is most important.
