March for Life this Week
This week (May 13) pro-life advocates gather for the National March for Life gathering in Ottawa and also online.
The theme is “you are Not Alone!” You can visit their website for a video invitation.
Each day in Canada 300 women undergo an abortion. On that same day, our new MAiD (Medical Assistance in Dying) law allows physicians to kill 15 vulnerable Canadians. An insidious culture of death envelopes our nations.
Forty Years with no Protection
Canada has had no law protecting the unborn since 1988. Dr. Henry Morgentaler, an immigrant, survivor of the Holocaust, and Order of Canada member (2008), successfully argued that the current abortion laws were unconstitutional. However, the court did not actually recognize a constitutional right to abortion. Only Justice Wilson recognized that abortion was a constitutional right. The abortion laws of the day were struck down because the “process” to obtain an abortion was declared unconstitutional. In fact, the rights of unborn children were acknowledged by the court. Justice Beetz wrote that the primary objective of the abortion law was “the protection of the foetus.” The protection of the life and health of the mother was an “ancillary” one, according to Justice Beetz’s ruling. He expressed that the protection of the unborn was a valid objective in Canadian criminal law, noting that the state’s interest in protecting an unborn child would become so compelling that the liberty rights of women must give way. However, he and the other justices noted that this decision was Parliament’s decision, not the courts. Parliament has never filled the legal void left by the court in 1988. I invite you to take a look at Joshua Tong’s helpful article on this.
The Bible on Life
The Bible has much to say about life and a clear condemnation of the taking of life from the womb or a long-term senior’s residence.
From Pre-Natal to Post-Natal
When Jeremiah and Isaiah reflected on God’s call on their lives, both referred to their call to serve God happening in the “womb”.
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“Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you and before you were born, I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:4-5 ESV)
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“…the Lord called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name.” (Isaiah 49:1 ESV)
They heard God before they were born. There was no barrier from hearing God’s voice between prenatal and postnatal life. God sees life from the moment of conception.
From the Womb to the Tomb
The Psalmist reminds us that God is intricately involved in our lives from conception (womb) to our home-going (tomb), saying:
“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” (Psalm 139:13-14)
Pregnancy Care Canada
Our FAIR department has partnered with “Pregnancy Care Canada”. We introduced the Fellowship family to PCC’s Executive Director, Dr. Laura Lewis at our Fellowship National Conference 2019.
I encourage you to go online to their website to seek resources to inform your church, friends, and women who are undergoing and unexpected pregnancy. May we all ensure that mothers and vulnerable seniors know that they “are not alone!”