Ultrasound before abortion

Oklahoma has passed laws to ensure that women about to have an abortion must see an ultrasound of their baby an hour before the operation.

Here's the New York Times report.

The arguments against include the idea that such a move is unconstitutional because it infringes the physician's right to free speech if he is required to describe the foetus. Which seems a bit desperate, to say the least.

Seems to me the mother is being forced to confront the human identity of the one about to die by her decision, which is no bad thing.

The best thing would be to outlaw abortion altogether, but the current view of the US Supreme Court is that this can't be done.

Mugged by ultrasound

Hern and Harris chose to stay in the abortion business; one of the first doctors to change his allegiance was Paul Jarrett, who quit after only 23 abortions. His turning point came in 1974, when he performed an abortion on a fetus at 14 weeks’ gestation: “As I brought out the rib cage, I looked and saw a tiny, beating heart,” he would recall. “And when I found the head of the baby, I looked squarely in the face of another human being—a human being that I just killed.”

From an article by David Daleiden and John A. Shields.

Abortion in Victoria

Abortion in Victoria has now been decriminalized, and made easier to obtain even for unborn babies older than 24 weeks. Doctors who oppose abortion are now compelled by legislation to refer women seeking abortion to doctors who will provide it.

Trevor Cairney has a worthwhile article on the CASE website summarizing the current state of play.

Trevor concludes:

My point in writing this post has not been to be judgmental and simply to take the high moral ground, it has been motivated by sadness at the rejoicing in the streets by some, that it has just become that little bit easier in Victoria to terminate life than it once was. History will judge us badly when it considers that in Australia alone up to 100,000 abortions are performed each year.

Victorian abortion law

The Catholic hospitals in Victoria are threatening to disobey the proposed abortion law.

Report in the Age.

Abortion funding faces review

Report in the SMH today.

A matter for prayer.

From the report:

Both anti-abortion and pro-abortion campaigners believe the inquiry will turn into a de facto investigation into the numbers and cost of abortions in Australia.

The pro-choice MPs fear the timing of the inquiry, which is happening as the Victorian Parliament debates whether to decriminalise abortion.

Barack Obama, abortion, and babies born alive

An upsetting report on how Obama's stance on abortion goes well beyond passive acceptance and into something far worse.

(Thanks to Justin Taylor)

Barack Obama and abortion

Barak Obama supports the lifting of legal restrictions on abortion. Here is a useful summary of his views, in his own words and based on his voting record.

Justin Taylor has a useful post on the subject here, including this quote from Richard Garnett:

Obama's "full-throated, unqualified support for abortion rights, do not seem to provide a basis for concluding that, in fact, he would be willing to do anything to "discourage" abortion, other than to support social-welfare initiatives which he would support in any event. . . . [T]hese programs and efforts will come packaged with a roll-back of the few pro-life legislative and executive-branch victories that have been secured during the past decade or so.

There are other issues, of course. But this is a worrying one for people who believe that abortion unequivocally means the taking of human life.

Baby survives abortion, mum delighted

The story is here.

There's currently a parliamentary debate going on in Victoria over the legalization of abortion in that state.

Here's a site called Abortion Changes You that I've seen recommended by friends.

Abortion help

Doug Groothuis has recommended this 'Abortion Changes You' website, being promoted by Prison Fellowship specifically for women who are dealing with having had abortions, and those close to them.

I've not had a look at it yet, but it comes via Justin Taylor, whose judgement is reliable.

A commentary on the launch of the website from Prison Fellowship Ministry President Mark Earley:

Rarely have I been as moved emotionally as I have been by reading these stories.

There is the teenage girl whose parents insisted she have an abortion; the husband who drove his wife to the abortion clinic against his own better judgment and later watches his marriage unravel. One is about a grandmother who each year, as the date nears of her daughter’s abortion, silently mourns the loss of the grandchild she never knew. These stories will change you. They will make you look at this issue differently, just as the experience has changed the people involved.

The founder of the Abortion Changes You movement and author of the book Changed knows full well. Michaelene Fredenburg shares her own experience in the book. She says, “There are still many times that are painful for me. Mother’s Day is particularly difficult. The year my child would have graduated from high school was filled with pain. . . . If my child had gone to college, she would have graduated this year. This child would now be a young woman with gifts and abilities, hopes and dreams, her whole life ahead of her. There will always be a hole in my heart,” she says, “a hole in the fabric of our family and our community.”

Google and abortion

Those who use Google as a search engine may be interested to know that they won't accept anti-abortion or 'religious' advertisements, but will accept advertisements for sites that attack Christianity. See report here.

From the report

The Christian Institute, a "non-denominational Christian charity", wanted to pay Google so that whenever the word "abortion" was typed into the popular search engine, its link would appear on the side of the screen.

The link would have read: "UK abortion law - news and views on abortion from the Christian Institute. www.christian.org.uk."

The Christian Institute is currently mounting legal action against Google over this policy.

There are alternative search engines you can use if you don't like Google's policy, such as Yahoo.

The Christian Institute website that Google won't advertise is here. The look like a mighty fine organization, and I notice that at the top of their links page is a link to Reform (who really could do with a website tidy-up) and an excellent Spurgeon website.

Abortion.

Here's a video of Kel Richards interviewing Phillip Jensen on the subject.

The debate is often cast in terms of women's rights. But there are times when women's rights are the exact opposite of what is going on. When the husband demands and insists that the wife has an abortion. When the child is aborted because she is female.

Phillip is an interesting and compelling interview subject, and well worth listening to on this topic. One of the best things about this particular interview is the reassurance, spoken of from about the 20 minute mark, of the forgiveness that is available for all things through the blood of Jesus Christ. It is a compassionate interview, and that is a rare thing in the public debate.

One of the great fears to be faced is the fear of condemnation not just by others, but by God himself. One of the best parts of the interview is how Phillip explains in practical terms how to deal with that fear when you visit a local church.

Jereth writes on abortion

One of my friends from Melbourne Uni days, Jereth Kok, has written about the Melbourne Anglican cave-in on abortion; here at the Matthias Media blog.

The Anglicans in Melbourne are in a bad way. Jereth commented in this controversy on the doctrine of atonement (Scroll down a bit). We should pray for the evangelicals in Anglican churches in that city, and thank God also for the Presbyterians in Victoria. Some Baptist friends and Church of Christ people are doing well too.

More on Melbourne Anglicans and Abortion

Wei-Han, a Melbourne friend, has posted a letter drafted in response to the abortion report and currently circulating amongst Melbourne Anglican evangelicals.

Thanks Wei-Han! Good stuff.

The Anglicans in Melbourne and abortion

The Anglicans in Melbourne are in a bad way. David Ould comments on the absolutely awful report on abortion that recently came out from the Anglican Dio down there, along with some of the nasty political processes behind it.

You could write to the Archbishop of Melbourne, Philip Freier, about this, as my friend Jereth in Melbourne has done. They could do with your prayers, too. Jereth tells me you can write to

The Rev. Dr. Philip Freier,
C/- The Anglican Diocese of Melbourne,
The Anglican Centre,
209 Flinders Lane,
Melbourne 3000.

Pray for the Presbyterians down there too. They are the only Victorian denomination of any size that actively support evangelical ministry and church planting.

I worked in Melbourne as an Anglican for 10 years and the state of things down there continues to be a concern, with a few good things happening in some churches, and in the Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students on campuses down there.

Fetal homicide or abortion?

Thanks to Nicole for this story of attempted murder:

Nicole makes two observations:

1. It seems difficult to explain why a father killing his child is 'fetal homicide' and a mother killing her child is legally sanctioned 'termination of the pregnancy'.

2. The warnings about the potential for a black market in RU486 beyond medically supervised contexts were not far fetched scare mongering.

Amnesty International and abortion

Amnesty International have decided to support abortion rights, according to this piece in today's Australian.

And the way they have done it looks pretty underhanded. From the article:

The new policy remains absent from Amnesty websites. A process of damage control appears to be in place. British Bishop Michael Evans, author of Amnesty's prayer and 30 years a member, describes this secretive process: "Amnesty seems to have tried very hard to keep the decision secret, stating that the policy would not be made public at this time, and that no Amnesty section or structure was to issue a press release, public statement or external communication of any kind on the decision."

The previous position on the abortion question was 'neutrality'.

I don't see how this can possibly be spun as an argument for human rights. Christian supporters of Amnesty should let them know what they think.