Back in June, 2022, the Supreme Court ended the federal constitutional right to abortion and left the choice to ban or allow abortion up to individual states.
KUOW, an NPR news station in Seattle ran the following story by Adventist pastor in Seattle, in the wake of the Dobbs decision. Pastor Derek Lane of Seattle's Maranatha Seventh-day Adventist Church sent the following comments to KUOW,
"Sad day"
It's sad because there is an assumption that all people of faith stand in solidarity with this decision. While my own particular religious denomination recognizes the multi-layered aspects of the debate, it does lean towards a more conservative stance and emphasizes the sanctity of life.
But upon closer examination people of faith within my faith tradition as well as many others who represent a 'silent majority' have long recognized another valuable and equally important aspect of faith, and that is freedom. The Bible and all other sacred texts recognize the value of both life and freedom and do not see it as a zero-sum game.
As a faith-based leader and community activist I lean towards freedom because that is what I see my sacred text and values promote above all else.
It's a sad day because the same court that restricts freedom and promotes life by denying women the right to choose also expands that same freedom to make it easier to take a life by granting permission to carry a concealed gun outside of the home.
It's a sad day because abortion providers will now have to close their doors to the poor and BIPOC communities who already experience limited healthcare options because of economic injustice in our healthcare system.
It's a sad day because we have finally exposed the hypocrisy of a system and society that places more value on life before the womb than after. We expend energy, resources, and a half century to protect the unborn but deny them fair housing, free healthcare, and a living wage.
Source
Our Commentary
We believe the Dobbs decision was the right decision. There is no federal Constitutional right to kill intrauterine children.
KUOW is a DEI-supporting organization.
The Fair Housing Act made it illegal for landlords to discriminate against potential tenants based on their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin when selling or renting housing. If you want a better home, get a job and rent or buy a better place to live. Don’t expect someone to give it to you. If you don’t like where you are living, move. It takes effort, determination and ambition. These qualities produce in you a resilience that makes your life more rewarding and fulfilling. It also makes you a more positive asset to whatever community you dwell in.
This pastor laments the lack of free healthcare. Should we also have free vehicles, free roofing, and free plumbing? The Bible says “The laborer is worthy of his hire” (Luke 10:17).
A living wage is important. As the Apostle Paul says "Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands."
Ephesians 4:28: "Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need".
Proverbs 14:23: "All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty."
The right to bear arms is protected by the US Constitution. It has nothing to do with killing intrauterine children — a sacrament of paganism.
The Declaration of Independence states that all people possess the unalienable rights to "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." The US government was instituted to protect these rights and derive its just powers from the consent of the governed.
The Statement on the Biblical View of Unborn Life and Its Implications for Abortion was voted and passed by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Executive Committee on October 16, 2019. It emphasizes the sanctity of human life, and the application of the sixth commandment to the question of abortion. The vote was 250 to 4.
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"Before I was born the Lord called me; from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name” (Isaiah 49:1).