In 2002, the General Assembly instructed

Katheryne L. Goodman, staff for the Advocacy Committee for Women’s Concerns (ACWC) reported in the winter of 2004 the intent of that office to have resource materials ready for distribution at the General Assembly in Richmond.

PPL was invited by ACWC to attend one meeting on this G.A. action. The meeting was held in Louisville. Representatives of ACWC, PARO, ACSWP, and the Office of Theology and Worship were present. PARO presented an outline for a resource collection; PPL presented materials they use to undergird the ministry they offer in this area.

PPL’s perspective on abortion varies greatly from that of most denominational offices. PPL holds the biblical position on abortion that has been expressed by the church historically. PARO and the denominational offices that address abortion see the issue in a public policy and "justice" framework that elevates women’s choice above biblical teaching about the value of human life. PPL’s approach to ministry to women and men whose lives have been touched by abortion is bound to be radically different because of the differences in beliefs about abortion.

PPL has a ministry packet on this subject that is titled "Discovering Grace." It will be available at General Assembly.

Pope John Paul II issued a statement this year in which he said the removal of feeding tubes from people in "persistent vegetative states" is immoral. Judgments about their quality of life do not justify euthanasia, he said. Rome-based bioethicists agreed that the Pope’s statement was an "authoritative" confirmation of traditional papal teaching.

In April, a bioethicist from the Pontifical Academy for Life at the Vatican elaborated on the Pope’s statement. Bishop Ilio Sgreccia said, "As long as nutrition and hydration are a support, as long as it is food and thirst-quencing drink that helps avoid suffering, it is obligatory." He went on to explain that "if the patient no longer assimilates food and if the patient no longer has thirst quenched by fluids," so that they only torment the patient, "there’s no longer an obligation to administer it [food and fluid.]"

The Alan Guttmacher Institute reports that 1% of abortions are performed at 21 or more weeks of gestation. That is 13,300 abortions yearly.

When terminating a pregnancy is necessary to preserve the life or health of the mother, the pregnancy can be ended either by inducing labor or by Caesarian section. These are methods of termination similar to abortion procedures with the important distinction that the mother’s life and health are preserved and the baby is allowed a chance to live.