The Board of Directors of Presbyterians Pro-Life held its annual meeting at First Presbyterian Church in Orlando, Florida October 6-8. A significant portion of the board’s discussion centered on the many changes taking place in the denomination and how PPL might respond. In our discussion we considered the upcoming 2012 GA and reaffirmed our commitment to bear witness within the PC(USA) as we call our church to adopt a more Biblical position on life issues. PPL is also willing and ready toaid and equip the Fellowship of Presbyterians’ New Reformed Body and the larger Presbyterian & Reformed community with resources upholding life and family.
With many PC(USA) churches having been called to serve in different Reformed denominations, the Board of PPL is excited about expanding our opportunities for ministry to the larger church. We look forward to sharing our over thirty years of ministry experience and thoughtful written resources to further equip congregations in their efforts to honor God by upholding the sacred value of human life from fertilization to its natural end.
Please contact PPL at 412-487-1990 or email us at ppl@ppl.org for more information.
October is Abortion Awareness Month-Is your church too silent?
Most pro-life congregation members wish for their pastor to speak out boldly against the evil of abortion. They want their churches to take action politically and to engage in life-affirming ministry. Let me gently suggest that maybe it is you and not your pastor who needs to take action. I’m not letting pastors off the hook entirely. Pastors absolutely need to be teaching comprehensively on the value of human life as indicated throughout Scripture. God is crazy about us! Our Creator made us in his own image, and claims us for his own. He has purchased us with the costly sacrifice of his Son, Jesus Christ, on the cross. That message should pervade a pastor’s sermons year round. Every baptism is an opportunity to remind members that God has loved and called them while they were still in the wombs of their mothers. There is never a moment in our lifetime when God does not love us, watch over us, nurture us. Silence on abortion is not an acceptable option, but it is not only pastors who are too silent!
Your pastor is called to shepherd the whole congregation.
Pastors are very aware that the people in their pews on Sunday hold divergent views on social issues. They must pastor the people across that broad range of views. Speaking too directly to social issues like abortion may alienate members of the congregation and close doors to future ministry. Few topics are more emotionally charged than those surrounding pregnancy. In a single congregation there may be members who have had abortions, paid for abortions, urged daughters or wives to abort a child and also those who have struggled with infertility. Those who desperately want to conceive a child may be angry at the thought that some women have “thrown away” a baby in the womb. Others may be adamant that a woman has the right to choose whether or not she will carry her baby to term. It may seem to your pastor that silence is preferable to the emotional free-for-all that might result if he speaks publicly against abortion unleashing disagreement.
Silence about abortion may not mean you agree.
On the other hand, it is essential to understand that silence about abortion in your congregation does NOT indicate that your congregation is united on this issue. Most church members have an assumption of agreement on essentials of the faith. If your church has not discussed abortion publicly, you probably believe that those in your community of faith hold the same beliefs that you hold about the sacred value of human life. It can be very disturbing to learn that you disagree with those who sit next to you in worship on Sunday. However, if a congregation hopes to minister to the deep hurts and broken places in the lives of its members, breaking the silence on abortion is essential. You could be the one to begin the conversation.
Breaking silence while facilitating ministry
Here are some ways to open dialogue and ministry without creating division or making your pastor the focal point of controversy.
1) Offer a Sunday School class or Bible study. Make Scripture the focus and authority on the topic of abortion and human life. PPL has a number of resources to help churches do that. Created, Loved, & Called is a DVD series of lectures with accompanying handouts; Pregnant with Promise is a Bible study centered on God’s character as revealed through the pregnancy stories of the Bible; and “A Format for a small group Bible study on abortion” is perfect for small groups. For those who have experienced abortion and need to find healing and forgiveness, PPL recommends Forgiven and Set Free & Healing a Father’s Heart, Bible studies by Linda Cochrane & Kathy Jones.
2) Engaging your congregation by joining hands with your local pregnancy care center or adoption agency is a pro-active way to affirm life in the womb. It may lead to dialogue about the abortion issue, but begins with extending care to the woman in a crisis pregnancy. Something as simple as collecting diapers for a pregnancy center, having a speaker from an adoption agency give a presentation, or providing wrap-around services for an unwed mother, can help church members begin to think about life in the womb without the divisiveness of political dialogue.
3) When there is pregnancy loss—current or past—within a congregation, providing an opportunity for a memorial service for the unborn can provide a beginning point for healing and, where necessary, forgiveness and restoration. Presbyterians Pro-Life can provide resources for planning a memorial service and also provide training for ministry to those who have experienced pregnancy loss through miscarriage and abortion. For parents receiving a pre-natal diagnosis incompatible with life, PPL can refer your church to organizations that provide pre-natal hospice ministry.
Praying to end abortion
Once your congregation has opened dialogue on abortion, has studied what Scripture teaches on the sacredness of human life, and has essential agreement, then you are ready to become active as a congregation in working to end abortion in your church, your community and the nation. One of the activities you might promote is the 40 Days for Life prayer campaign. Visit their website to connect with this peaceful prayer vigil in your city. If you live in or near Pittsburgh, PA, join First Presbyterian Church in praying at the Planned Parenthood on Liberty Ave. on Sunday, October 23 from 7-11am. Or, join PPL Executive Director at the 40 Days vigil on October 31 from 3-7pm.
