Every year, 32,000 people die on America’s highways. Every 10 days, that many abortions are performed in our country.
This week marks the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that struck down many state laws restricting abortion. Surprisingly, only 44 percent of Americans under age 30 know that Roe deals with abortion. Even more surprisingly, 53 percent of Americans think abortion “is not that important, compared to other issues.” Here’s why they’re wrong.
Since Roe, more than 55 million lives have been aborted. According to the Movement for a Better America, the resulting labor lost to our nation will cost our future GDP some $45 trillion. By comparison, our national debt stands at $16 trillion. Consider the impact on Social Security: each day for the next 19 years, 10,000 baby boomers will turn 65. At current trends, Social Security will be bankrupt in 21 years. One major reason: of the generation under 45 whose taxes support Social Security, a third was aborted.
How can you make a difference on this issue?
First, if you are pro-life, can you defend your position? It is vital that we speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15), giving a reason for our faith “with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15). For more on the legal, theological, and ethical issues involved in abortion, I invite you to read my essay, “Abortion and the Mercy of God.”
Second, if you believe life is sacred from the moment of conception, what are you doing to act on your conviction? My wife and I are strong supporters of the Council for Life in Dallas; what pro-life organization could you support in your community? Is God calling you to walk through pregnancy with a woman considering abortion? To share God’s mercy with a friend who chose abortion? To consider adopting a child into your family? Dietrich Bonhoeffer warned us: “Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”
Each time I visit Israel, I am deeply saddened by Yad Vashem, the Holocaust museum in Jerusalem. As you know, six million Jews were murdered during World War II, one-fourth of them children. As much as we should grieve the Holocaust, let’s remember that 10 times more lives have been ended by abortion.
One of the first panels at Yad Vashem displays this statement: “A country is not just what it does—it is also what it tolerates.”
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