Abortion: What's going on?

Nearly a quarter of all pregnancies in the UK end in abortion. 1 in 3 women will have one or more abortions during their life. And that makes it one of the most common social phenomena…

It’s not an option that many take lightly. Women who choose abortion often find it a hard and painful process. They deserve our deep, compassionate concern. But most women make their decision in a culture which teaches them, through the law and by common practice, that abortion is a good option.

Theoretically women considering an abortion should be able to access comprehensive and impartial advice, though the debate over whether this is actually happening continues to rage. But even when such advice is offered well, the gospel is unlikely to be included. Not included, that is, unless we speak…

Over the next few posts, we are going to dip a toe into some of the key issues and important pastoral imperatives that surround this difficult debate and look at how we can think and act with humility and for the glory of God…

Abortion: A pastoral word

It’s an emotive subject which touches the lives of many. Some of you reading this blog will have taken the decision to end a pregnancy in the past and are struggling with the aftermath, or you’re trying to pretend it didn’t happen or doesn’t matter. Others of you may be a relative or friend of someone who is hurting. Maybe you are in a crisis pregnancy right now and the option of abortion is looming large in your mind...

If any of those things are true of you, please let us encourage you to seek support from your church. Your brothers and sisters in Christ are your family and they are there, in part, to love you and encourage you to look to Jesus as you struggle with the past and the present. If you are open and honest with them, there should be no condemnation – just a desire to spur you on. After all, every Christian knows that life is sometimes incredibly tough and complex. All of us struggle to do what God would want a lot of the time. And the glorious message of forgiveness and grace is open to all.

In fact, it’s the knowledge that we are loved by Christ and forgiven by Christ despite who we are and what we’ve done that gives us a wonderful freedom. It means we can honestly confront our flaws and failings, rather than trying to cover them up or deal with them ourselves. Whatever we’ve done, whatever we do, we can freely admit them to our King (who, after all, already knows), and give them to Him to deal with once and for all at the cross. The Bible does challenge us not to deceive ourselves when it comes to things God says are sin—but it also always points us to the place we can see our sin taken, paid for and wiped away—the atoning sacrifice of Christ. We all have things in our past or our present that we are struggling to confront, or struggling with the guilt of. If you’re feeling that particularly when it comes to this issue, 1 John 1 v 8 – 2 v 2 is a great place to turn to.

Much of what is contained in the following blog posts is a biblical glimpse at what abortion is and how churches can respond. We’re not going to be looking at individual people’s stories or dealing with the desperately heart-rending situations that victims of rape or life-limiting health problems face. There is help and direction from God’s word for all these, but it won’t be a focus here. Nor are we going to be offering more pastoral advice to those who are struggling right now... That’s something that needs to happen in a church community, not via a blog. Our aim is to help equip church leaders and members with an understanding of some of the issues in the abortion debate and to encourage them to be proactive in establishing structures to support those in crisis pregnancy and post-abortion. We hope that this will be helpful, even if it doesn’t fully resonate with where you are at right now...

Andrew Nicholls is the pastor of Christ Church, Kingston. Before moving into full time ministry, he was a doctor.