This month we are celebrating Respect Life Month.  Some of the most profound encounters I have had in my ministry have been speaking to women who have had an abortion or men who have been affected by one.   Every time, I encountered someone filled with profound remorse and sorrow for what they did as well as the feeling that God cannot forgive them.  The issue of life in these moments becomes more than a political or social issue.  It becomes more than just a theological position or a matter of faith.  It becomes a moment where we unite as a people on the pilgrimage to salvation.  It brings clarity on why we as a people are prolife. 

Consistently in the Scriptures, Jesus goes beyond the political and social aspects of society in order to encounter a person.  The encounter Jesus has with the woman at the well in John 4:1-42 brings this reality to light.  The issues that surround this woman is that she is a Samaritan.  Jesus, as a Jew, should not associate with a person of Samaria because they are rivals and enemies, but Jesus looks beyond that issue.  Jesus also looks beyond social norms of the time period; a single man should not be speaking with a woman who has had multiple marriages and currently lives with a man who is not her husband.  The issues do not matter to Jesus, for they only serve as a barrier for the woman to find healing in her life and encounter the forgiving Lord.  Most of all, they are a barrier for her, because she goes to the well at noon by herself instead of the morning with the other women.  She no longer sees herself as part of society.  Through her conversation with Christ, she encounters the Messiah who came to save her, and she could not help but share that message with everyone she encountered.  Yes, Christ came into the world to save the world, but more specifically, He came to save the woman at the well, the woman who had an abortion, and each of us who have struggled with any sin.  He came to save each individual specifically by name.  Why?  Because every person is created in His image and likeness, and created out of His love for us.  Each and every one of our lives is precious.

With this in mind, being prolife is more than a political issue or a theological idea.  It is a reality of salvation.  It is a reality that the unborn child was created in God’s image and likeness and with His love.  But it is also true that the woman who struggled with the decision is created in the same image and likeness.  The woman who suffers from making the decision.  The men who are a part of these women’s lives.  We are prolife for all people because each and every person is valuable in the eyes of God.  This month let us continue to show our position as a Church. We are against abortion, euthanasia, assisted suicide, death penalty, and more.  But even more importantly, let us not forget that we are ultimately prolife because of the dignity of each person – no matter the choices they make in life.  Each person was created with the love of God, and we are called to share that love with each person we encounter on our pilgrimage to heaven.