Children In The Womb

(photo of "child" at 10 weeks)

As Jesus drew near Jerusalem, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If this day you only knew what makes for peace–but now it is hidden from your eyes. For the days are coming upon you when your enemies will raise a palisade against you; they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides. They will smash you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave one stone upon another within you because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.” (Luke 19:41-44)

Luke wrote long after the fall and destruction of Jerusalem at the hands of the Romans in year 70.  Today we have another issue that speaks of smashing children.  That issue is abortion and, in particular, the so-called Women’s Health Protection Act, H.R. 3755 that passed the House of Representatives on September 24 (vote of 218 versus 211).  This bill was placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar (9/29/21).  It is a lengthy bill I’m still reviewing and trying to understand. For example, the bill would remove “a prohibition on abortion at any point or points in time prior to fetal viability, including a prohibition or restriction on a particular abortion procedure.”

On the same day the USCCB Public Affairs Office released this statement: 

WASHINGTON - Today, the House of Representatives voted to pass the Women’s Health Protection Act, H.R. 3755. This bill would impose abortion on demand nationwide at any stage of pregnancy through federal statute and would eliminate pro-life laws at every level of government -- including parental notification for minor girls, informed consent, and health or safety protections specific to abortion facilities. H.R. 3755 also would compel all Americans to support abortions here and abroad with their tax dollars and would also likely force health care providers and professionals to perform, assist in, and/or refer for abortion against their deeply-held beliefs, as well as force employers and insurers to cover or pay for abortion. 

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City in Kansas, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities issued the following statement: “This deceptively-named bill is the most extreme pro-abortion bill our nation has ever seen. H.R. 3755 is not about the health of women, but only about eliminating any and all protections for unborn children - including baby girls. It would lead to the deliberate destruction of millions of unborn lives, leaving countless women with physical, emotional, and spiritual scars. 

  “This bill assumes that abortion can be the only, or best, solution to a crisis pregnancy. H.R. 3755 is built on a false and despairing narrative that utterly fails women. In treating abortion as the moral equivalent to the removal of an appendix, this proposal is radically out of step with the American public. As a nation built on the recognition that every human being is endowed by its Creator with the unalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, this bill is a complete injustice. Congress should embrace public policy that respects the rights of mothers, their children, and the consciences of all Americans, not advance a radical ‘abortion on demand until birth’ policy that is completely out of step with our country’s principles.” (end)

On a close and partisan vote the House apparently decided to “smash” children.  One could speciously argue that the embryo and fetus are not yet a “child.”  Nonsense.  They are “children-in-the-womb.”  Discussions and arguments about abortion continue non-stop, especially as they pertain to the Eucharist and its reception. 

Deacon David Pierce