We live in a world dominated by science, meaning to know. From science we know the substance of the stars and the intricacies of the womb. We do not, however, know the origins of either – the origins of life. Life is a mystery. All of humanity lives within the mystery that is life in which we do not always ‘know.’ We ponder and wonder, we are vulnerable and in awe, astounded and amazed at the great wildness and vibrancy of life. We cannot physically live without this moral ethic and practice for life. Unfortunately, the U.S. culture, bound to the religion of Militarism that values domination, suffering, and violence wants to live without a Pro-Life ethic and practice.
To say we are Pro-Life is not a slogan. It is not a piece of propaganda used to diminish thinking, used to neutralize life-giving action. It is the opposite. It is a disposition to energize thinking, an ethic to enhance life giving action. Pro-Life is, however, currently being used as a slogan by militant evangelicals. Their disposition is to diminish thinking and reveals an ethic to confine life giving actions. The are showing a desire to control life, to control women especially. Evangelicals are showing signs of being pro-death. Evangelicals are pro death penalty, pro death through poverty, pro death through opposing universal health care, pro death through guns, pro death through war. They are even pro death when it comes to abortion. The death they are causing in their opposition to abortion is to Jesus’ Way. It is a death to communion with people who disagree with them, a death to loving their opponents, and a death to being a healing power for life amidst an empire of death. They are also causing a death to their own faith for they have sold their soul in this matter. They have sold it to Militarism’s U.S. Empire and to its current ruler, Trump. Evangelical opponents of abortion are using Militarism’s divisive, hostile, and violent methods to achieve their end. As such, their end is not the elimination of abortion. It is a continuation of Militarism’s divided, hostile, and violent culture. Militarism propagandizes a man to divisively rank himself over others (e.g. women), to justifiably hurt others as an enemy, and to be honored for killing others, as if doing so makes him a hero, for we are believed saved when that violence is done. So too Militarism propagandizes a mother to rank herself over her unborn baby, to be justified in targeting the baby as an enemy, and to do violence to life, as if doing so makes her a hero, for she is believed saved when the violence is done. Militarism spawns a Pro-Choice culture for all its violence; poverty, sickness, guns, war, patriarchy. We are propagandized toward mere reforms in our pro-choices for violence; slightly higher unlivable wages, caps on corporate control of health care, smaller gun magazines, a war budget of only $716 billion instead of $750 billion, and greater access to patriarchy’s abortion system – and we fashion ourselves heroes, for we are believed saved when all the lesser violence is done. Being Pro-Choice is no mystery. It is the logical conclusion of a Militarist culture that devises violence as a right. When has Militarism ever supported women and their rights? Militarism only ever supports the right to dominate, to harm, and to kill and happily welcomes women coerced into its cult. Thus, women join the military to kill and think it is an honor. Women adopt toxic masculinity in business, sexuality, and movie heroes/villains and think they are liberated. Women abort their unborn babies and think they are free. Under Militarism, women are domesticated, subjugated, impoverished enslaved, trafficked, raped, murdered, and coerced to abort. Under Militarism, women are not powerful authors of life but, at best, granted equality of rank among practitioners of violence. Abortion is entirely in keeping with Militarism’s history of violence against women and children. The term Pro-Choice is indeed a slogan. It is a piece of propaganda that intentionally diminishes intelligent thinking and confines creative action. As Noam Chomsky said, “That’s the whole point of good propaganda. You want to create a slogan that nobody’s going to be against, and everybody’s going to be for.” But what is Pro-Choice for? It is for women to choose Militarism and its values of domination, harm, and violence. We can know a Pro-Life world instead in which we are vulnerable and in awe as written of this Sunday; ‘And how happy I was with the created world; how I rejoiced with the whole human family!’
“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science. (One) to whom the emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand wrapped in awe (of the mystery of life), is as good as dead.” (Albert Einstein)
Prayer: Spirit of Life, enliven us to heal this pro-choice death culture.
Question: Why am I not fully Pro-Life?
June 16, 2019 Gospel John 16:12-15 Feast of the Holy Trinity