Shoulder To Shoulder #1264 -- 11/8/21 ---- "The Folly of Forgetting God -- Demise of a People: Part 7 -- Sacrificing To Molech (Part E)
Posted by: lifeunlimited <lifeunlimited@...>
SHOULDER TO SHOULDER is a weekly letter of encouragement Bob has written since 1997, covering many topics
selected to motivate people to be strong students of the Word and courageous witnesses of Jesus Christ.
It is a personal letter of encouragement to you, written solely to help "lift up hands that hang down".
"The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil,
but by those who watch them without doing anything." -- Albert Einstein
“There is a common, worldly kind of Christianity in this day,
which many have, and think they have -- a cheap Christianity
which offends nobody, and requires no sacrifice, which
costs nothing, -- and is worth nothing.” – J. C. Ryle
"Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica,
for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the
Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so." -- Dr. Luke (Acts 17:11)
Shoulder To Shoulder #1264 -- 11/8/21
Title: "The Folly of Forgetting God -- Demise of a People: Part 7 -- Sacrificing To Molech (Part E)
My Dear Friend and Fellow Pilgrim Partner:
Greetings again from the "place to be", the desert -- dry desert -- VERY dry desert -- of southwestern Arizona and the thriving city of Yuma. We continue settling in, have begun the chapel ministry yesterday, and are eagerly awaiting the arrival of more of our regulars, more first-timers (5 yesterday), and the huge flock of our Canadian friends who have finally been let out of the northern corral and are crossing the border into the U.S. as I write.
Our chapel services were wonderful yesterday, but still only about half of what our usual number would be. Over half of our usual size praise team were present, and the music was wonderful to hear. The place was busy with lots of hugs, handshakes, and fist bumps. It was a good day, and it promises to get better. I don't anticipate reaching 200 in attendance as we usually do, but we could easily climb to 150 or 175 by February, which is usually the peak of our season. But, however many there are, we will be thrilled. All restrictions have been lifted for attendance, and our "out-of-park" attendees are being allowed to attend this year.
We are still getting settled in to the new house, but will continue living in the Park Model during the chapel season. Unfortunately our contractor has still not returned to complete his work, so we are looking for someone else to at least do the flooring and toilet in the master bathroom. We will ask for a refund for the part the contractor did not finish, and we are relying on some volunteering friends to do some of the normally "easy" projects like replacing a kitchen faucet, hanging a couple ceiling fans, and replacing vertical blinds on the patio door. All our furniture is in place and most of our wall hangings and shelf displays are in place. The big project now is finishing unpacking all the boxes, most of which relate to my so-called "mini-office" and book cases.
It is my intent to finally conclude my focus on the abortion issue in a final installment next time. So, please, please, please forgive me for another long letter on an extremely important topic. There is so much that needs to be said, and I've already divided the topic five times. But, it is indeed a matter of life and death -- perhaps for someone yet unborn.
I felt it was important to kick this new series off -- "The Folly of Forgetting God -- Demise of a People" -- with that topic for two reasons. First, it is a major and timely issue being currently argued before the Supreme Court of the United States; and second, I believe there is no greater sin a nation can commit than to kill its future generations while they're still in the womb -- or just coming out of the womb. Clearly it is a highly controversial topic -- so controversial that many times it has divided families and even Christian friends.
The study has been especially important to me personally because Jo Ann and I know many people who have been faced with that issue. Even some friends and also relatives have had to make decisions regarding whether or not to terminate a pregnancy, while others have endured the deep sorrow of having a miscarriage. It is no small thing to face decisions that involved taking the life of a pre-born human being or trusting God to sustain one through a process that might end up being a still birth, the endangerment of the mother, or the birth of a "special needs" child.
Clearly my writings have been very detailed and comprehensive, but that has been intentional. I have been deeply concerned about my letters being much too long and too detailed for comfort. But, just like the Lord, he brought me encouragement through a friend's e-mail -- this time from one of my dear Catholic friends, Mark, who wrote, . . .
"I too say WOW. You did an excellent job on the most emotional, divisive, and immoral issue of our day. You know your Constitution and the decisions of SCOTUS that humbles me. Don’t sell yourself short. Roe is certainly on shaky ground. It is amazing a proper challenge has not made to the Court as of yet. Texas may resolve the states-right issue but not abortion itself. It will take a case that directly address the 14th Amendment 'rights of the unborn' to resolve it."
Thanks, Mark! You lifted my spirits.
It has been my observation that the average person -- even Christians -- have a very narrow understanding of the topic. Generally, many suffer from "Tunnel Vision" where they see the topic only from one perspective -- the moral issue, whether or not Roe v. Wade is legal and/or constitutional, the medical side, economic matters, and the teachings of the Bible. Seldom does someone approach the matter in a comprehensive way that addresses all those areas.
As I wrote early on, I strongly believe abortion is wrong for those five reasons:
1. It is historically wrong because it has never been favorably seen in any Judeo-Christian culture. Accepted yes; tolerated yes; but never looked on with favor.
2. It is medically wrong because it is scientifically proven that life begins at conception, and rarely is the life of the mother in grave danger.
3. It is constitutionally wrong because the evidence indicates that when the 14th Amendment was passed, it was not designed to be a "catch-all" for other things, and as even liberal legislators and members of the judiciary frequently indicated, Roe v. Wade was filled with legal misrepresentations and judicial decisions.
4. It is morally wrong because it strikes against all sense of moral conduct and values.
5. It is biblically wrong because it violates the many clear teachings of scripture about mankind being created in God's image, the sacredness of life, the sovereign purposes of God, and the merciful provision of God -- to name but a few.
So, we'll return one final time to the topic and try to wrap up my thoughts We'll do that, right after you look at . . .
THIS 'N' THAT:
+ Veterans' Day is Thursday: I never tire of expressing admiration, appreciation, and honor to all veterans from all branches of the military. They have my deepest gratitude. I hope they also have yours. On November 11th, 1918, at precisely the 11th hour -- thus, 11/11/11/1918 -- the Armistice was enacted that led to the cessation of fighting between German troops and allied forces. The following June the Versailles Treaty was signed, officially ending "the Great War". One year later President Wilson proclaimed Nov 11th as "Armistice Day" (later to be renamed as "Veterans' Day". Two years later, November 11th, 1921, the "unknown soldier" was buried, leading to the creation of the "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier". While other federal holidays have been combined or shifted to other dates, Veterans' Day is one of only a handful that have retained a specific date, no matter the day or week of the month. For a short but interesting description of Veterans' Day, go to https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/history-of-veterans-day .
+ FYI -- New University Beginning: I was doing some research on Larry Arnn, President of Hillsdale College in Michigan and ran across this news release about a new university recently founded in Austin, Texas -- the University of Austin. Thought you might like to know about it. It is a private proposed liberal arts college founded in 2021 and based in Austin, Texas. It has been described by The Daily Telegraph as "anti-cancel culture". According to the website, the college will begin to accept graduate students in 2022 and undergraduate students in 2024. Go to https://www.foxnews.com/us/new-university-dedicated-to-free-speech-will-counter-colleges-hijacked-by-maniacs-founding-member-says for the report. Their website is https://www.uaustin.org/ . Not an endorsement, because I know almost nothing about it. Simply informing you.
+ Virginia Mom Barred from School Library: The mother in Virginia who discovered pornographic material in her child's school library as been banned from entering the library. Read the details in an op-ed at https://www.dailywire.com/news/virginia-mother-who-exposed-pornographic-reading-material-in-curriculum-barred-from-entering-high-school-library?itm_source=parsely-api&utm_campaign=daily_shapiro&utm_medium=email&utm_source=housefile&utm_content=op_ed.
QUOTES FOR THE WEEK:
> ". . . with consistency, beautiful, and undeviating, human life, from its commencement to its close, is protected by the common law. In the contemplations of law, life begins when the infant is first able to stir in the womb by the law that life is protected." -- James Wilson (signer of Declaration of Independence and Constitution, original Supreme Court Justice, author of America's first legal textbook for students)
> "I once participated in a debate where I was asked to describe the constitutional rights afforded to the unborn. For me, the answer was easy because I've studied the Founders. For the other guy – who completely dodged the question – it was just another opportunity to spout some platform slogans about choice and women's rights." -- Richie Angel (co-editor-in-chief of The New Guards, in The Constitutional Rights of the Unborn in The American Thinker)
> ". . . the founding fathers were firmly against abortion. Furthermore, both colonial statutory law and the common law in that day were also against abortion." -- Duane L. Ostler, Abortion: What The Founding Fathers Thought About It
> "Allowing abortion conflicts with the unalienable right to life recognized by the Founding Fathers of the United States. The Declaration of Independence states that '[A]ll men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.' Abortion takes away from the unborn the unalienable right to life that the Founding Fathers intended for all human beings." -- Penny Young Nance, (in "Celebrate Life, Embrace Grace...End Abortion," foxnews.com, Jan. 23, 2012).
> “Life is the immediate gift of God, a right inherent by nature in every individual; and it begins in contemplation of law as soon as an infant is able to stir in the mother’s womb." -- William Blackstone (in Commentaries on the Laws of England, 1765-1769)
> "The founders' views of abortion are extremely relevant to us today, since the constitution they gave us prohibits legalization of abortion and provides for protection of the unborn from the moment of conception. This is due to the Ninth Amendment, which deals with unlisted rights. When the founders adopted the Ninth Amendment, it was their intent and understanding that the unspecified rights it was meant to protect would be derived from natural law as understood in their day --and natural law in that day was very strongly in favor of protecting the unborn from the moment of conception, and was strongly against abortion at any point after conception. Hence, any attempt to derive a constitutional 'right' to an abortion would have been unthinkable to the founders, and directly opposite of natural law. Consequently, they would strongly disagree with the Roe v. Wade decision and the legal treatment of abortion in America today. --
Duane L. Ostler, (Abortion: What The Founding Fathers Thought About It)> "But if a woman be with child and any gives her a potion to destroy the child within her, this is murder. For it was not given to her to cure a disease but unlawfully to destroy the child within her." -- Early Virginia Law Code
> “With consistency, beautiful and undeviating, human life from its commencement to its close, is protected by the common law. In the contemplation of law, life begins when the infant is first able to stir in the womb. By the law, life is protected not only from immediate destruction, but from every degree of actual violence, and in some cases, from every degree of danger.” -- James Wilson (signer of Declaration of Independence and Constitution, in "Lectures on Law" Ch. 12, p. 597 in The Works of James Wilson).
> "The child is, in truth, alive from the first moment of conception. ... As life, by law, is said to commence when a woman first becomes quick with child, so procuring an abortion after that period is a misdemeanor. ... Quick with child is having conceived." -- John Bouvier (in Bouvier's Law Dictionary and Concise Encyclopedia, Volume 3, 1839)
> "[s]ome nations have given parents the power of life and death over their children. But here in America, we have denied the power of life and death to parents." -- John Witherspoon (signer of Declaration of Independence)
> "The very first sentence of the Constitution declares that the document's central purpose includes the aim to 'secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity. . . . To deny the Constitution's application to future generations is to erroneously deduce that the Founders intended their labor to last only a few years. Every constitutional provision that secures a human right was designed just as much for the protection of the rights of the unborn as for the rights of the born."
> “[there is] nothing in the language or history of the Constitution to support the Court’s judgement.” -- Supreme Court Justice Byron White (in dissenting opinion to Roe v. Wade)
> ". . . [the Constitution protects the unborn] from every degree of actual violence, and in some cases, from every degree of danger." -- James Wilson (signer of Declaration of Independence and Constitution, original Supreme Court Justice, author of America's first legal textbook for students)
> "Only when we as a nation return to our faith in the Creator who gives us life and liberty will we again be truly free." -- Jameson Taylor (in The Founding Fathers and the Right to Life)
WHOM HAVE WE KILLED?
Have you ever wondered about the people we have lost through the 63 million+ abortions that have been committed since Roe v. Wade was implemented? Imagine if you had an opportunity to ask a pro-abortion person that question. If you're smart, it might look like this: ----
You: "I believe all of life is sacred and is worthy of living."
Pro-Abortionist: "That may be true, but life isn't life until it can survive after birth. A fetus is just a glob of tissue, not a real person."
You: "Medical science doesn't support that view. It has been clearly proven that life begins at conception."
Pro-Abortionist: "I don't agree, and don't care what 'white supremacist' doctors might think. "
You: "Just think of how many famous people -- composers, scientists, presidents, etc. -- may have been killed because their mothers aborted them?
Pro-Abortionist: "That's an absurd idea, because there's no way of knowing. I refuse to even consider such rhetoric!"
You: "And that's because you don't want to face the reality of the possible -- and the probable, because since all of life comes from God,just as our founders said, it makes you accountable to the Giver of life Whom you either don't believe in or you know He exists, but insist on opposing Him. If life DOES begin at conception as medical science proves, then you are accountable to Him for what you do with life -- your life, and the lives of others."
That one question is a haunting one -- "How many famous people have been killed because they were aborted before having a chance to develop and impact the world?"
Well, I did a little research, and found many well-known people whose mothers had been urged to have abortions -- usually for health, abnormalities, or economic reasons. Fortunately, they did not heed such admonitions from their family members, friends, or doctors. Rather, they chose to carry the child to full term, and delivered people who made a difference -- a huge difference in many cases -- in the lives of others, . . . including you and me.
To be sure, with many mothers of these and others the issue was neither religious nor scientific. Rather, it was simply a matter of common decency -- or an inexplicable love for the child they carried -- or simply an instinctive awareness that to destroy a fetus was to kill a human life. And their offspring to whom they granted an opportunity were not all devoutly religious people who believed in a personal God. This, incidentally, is a clear indicator that the pro-life position is far from being "merely your personal religious belief". That growing group of people come from all stripes of life.
For example: . . .
+ John and Charles Wesley: -- Two of the world's most influential Christian spokesmen, their sermons and over 10,000 hymns would have not been written for our use today. Imagine what your hymn book might look like without their songs -- . For one thing, it would have been much, much, thinner. And, the "Methodism" movement would not be here, and the Methodist Church would not exist.
+ Ethel Waters: -- This is a woman who became one of the Christian world's most beloved singer. An actress and singer, Ethel was born on October 31, 1896, as a result of a rape. This may be one of the best known stories like this. Teen-ager Louise Anderson was raped by John Waters, a pianist and family acquaintance when she was only 13 years old. Subsequently raised in poverty as a result, Ethel never lived in the same place for more than 15 months.
Describing her difficult and harsh upbringing, Waters said, “I never was a child. I never was cuddled, or liked, or understood by my family.” She ended up getting married at age 13, but her husband was abusive and the marriage never lasted. However, Waters was to become an Emmy and Oscar nominee who became one of America's favorite African American singers, and appeared time after time at Billy Graham Crusades, always singing, "His Eye Is On The Sparrow". She remains one of the most beloved Christian singers long after her death.
+ Steve Jobs: -- Steve Jobs' business and technology accomplishments have been virtually unmatched in the last 25 years, before his untimely death in 2011. The founder of Apple, most people don't realize he was almost aborted. His mother was 23 years old, and had decided to abort the baby. However, she had a change of heart, delivered him, and gave him up for adoption to his parents, Paul and Clara Jobs. Even though Apple and many of its subsidiaries are not in good standing today, imagine what our lives would be like without the iPhone. Jobs was worth over $10 billion when he died unexpectedly in 2011. I wonder -- how many Steve Jobs have we killed since 1973?
+ James Robison: -- One of America's greatest evangelists, international compassion ministers, and popular television personality with an international audience, James was born in 1943 in Pasadena, TX, as the result of his mother, Myra Wattinger, being raped. His father, Joe Robison, was also an alcoholic who was frequently violent. Following a violent confrontation with his father at age 15, his mother gave James over to a compassionate pastor and his wife, H. D. Hale, who took him in and raised him.
Out of those ashes rose one of America's greatest evangelists, international compassion ministers, and an international audience to millions worldwide. On a personal note, James and his ministry, Life Outreach International, played a major role in our own ministry because while attending his annual Bible conference in Fort Worth in 1993, Jo Ann and I learned of both the St. James Bible College in Kyiv, Ukraine, and also the Life Center in Crikvinica, Croatia. Both of these ministries had received strong financial and personnel support from Life Outreach International.
It was in those two places that Jo Ann and I ministered in January, 1995, and from which our own Life Unlimited Ministries began to expand into other countries. I sometimes wonder -- "What if James' mother had aborted him instead of keeping him into his teens and then entrusting a loving pastor to mentor and nurture him? What would our own lives and ministry look like if he had been aborted?"
+ Ludvig van Beethoven: -- A number of years ago, a college professor posed a question to his ethics class. He said, "A man has syphilis and his wife has tuberculosis. They have had four children: one has died, the other three have what is considered to be a terminal illness. The mother is pregnant. What do you recommend?"
Following a long and spirited discussion among class members, the professor called for a vote. The majority of the class voted that she should abort the child. Then the professor responded, "Fine. You've just killed Beethoven."
While there is some debate about whether or not abortion was even considered by his mother, all the evidence I read indicated that it is likely that doctors advised her to do just that. But, she apparently considered aborting him for financial reasons, and not so much for health reasons. If she had, we'd have never heard some of the most amazing classical music ever written. One of the world's most brilliant and complex pianists to have ever live, he remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music, with his works some of the most performed of the classical music in the entire world. Imagine what the musical world would be like without Beethoven and his music. Personally, I would be void of some of my favorite classical pieces.
+ Cristiano Ronaldo: -- Unless you're a soccer (football) fan, you probably have never heard of the name. In her book, Mother Courage, Cristiano's mother, Dolores Aveiro, stated that she asked for an abortion, but the doctor "didn't support" her decision. Ronaldo played for Portugal in the 2014 World Cup and currently plays for the Real Madrid team. Recently he was named the world's greatest footballer for the second time.
+ Oprah Winfrey: -- Oprah Winfrey is so well known that she needs no introduction. A former actress, talk show host, and TV magnate worth over $3 billion, Oprah is the owner of multiple business ventures that span worldwide. Sadly, Oprah didn't follow in the footsteps of her mother. Rather, she actually became pregnant at age 14, tried to hide it, and had a botched abortion. In her heyday as a TV show host, she urged women to "shout out about your abortion" and even said, "God sanctions all abortions." She has since regretted both the "shout out" and the "God sanctions" statements.
Oprah's teenage mother, Vernita Lee, did not give in to the pressures and trends to have an abortion, but instead gave her the gift of life, even when others encouraged her to abort Oprah. She also gave Oprah's sister, Patricia, up for adoption in 1963. Just before Oprah's mother died at age 83 on Thanksgiving Day, Oprah made a surprise visit to see her dying mother after Patrica phoned her telling her the end was near. In an interview with People Magazine, Oprah told People, . . .
"What I said was, 'Thank you. Thank you, because I know it’s been hard for you. It was hard for you as a young girl having a baby, in Mississippi. No education. No training. No skills. Seventeen, you get pregnant with this baby. Lots of people would have told you to give that baby away. Lots of people would’ve told you to abort that baby. You didn’t do that. I know that was hard. I want you to know that no matter what, I know that you always did the best you knew how to do. And look how it turned out'."
Sadly, very sadly, Oprah continues to support the right for women to have abortions. It's hard to figure that one out.
+ Tim Tebow: -- Heismann trophy winner, two-time national championship winner, and NFL quarterback Tim Tebow is one of the most recognizable athletes in the world. A devout and unashamed Christian, Tebow and his mother talk openly about his birth. Doctors encouraged Pam Tebow to have an abortion due to medical complications that could possibly affect both him and her. She refused, however, and the impact both in professional sports (football and baseball) and in impacting millions with the Gospel of Christ is undeniable.
Now married, his football career was never just about touchdowns and yardage, but rather about making an impact on people's lives. More than once you and I probably saw him kneel on the sidelines in prayer prior to a game while disrespectful fans jeered and laughed at him. But, for him, his NFL dreams were always seen as a way to reach people. He frequently returns to the mission field of his parents in the Philippines, and his Tim Tebow Foundation helps celebrate people with special needs, and helps spread the love of Christ throughout the world.
+ Pope John Paul II: -- Born as Karol Jozev Wojtyla, Pope John Paul II, has been seen by many as one of the best popes to ever have the seat, serving as Pope in the Catholic Church from 1978 to 2005, also making him one of the longest serving popes. However, his mother was advised to abort him after losing her daughter shortly after her birth. If you take time to Google his biography, you will find some extraordinary reading that sheds light on one of the most spiritual minded popes in the Roman Catholic faith. Clearly he was a spiritual leader who was far from being in lock step with the most recent popes of the Catholic Church.
+ Nick Cannon: -- Most of us know of Nick cannon as the past host of America's Got Talent and television personality on numerous television programs. Formerly married to Maria Carey (who gave birth to two children) before their divorce, Cannon currently MC's the TV program, "The Masked Singer".
However, Cannon himself was almost not born. His mother was just 17 when she got pregnant, and decided to have an abortion. But, at the last minute, she changed her mind, and Nick was born.
+ Layne Beachley: -- This woman is a 7-time world champion surfer, born in 1972 to Maggie Gardener in New South Wales, Australia, when she was date-raped at the age of 17. Rather than aborting her, she kept the baby who was born prematurely on May 24th at Crown Street Women's Hospital in Sidney, where she spent weeks in a humidicrib. At six weeks, Maggie gave Layne up for adoption to Neil and Valerie Beachley in nearby Manly., Australia.
When Layne was only six years old, Valerie suffered a post-operative brain hemorrhage and died, leaving Layne and her brother to be raised by Neil. Neil was a Manley Beach Lifesaver and introduced Layne to surfing when she was only four years of age. She entered her first surf contest at age 14 and turned professional after finishing high school. In 1989 she was ranked #48 in the world, but by 1990 World Surf Champion Pam Burridge saw her potential and became her mentor. She quickly rose in the ranks to where she was in the top ten by 1992 and was ranked to best in the world from 1998 to 2002.
In 1998, at age 26, she won the first of six consecutive World Championships. Currently a keynote motivational speaker known as "a fantastic keynote speaker who had the audience totally hooked from start to finish. She spoke openly, honestly and passionately about her life and achievements which absolutely captivated the audience." What would her part of the world look like if she had been aborted instead of being given a life and an opportunity to excel?
+ Andrea Bocelli: -- Who can't know who this world-famous blind opera singer is. According to an article in the UK Telegraph, he interrupted one of his concerts by telling the story of a pregnant woman who had been admitted to a hospital with appendicitis. He said, . . .
"The doctors had to apply some ice on her stomach and when the treatments ended, the doctors suggested that she abort the child. They told her it was the best solution because the baby would be born with some disability.
"But the young brave wife decided not to abort, and the child was born. That woman was my mother, and I was the child."
Many music critics have declared that Bocelli was the greatest tenor opera singer since Enrico Caruso (1873-1921) and Luciano Pavarotti (1935-2007), and perhaps one of the greatest classical singers of all time who was blind.
+ Justin Bieber: -- Most people have heard of Justin Bieber, and also the fact that his mother was challenged to abort him. Many are unaware that Justin Bieber, America's favorite child-pop-star turned-young man was almost never even born. His mother, Pattie Mallette, was 17 years old when she became pregnant with Justin. She was urged to abort him, but she did not.
Going through the chaos and confusion of being a child pop-star and into his teen years, Justin lived a self-centered reckless life including a relationship with Selena Gomez, another pop star. Bieber recognized that he was on a path to self-destruction. He described it, saying, “I don’t know if I’d be alive for sure. It was dark, really dark.” Part of what led him to remain in such a sinful and rebellious lifestyle was the hypocrisy he saw in the Christians around him. He said, “I’d had really bad examples of Christians in my life who would say one thing and do another,” he said, “so they were my direct example of who Jesus was.”
In the growing up and maturing process, Bieber ended up marrying model Hailey Baldwin. In February of 2020, Bieber sat for an interview about his faith. He stated that when he began to understand the true character and love of Jesus, the process of healing in his life began and led him to make a true commitment also to his wife, Hailey. He had been raised as a Christian and did believe Jesus died on the cross for him, but he never “really implemented it” by obeying God. Now, however, Bieber views following Jesus differently.
When interviewed by Apple Music's Zane Low, Beiber said, “The way I look at my relationship with God and with Jesus is I’m not trying to earn God’s love by doing good things, God has already loved me for who I am before I ever did anything to earn and deserve it. It’s a free gift…The forgiveness is the thing that we look at and we go, you know, I’m going to worship you, God, because you gave me something so good.”
Bieber is a clear example of how God continues to rescue people not only from destructive lifestyles, but also from murderous knives and chemicals of abortion.
+ Jesse Jackson: -- Most people probably know that Rev. Jesse Jackson was almost aborted by his mother. Even though I am no fan of the Rev. Jackson I see today, his influence in the Civil Rights movement under Dr. Martin Luther King in itself is a blessing that would not have been ours had his mother aborted him. Conceived out of statutory rape to a sixteen-ear-old student, Helen Burns, by her 33-year-old married neighbor and father, Noah Robinson, Jackson was given an opportunity to live because Burns resisted the pressure to abort him, and delivered him and decided to keep the baby. Robinson was a former professional boxer, and a prominent figure in South Carolina's African American community at the time.
Helen was pressured to abort the baby, but resisted and decided to keep her baby. A year after Jesse's birth, Burns married Charles Henry Jackson, a post office maintenance worker who adopted Him.
A Baptist minister, and politician, Jackson was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988. He also served as a "shadow U.S. senator" for the District of Columbia from 1991 to 1997. He is the founder of organizations that merged to form Rainbow/PUSH. Today as an "old man", Jackson, the father of former Democratic Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., remains a Civil Rights activist. And many are thankful for the decision that teenager made in keeping her baby she didn't plan to have.
+ Eartha Kitt: -- You just about have to be my age to even recognize this name of one of the most famous "blues" singers of all time. Eartha Kitt was also conceived by rape, born in 1927 as Eartha Mae Kieth on a cotton plantation in South Carolina. Eartha was raised by a woman, Anna Mae, who was a sharecropper of African-American and Cherokee Native American descent. She would later learn that her father was the white son of the plantation owner. Her mother married and her new husband shunned Kitt due to her pale complexion.
Her mother gave her away to an aunt at age eight and arrived in Harlem, spending her childhood dealing with prejudices and confusion. She quit high school at age 15 to work at a factory in Brooklyn.
Kitt became an American singer, actress, comedienne, dancer, and activist known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 recordings of "C'est si bon" and the Christmas novelty song "Santa Baby", both of which reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Eartha gave new meaning to the word "versatility," making a big name for herself in film, theater, cabaret, music, and television. She was nominated for a Tony Award three times, a Grammy Award twice, and an Emmy Award twice.
When you have a chance, Google her name and learn more about this most amazing woman who would have truly short-changed the American entertainment culture if she had been aborted.
+ Susan Boyle -- I still remember the day I watched Susan Boyle on the America's Got Talent Show. My thought was sympathetic and "I can't believe she'll go anywhere in the contest" in nature. Then she opened her mouth to sing. I joined millions other in gasping wonder.
When Susan wrote her autobiography, she told the story of her 45-year-old mother of eight being told that having another baby would kill her. A devout Catholic, her mother saw abortion as being unthinkable, so went through to delivery. When Susan was born, doctors told her mother that she would "never be anything". This statement led Susan to where she has been "trying all my life to prove them wrong." She has clearly succeeded.
+ Zahara Jolie-Pitt: -- I was particularly struck by this story because it involved two of Hollywood's most famous iconic actors, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. who adopted Zahara who was conceived by rape in Ethiopia. Zahara’s birth mother, Mentwabe Dawit, was interviewed by a reporter with Reuter’s News Service about her horrifying encounter with the rapist.
As she walked home in the darkness a man approached. She said, “He pulled a dagger, put one hand on my mouth, so that I could not scream. He then raped me and disappeared.” Twenty-four years old at the time, she kept the rape a secret, fearing the consequences in her town. When Zahara was born, her mother placed her in an orphanage which Jolie visited in 2005. She adopted Zahara at six months old and later Pitt followed in the adoption process.
+ Kelly Wright: -- Kelly's story is one of my favorites, because it clearly shows how God can make wonderful things out of very bad experiences. A former Fox & Friends weekend co-anchor on the Fox News Channel, Kelly is today a devout Christian, and an excellent musician. He described his mother’s decision to give birth to him despite having conceived him in rape. In his book, America’s Hope in Troubled Times, Wright wrote about his mother's sexual assault that took place when she was 16-years-old. To her great credit, his mother constantly told him that although he was conceived the way that he was God had a purpose for his life. Wright's life certainly bears testimony to that truth.
+ Valerie Gatto: -- The Miss Pennsylvania 2014 was 10 years old when she learned that she had been conceived by rape. Her 19-year-old mother was raped at knife point. When in the third grade Gatto's mother explained, “Something bad happened to me. A very bad man hurt me, but God gave me you.” This kind of assurance led to Gatto becoming one of the strongest vocal advocates in behalf of sexual assault awareness. Today she travels across the country telling women how to protect themselves against violence and sexual aggression. During an interview on The Today Show she said, “I believe God put me here for a reason: to inspire people, to encourage them, to give them hope that everything is possible and you can’t let your circumstances define your life.”
Well, there are so many other famous people who were almost aborted -- people like TV personality Faith Daniels; actor Jack Nicholson; Janet Sheen, wife of Martin Sheen; outspoken pro-lifer Cher; former U.S. Congressman Marlin Stutzman; Sean Lennon, son of John Lennon and Oko Ono; amazing Canadian singer, Celine Dion; former model and actress, Brooke Shields; and famous rapper,The Game.
And for each of these, there are thousands -- no, millions -- more who blessed and graced humanity at some point in time and place because their mothers did not choose the easy way out, but endured shame, hardship, poverty, and/or danger simply in order to give an unborn baby a chance to live and make something of themselves.
Gratefully, these were people who were not killed in the womb through abortion.
Now consider . . .
WHAT SOME FAMOUS PEOPLE HAVE SAID ABOUT ABORTION:
While some of the people listed below may not be particularly famous to you, they are nonetheless highly known in many circles. Actors, economists, judges, and more, here are remarks representative of thousands more. While others speak vehemently in favor of abortion -- in spite of sound logic, medical science, historical precedent, convenience, and personal preference, -- these are some speaking out for life, often at the expense of their popularity and careers:
> "Too many people use abortion as a form of birth control. And that’s very wrong. I could never, ever have an abortion." -- Brooke Shields
> "I think we have deluded ourselves into believing that people don’t know that abortion is killing. So any pretense that abortion is not killing is a signal of our ambivalence, a signal that we cannot say yes; it kills a fetus."
-- Faye Wattleton> "It’s not good for women to go through the procedure [abortion] and have something living sucked out of their bodies. It belittles women. Even though some women say, ‘Oh, I don’t mind to have one,’ every time a woman has an abortion, it just crushes her self-esteem smaller and smaller and smaller."
-- Dolores O’Riordan> "When we consider that women are treated as property it is degrading to women that we should treat our children as property to be disposed of as we see fit." -- Elizabeth Cady Stanton
> "A person is a person no matter how small."
-- Dr. Seuss> "[Abortion is] "the horrendous modern immolation of millions of fetuses on the alter of sex gratification." -- Carl F. H. Henry (1985 -- 20th Century Evangelical Theologian)
> "Abortion is legal because babies can’t vote." -- Joseph Bonkowski
> "Abortion is not a sign that women are free, but a sign that they are desperate."
-- Frederica Mathewes-Green> "Abortion on demand has, in my judgment, contributed significantly to an environment in our country in which life has become very cheap." -- Robert Casey (PA Democratic Senator)
.
> "Abortion is the ultimate exploitation of women." -- Alice Paul
> "I believe every abortion is a tragedy."
-- Diane Abbott> "Abortion is an atrocity. Those who practice or praise it are either damn idiots, misguided fools, or treacherous devils."
-- Christopher Titus> "Abortion is inherently different from other medical procedures because no other procedure involves the purposeful termination of a potential life."
-- Potter StewartWHAT OUR FOUNDING FATHERS REALLY BELIEVED:
So, what connection is there between those famous people and our founding fathers? One thing is particularly significant -- our founding fathers spoke often and strongly as to their opposition to abortion. Perhaps their words played some small part in helping the mothers of those we've described above in choosing life over death in the womb.
Jameson Taylor is not a generally well known name. He is a philosophy professor and author with a PhD in political philosophy at the Institute of Philosophic Studies of the University of Dallas. A few years back he wrote in an article for lifeissues.net blog entitled, The Founding Fathers and the Right To Life. He stated, . . .
"Abortion is legal today not because the justices did not know when life begins, but because the justices -- as well as the 82 percent of Americans cited earlier -- do not know what liberty is. For most Americans, liberty is the subjectively defined right to do whatever you can get away with.
"Sandra Day O’Connor memorialized this faulty conception of freedom in her 1992 Planned Parenthood vs. Casey decision, which claimed that 'at the heart of liberty is the right to define one’s own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life'.
"America’s Founding Fathers would have condemned such an opinion as madness. Because both life and liberty are 'endowments' or 'gifts' from God, the proper exercise of liberty requires that man adhere to the laws of Nature and Nature’s God' in the use of his freedom."
He went on later in the blog, writing, . . .
"Had Wilson and the Founders had access to the discoveries of modern biology, they certainly would have agreed that life begins at conception. Medical discoveries in the years following the American Revolution increasingly encouraged American and English lawmakers to come to this conclusion.
"In 1803, for example, England adopted a law known as Lord Ellenborough’s Act that made it a capital offense to 'cause and procure the Miscarriage of any Woman quick with child.' The law established severe penalties for aborting infants in the first trimester as well: '…if any Person or Persons…shall procure to be used or employed, any Instrument or other Means whatsoever, with Intent thereby to cause or procure the Miscarriage of any Woman not being, or not being proved to be, quick with Child at the Time of administering…that then and in every such Case the Person or Persons so offending, their Counsellors, Aiders, and Abettors, knowing of and privy to such Offence, shall be and are hereby declared to be guilty of Felony, and shall be liable to be fined, imprisoned, set in and upon the Pillory, publickly or privately whipped.…'."
Nor everyone likes Glen Beck, but one thing is certain and that is he loves America, he loves God, and he loves the unborn. In my research on the internet, I ran across a piece he had posted in May, 2016 entitled, Abortion Part One: The Founders' Views. In it the author (unknown) stated, . . .
"It should be noted that the United States Constitution actually says nothing about abortion specifically. And while it is true that the Supreme Court ruled in favor of legalized abortion in 1973, the high court cannot write constitutional amendments, meaning women's reproductive rights are still not mentioned in the Constitution.
"However, it would seem that the unborn babies would qualify as our posterity, and thus, deserve a chance for life and liberty. While there is no specific language in the Constitution regarding abortion, the Founders did leave behind their beliefs on the topic."
Blaine Conzatti is a columnist and research fellow at The Family Policy Institute of Washington. He wrote this concise commentary on the understanding of our founding fathers. It needs no clarification. He wrote, . . .
"To see whether the Roe decision is an accurate interpretation of constitutional rights, it is important to understand the intentions of the authors of the Constitution. Did they advocate legal abortion protected by the Constitution?
"One of the most authoritative sources for learning law during the founding era was William Blackstone’s Commentaries on the Laws of England. Blackstone, a distinguished English jurist, was so well-liked by the founding fathers that he was the second most frequently cited thinker in the American political writings of the founding era. American law students studied his work so religiously that Thomas Jefferson wrote to a friend that 'Blackstone is to us what the Koran is to the Muslims.'
"Blackstone affirmed in his Commentaries that an individual’s right to life is an 'immediate gift of God.' This right to life is legally binding 'as soon as an infant is able to stir in the mother’s womb.' Per Blackstone,
“ 'For if a woman is quick with child, and by a potion, or otherwise kills it in her womb; or if any one beat her, whereby the child dies in her body, and she is delivered of a dead child; this, though not murder, was by the ancient law homicide or manslaughter. But at present it is not looked upon in quite so atrocious a light, though it remains a very heinous misdemeanor.'
"Interestingly, Blackstone also explains that fetuses 'in the mother’s womb' are legally considered 'to be born.' Thus, the law considered a fetus to be his or her own person, independent of the mother."
From these commentaries, the founding fathers learned that any abortion perpetrated after the stirring of an infant in the mother’s womb was a 'heinous misdemeanor.'
American courts upheld this traditional common law approach in characterizing abortion as a misdemeanor. Founding father James Wilson, a signatory of the Declaration of Independence and original U.S. Supreme Court justice, taught his law students that,
“'With consistency, beautiful and undeviating, human life, from its commencement to its close, is protected by the common law. In the contemplation of law, life begins when the infant is first able to stir in the womb. By the law, life is protected not only from immediate destruction, but from every degree of actual violence, and, in some cases, from every degree of danger.'
"Similarly, St. George Tucker, a Madison judicial appointee and professor of law at the College of William and Mary, explained in his celebrated legal treatise on American law that it is 'a great misprision [misdemeanor]' to 'kill a child in its mother’s womb.'
"Laws in American states criminalized abortion from the beginning. For example, Virginia law outlawed the practice of using “potion” to “unlawfully destroy the child within her [womb].” These laws were crafted by many of the same individuals who framed the Constitution.
"It is therefore inconceivable that the framers intended constitutional protections for abortion as a 'fundamental right.' Indeed, the framers believed the opposite. From their perspective, the unborn child has a fundamental right to life, a right that would be infringed by an abortion that ends his or her life.
"A 'fundamental right to abortion' does not exist in the Constitution or its amendments. It is the height of intellectual dishonesty to argue that the authors of the Constitution and its amendments intended to protect abortion under some vague and unwritten 'right to privacy.' That so many courts and judges have for so long upheld a legal doctrine antagonistic to the Constitution reveals the rogue nature of the modern judiciary."
Prior to the ratification of the Constitution in 1789, numerous states had strong anti-abortion laws in their charters and constitutions. But, in 1840, Maine became the first state to ban the abortion of infants “quick or not.” (Brian Young’s A Brief Survey of U.S. Abortion Law Before the 1973 Decision).
Subsequent federal and state laws banning abortion altogether were a logical development of the Founding Fathers’ absolute reverence for the self-evident and inalienable right to life. In fact, Justice Rehnquist in his dissent in Roe v. Wade, pointed out that by the time the 14th Amendment was actually adopted in 1868, 36 states and territories had already enacted abortion laws restricting or limiting abortions. When you consider that at that time, there were only 37 states and territories, this is an astounding fact that cannot be discounted. Democrat Andrew Johnson was president after assuming the presidency following the assassination of President Lincoln.
Finally, Jameson Taylor concluded his commentary, stating, . . .
"It is no accident that the Declaration, as written by Thomas Jefferson, characterizes the right to life as the first of those three foundational rights for the sake of which government itself is instituted. Where there is no guarantee of the right to life, legitimate political authority simply does not exist.
"Where there is no guarantee to life for both the weak and the strong, the rights to liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all are themselves at risk. The 'New Freedom' heralded by the Supreme Court and other partisans of the Sexual Revolution has thus turned into nothing less than a new enslavement.
"Only when we as a nation return to our faith in the Creator who gives us life and liberty will we again be truly free."
FINALLY:
And yes, . . . FINALLY! . . . after another long and extended letter, we conclude with this:
In his aforementioned article, The Constitutional Rights of the Unborn, Richie Angel stated, . . .
". . . once you know, you are responsible. By constitutional law and medical testimony, the child is alive whether the mother knows it or not, and once she knows, she must take care of her child." In light of that and the clear teachings of scripture, the final question seems to be, . . .
"In light of it all then, what will you do about abortion?"
In my final letter on the subject, we'll do a "deep dive" into what the Bible has to say about it, and why it says it. Until then, I am . . .
In His Bond, By His Grace, and for His Kingdom,
Bob Tolliver -- Romans 1:11
Life Unlimited Ministries
LUMglobal
[email protected]
Copyright November, 2021
"A fire kept burning on the hearthstone of my heart, and I took up the burden of the day with fresh courage and hope." -- Charles F. McKoy
"If Jesus had preached the same message that many ministers preach today, He would never have been crucified." -- Leonard Ravenhill
"The time will come when instead of shepherds feeding the sheep, the Church will have clowns entertaining the goats." -- Charles H. Spurgeon
If this letter has blessed you, feel free to forward it or copy from it, with proper credits, to any and all you wish.
Please do NOT hit reply to this letter. This is an automated unmanned system.
If you want to write Bob, send directly to [email protected].
Replying to "Shoulder To Shoulder" mailer gets you nowhere.
--
To subscribe, send ANY message to: [email protected]> To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: [email protected]