With concern and hope for greater grace in churches, Southern Baptists responded to a new LifeWay Research study that shows post-abortive women think congregations are more judgmental than caring.
Frank S. Page, president of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee, said he “was saddened to hear that most [post-abortive women] said they would not share their plight or decision with people in the church because of fear. I do believe that is a valid point in some circumstances.”
Page, a pastor for more than 30 years, has ministered to women who had abortions and believes there is an alternative way to view the issue.
“There are many persons who feel such shame that they choose not to share with anyone,” he said in written comments for Baptist Press. “For some, perhaps even a few, it is easier to say that their fear is of retribution or gossip, when the truth is their deepest fear is the shame they feel over doing something so catastrophic.
“My prayer is for God’s healing and forgiveness, and, yes, also for acceptance by God’s people of those who have made such decisions in their past,” Page said.
Trillia Newbell, director of community outreach for the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, said the survey results “do not surprise me, but they do grieve me.”
“We want our churches to be places where men and women can share openly and honestly about their struggles,” she wrote in remarks for BP. “My hope is that the gospel of grace would break through a culture of fear and gossip so that women may be served well. We must equip the church on how to properly handle these tough circumstances with truth covered in gentleness and love.”
A soon-to-be-released book edited by Newbell is designed to equip churches to be pro-life in all areas. The ERLC-published book — “Women on Life: A Call to Love the Unborn, Unloved and Neglected” — will be released in print and e-book format in mid-January.
Garrett Kell, a pastor in the Washington, D.C., area, said the survey results “must cause us to stop and ask uncomfortable questions.”
“Am I the kind of Christian people feel safe to talk about their struggles with, or would they feel condemned? Is our church the kind of place where people are shunned for sin, or where they are helped to escape its snares?” asked Kell, lead pastor of Del Ray Baptist Church in Alexandria, Va.
Kell, whose pastoral ministry has demonstrated a burden for the abortion issue and those in crisis pregnancies, told BP in written comments, “Unplanned pregnancies can be terrifying for women and men alike, and a church built on the Gospel will be one that welcomes and walks with people in their time of need. Lord, help us to be this kind of people!”
The ERLC and Focus on the Family are cosponsoring a conference to help equip churches to be pro-life from a gospel perspective. Evangelicals for Life, a first-time event, will be held Jan. 21-22 in conjunction with the March for Life in Washington, D.C. ERLC president Russell Moore, Newbell and Kell are scheduled to be among the conference speakers. Registration and information are available at http://evangelicals.life/.
— Tom Strode is Washington bureau chief for Baptist Press.