Ecclesiastes 1:18 For in much wisdom is much grief; and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.
Ecclesiastes 2:13 Then I saw that Wisdom excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth darkness. (King Solomon).
When I was very young I began a quest to try to understand how things worked, why things were done; and to discover who was right and who was wrong in the great debates of the day. I was unaware at the time it would not always be a happy or an easy journey. The more I knew the more it hurt.
I grew up poor and spent almost two years ( I was 9 and 10) in what used to be called a Masonic orphanage. By modern American standards some would think I had a tough go of it. I soon realized as I acquired knowledge, as difficult as I thought my life was at the time; by historical and world wide standards, I had led a charmed life. We often assume that most people do not suffer anymore than we do, or are not subject to great injustice, violence or cruelty, at least for any extended period of time. As painful as it is to know; there is a lot suffering in this cruel and selfish world.
It is even more painful to know, some of the things we do and support contribute to that misery. The reason Solomon says wisdom causes grief, is because wisdom is what lets us know when we are wrong. That is never pleasant . Because I began to seek wisdom and knowledge at such an early age I did not have a lot of " all is right with the world" moments in my life. But that was alright, I knew in my heart, by gaining knowledge and wisdom I could alleviate some suffering, and change at least a small part of the world.
I have no way of knowing if this is true, but it is widely reported that when Abraham Lincoln met Harriet Beecher Stowe he said to her " So you are the little lady that started this great war." Of course she was the person who wrote, Uncle Tom's Cabin. It was published in 1852 and sold more copies in the 19th century than any other book except the Bible. She was white and had never been a slave, so her honest attempts to humanize and create sympathy for black slaves, are considered as stereotypes today. However that book did more to help the abolitionist's cause in America than any other single event. America, no matter how painful it was to consider, was confronted with the humanity of the slave, and the injustice visited upon them.
Ignorance was bliss for white America at the time. A nation that considered themselves a beacon of liberty, was confronted with the fact they were guilty of the most egregious affront to human dignity and freedom possible. Solomon was right, wisdom and knowledge are often painful. Those that rejected both and refused to be troubled by the truth; led us into a bloody civil war to preserve their peculiar institution.
Many of us that are pro-life had hoped with the advancements in prenatal medicine and science, the abortion issue would be settled intellectually. The incredible and beautiful pictures of unborn children in magazines like, Time, gave us hope that their humanity would be recognized by all. Science after all had proven the unborn child feels pain; so we thought or hoped it was settled.. Nothing is ever easy when it comes to righting a wrong. Historically the greater an injustice the greater is the resistance to change. As there is with every injustice; there are those who claim if it is addressed it would infringe upon their rights.
Slave holding individuals, and states claimed that ending slavery would be an end to the right to property and destroy their liberty and right to govern themselves. All the while ignoring the humanity and rights of the slave..Many claimed, to end slavery would cause white children to starve. There were many who believed it was a God given right to own other people as far as that wasn't applied to them and theirs.. All of them sure that ending slavery was an affront to their liberty... Liberty is only liberty when it is equally applied. To grant a privilege to one human being at the expensive of another human being is the definition of tyranny.
Many claim allowing legal abortion is better and safer than having to go underground to get one. Slavery still exists under ground here and all over the world. Some say it is even worse than legal slavery. Safety is no more a valid argument for legal abortion than it is for legal slavery. In light of what has been reported out of Philadelphia recently, I am not entirely convinced that legal is safer.
An abortion provider in Philadelphia is accused in the death of a woman seeking an abortion and murdering 9 children who were born in his office by women seeking late term abortions. My question is; if it was murder then, why wasn't it murder an hour earlier? One would have to be incredibly naive or blinded by prejudice to believe this doesn't happen every day thousands of times all over the country. We can only imagine what happens in places like China, Russia and eastern Europe, where the abortion rate is many times higher.
I think a good solution to the abortion debate is to have lawmakers at every level visit abortion clinics and spend a day watching late term abortions being performed. A decision of this magnitude needs the glaring light of experience. To do any less, considering what is at stake, is irresponsible. I believe this is a fair and reasonable request. They would leave better informed on exactly what abortion is. Knowledge helps everyone make wiser decisions, and sometimes even a painful reversal of position..
I am not unsympathetic to women who are pregnant and feel like they are in no position to have a child. I think it is our moral duty to help them. I do not live in a vacuum. I know people who have had abortions and my heart goes out to them..But I can honestly say I have never met a women who regretted having their baby. I have met many who lamented their choice of aborting their child. The question of rape and incest is always brought up in this debate. I would like to say what an awful terrible thing to happen to anyone. But there is nothing in my experience that leads me to believe a woman would be better off in the long run, if they aborted a child produced by such a terrible tragedy. Even if there was, I would still say the unborn child is human and deserves protection just like all other humans. I generally am not in favor of capital punishment, but at least they were afforded a trial and believed to have taken human life in cold blood. A child conceived in rape or incest is guilty of nothing and has no recourse..
I can say from my own personal experience and my knowledge of the world; life is not always fair. It is often cruel and harsh. Perpetuating one injustice to cure another one is never a remedy. It only makes this world even harder. Scientific knowledge, wisdom and even our common sense tell us an unborn child is a human baby. We can come to grips with that knowledge no matter how painful. Or we can allow what happened in Philadelphia to go on everyday, not only here, but all over the world.
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