The Other Side of God?

An article printed in The Dallas Morning News, and subsequently picked up by my local newspaper, recently caught my attention. The title of the article is "Religious left unites, gives voice to other side of God, politics."

I was quite unaware that the God I serve holds more than one position on such issues as gay marriage and abortion. Does God keep a set of pro and con scales, whereupon one side of the scales holds the attributes of gay marriage and abortion and the other side holds the detrimental effects of same, and if so, to which side of the scale does God's judgment lean?

Here are some quotes from the article, which was written by Colleen McCain Nelson:

"When pundits dubbed conservative Christians "values voters" last year, church goers on
the losing side took notice --- and offense.

"Those of us on the left looked at each other and said, 'We're values voters. We love Jesus
Christ,' " said the Rev. Tim Simpson, a Florida minister...."

"...Now like-minded Christians are getting organized...."

"...And they want conservatives to know it's possible to believe in abortion rights, gay rights
and God...."

The article also identified a web site, www.iamachristiantoo.org, as a progressive Christian web site which supports their beliefs. I visited this site and left a comment on a post titled "Freakonomics on Abortion." Thus far the only reply I have received is one which states that the same site has a good post on why the abortion issue is difficult to discuss. This statement was also made by the author of the "Freakonomics on Abortion" post, I have been unable to find the post which explains why abortion is a difficult topic to discuss but I have an idea why.

This has long been a conundrum to me. How does a Christian reconcile his faith with a pro-abortion stance? Honestly, at www.iamachristiantoo.org, I felt that no statement was made to reconcile this position. While any pro-abortion advocate can make legitimate arguments to support abortion, is it possible for a Christian to do so?

Clearly, the Bible values the lives of children, as in its pages we find many inferences to that effect. Jesus himself appealed to his disciples to allow the children to come to him, I don't believe that he was referring that they should abide with him in heaven before they were born. I believe that he both valued and required of others to value the life of the child. Life was viewed as a precious commodity in the Bible. Hence, Jesus brought a 12 year old child back from the dead, as well as Lazurus, there are also other cases of children being resuscitated after death, see Elijah's walk with God. The Bible even implies that the very hand of God knits us together in the womb and in Genesis 2:7 states: "the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being." Does this not tell us that life is a gift of God and that our ancestors, created by God Himself, from whose seed the population of this earth has sprung forth are also gifts, given by God? Who is man to determine the worth or unworthiness of a child to be born? What God breathed man who enjoys the gift of life given him by God is worthy to judge whose life is worth living and whose life should be cut short in the womb due to physical circumstances of inconvenience or financial inablilities to care for that child upon its birth?

The article written by Colleen McCain Nelson goes on to comment upon the organization of "progressive" Christians in their effort to show the other side of God in politics. I found, however, in looking into the web site she had mentioned that they are touting the moderate stances of some Conservative Christians in taking a more moderate view of the issues of gay marriage and abortion. While promoting and applauding the efforts of the newly formed Christian Alliance for Progress they seem to take the double standardized approach that Conservative Christians who take the momentum out of the politicization of Conservative Christianity are to be applauded for de-politicizing the issue. How does one reconcile being in the beginning throws of politicizing "progressive" Christianity while applauding the de-politicization of "conservative Christianity?" The answer to this question, in my opinion, is that we are in the midst of fighting a culture war. While progressives view the politicization of progressive Christianity as a necessary means to the end of "beating" the conservative Christians for doing the same, they seem to be condemning what they applaud in themselves. The old saying "two wrongs don't make a right" doesn't seem to apply, that is, if one believes them that it is wrong for conservative Christians to politicize Christianity and religion in the first place.

Another argument I have noted is that they seem to hold the view that by taking a pro-life stance, it precludes a conservative Christian from caring for the poor. As though being pro-life means you are incapable of giving to charity or helping those in need. When did taking a pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage stance, of necessity, imply that you are a charitable and giving Christian?

I am waiting for a reply as to how a Christian can reconcile abortion with their faith, I remain very skeptical of the position, but considering they do not seem to want to have a discussion about it other than to state that abortion discussions are difficult and complex, I doubt that any dialog will ensue. I can certainly understand why they believe that abortion is a difficult issue to discuss as a "progressive" Christian, since Christianity is a religion which clearly values life.