There is an insurance company that, for many years, used the phrase, “Life comes at you fast.” There is no better way to sum up the last few days since the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in the Mississippi vs Dobbs case.
In many ways, the 6-3 decision, a draft copy of which was leaked about six weeks ago, was not a surprise. The decision overturns the national abortion precedent established by cases like Roe vs. Wade and Planned Parenthood vs. Casey. This precedent found an alleged “right to privacy” in the U.S. Constitution and dictated broad rights to abortion, limiting states’ ability to restrict or prohibit abortion prior to the point of viability.
Before Roe, a little more than half of the states prohibited abortion. At Dobbs, nearly as many states had legislation pending in various federal courts that pushed back against the precedent. The Dobbs decision found that there is no Constitutional right to abortion, returning the decision to regulate, prohibit, encourage or subsidize back to the individual states.
This decision was announced a little after 10 a.m. the morning of June 24, the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In future years, the anniversary will fall on the feast of St. John the Baptist. The readings for the Vigil and Feast of John the Baptist are some of the most explicitly affirming of the humanity of the unborn child – recognizing not only God’s hand in our marvelous design, but the wonder that the first person to recognize Christ was the infant John, who was said to “leap in the womb” of his mother.
While extraordinarily welcome, the decision has brought with it some confusion. Prior Ohio law generally prohibited abortion after the point of viability. Numerous other life-affirming laws have been enacted but were not in effect due to court challenges, such as the heartbeat law and the humane disposition of fetal remains law. Immediately after Dobbs was announced, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost filed a motion to dissolve the injunction against the heartbeat law. By 7 p.m. Friday, the Courts agreed, and Gov. Mike DeWine issued an emergency order adopting rules related to the heartbeat bill. Less than 12 hours after the Dobbs ruling, abortions became illegal after a heartbeat can be detected – about six weeks. We do not know exactly what this will do in terms of ending abortions. Last year, there were just over 20,000 abortions performed in Ohio. Ohio’s abortion statistics group abortion “up to nine weeks” together – last year, that was about 12,000, but it can be presumed that many of those were in the stage after a heartbeat can be detected.
We also anticipate that there will continue to be considerable legal maneuvering. Groups like the ACLU have declared their intent to file new lawsuits to block the heartbeat law. The Biden administration is saber-rattling that states will be forced to permit the abortion pill. At the same time, sources in the Ohio legislature indicate that efforts to reconvene the House and Senate to pass prohibitions on all induced abortions are underway. Life is coming at us fast, but we will continue to keep our members updated at www.gcrtl.org/post-dobbs and on social media.
To be very clear, Dobbs is not our victory cry, it is our call to action. It will intensify, not eliminate, efforts to enshrine abortion the laws and hearts of Ohio. It will amplify the needs of the most vulnerable who are often pushed to abortion because of a crisis. Abortion does not solve poverty, addiction, domestic violence, human trafficking, discrimination, fear, isolation, or any of a myriad of very real problems, but those who seek abortion in these instances will still go looking. We need to all become missionaries of mercy building strong families and strong communities in the long run and by reaching out our hands to those who need it today. We will need to redouble our organized and individual efforts if we want to build a pro-life future.
As part of this effort, Greater Columbus Right to Life and the Diocese of Columbus’ Office for Social Concerns are partnering to bring a program called Into Life to Columbus. The Into Life Conference will be held Saturday, July 23 at St. Catharine Church. Into Life invites participants into a new vision of pro-life ministry, one grounded not in slogans but in authentic relationships, genuine dialogue and intentional accompaniment. Our program is a one-day version of the 12-week series designed by the Sisters for Life. Participants will be invited, but not obligated, to lead small groups through the full series this coming year.
This condensed program will focus on the foundations of what it means to be human, learn about the “crisis” of crisis pregnancy, look inward to the qualities of our own mercy and walk with those in need. We have included ample time for small group discussions, reflection, and silent and communal prayer. To learn more or to register, visit: www.gcrtl.org/into-life.
In addition, Gov. DeWine has announced a new initiative, Bold Beginnings: Mothers and Children First. Gov. DeWine has shown exceptional life-affirming leadership in this program, a combination of consolidating existing programs to help families and new initiatives designed to show the state’s commitment to pregnant women, their babies and their families through pregnancy and into adolescence. It is a one-stop-shop of resources to help families in need. It is a strong compliment to the work that pregnancy centers, churches and organizations are already doing. You can find Bold Beginnings online at https://boldbeginning.ohio.gov. With support for new parents, benefit information, provider credentialing, prenatal and post-natal care information, nutritional support, material aid, foster care and adoption support and more, Ohio is leveraging more than a billion dollars to help support families.
Lastly, I want to acknowledge that there are incredibly strong feelings and emotions right now from people who believe that women’s rights and equality are predicated on abortion – that killing their children in the name of bodily autonomy is requisite to freedom. When someone hears something enough – and five decades is a lot, they believe it to be true. We have a tremendous opportunity to respond in truth and charity, remembering that we are fighting evils and ideas and sin, not people.
A few hours after the Dobbs decision came out, a friend messaged me that their family lost their unborn baby due to miscarriage and they were having a funeral Mass and interment if I could make it. I did.
As I sat in that church, I surveyed a group of 40-50 people gathered. While their grief was evident, so was their joy.
It stood in stark contrast to what I drove past on my way there: a crowd of angry abortion advocates heading to the Statehouse, one of whom had painted the inside of her legs red and was holding what appeared to be a painted baby doll representing a child to be aborted.
These past few days, it has been impossible not to compare the two scenes repeatedly in my head. There is no real difference between the baby deeply loved and fully mourned and the baby aborted by choice. The difference is in us: in the formation of our hearts and the quality of our mercy. Life is coming at us quickly, and we have to choose – will we choose life or death? I pray we choose life.
