The whole world knew this day was coming, thanks to a leaked document from the U.S. Supreme Court a month or so ago, but nobody really knew for sure. On Friday 24th June 2022 the highest court in America overturned a decision which was made in 1973 in the now famous ‘Roe vs. Wade’ case. That decision made abortion a constitutional right for every woman – based on the fact that women had control over their own bodies. By default, that decision confirmed that unborn children in America were assigned no rights at all.
Almost 50 years later, the same Court determined that the 1973 decision was wrong and that abortion was never mentioned in the U.S. Constitution and that the Court was in error by ruling that abortion was a constitutional right for women. It is important to note that the Court has not ruled for or against abortion itself in Friday’s decision. Many critics are already talking about the Supreme Court in terms their ‘anti-abortion’ stance. That is not what this ruling was. The court has no authority to rule on a moral issue. They ruled only on a constitutional issue – a fact which no doubt will be lost in the war which is now unfolding.
Dr. James Dobson, a leader in the pro-life movement for decades, is thanking God for the nationwide pro-life victory from the Supreme Court on Friday. He issued a statement saying the ruling was simply about correcting one of the greatest wrongs ever perpetrated by activist judges who bypassed the political system and created deep divisions across the entire U.S as a result. “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Praise God! We have just received the news for which we have been praying and working! After nearly 50 years, a majority of Supreme Court justices, who refused to be intimidated by threats and violence, have finally struck down Roe v. Wade,” Dobson said in a statement.
“Roe was built on a lie that somewhere hidden in our Constitution there existed a right to destroy children in the womb. The ruling in 1973 shocked the nation and divided the country. It was an exercise in raw judicial power. History will judge it as one of the court’s most shameful moments. But now the court has corrected its mistake,” the founder of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, noted. “Roe is dead, and, as a result, millions of innocent babies will have a chance to live and be welcomed into the world and protected by the promises of our Constitution and Declaration of Independence,”Dobson said.
“All of us who fought so hard to save innocent babies and to end the exploitation of women by the abortion industry has cause to celebrate and to thank God. This is a tremendous day for our country,” he said. But Dobson also reminded pro-life individuals that the battle for life is not over, now that the decision will be left up to each of the states.
“But the battle is not over. The court has taken the issue of abortion and returned it to the states. The people of each state will now have the opportunity to debate and to try to persuade their fellow citizens. Then they can reach their own conclusions on the fundamental issue of the sanctity of life and pass laws that reflect that consensus. All of us at James Dobson Family Institute will continue to be in that battle, and I pray to God you will be there, too,” Dobson concluded.
This decision from the Supreme Court in America will most probably trigger a moral civil war across America. There were already ‘trigger laws’ in place in many US States which meant abortion was made illegal the moment the decision was made by the Supreme Court last Friday. Many other States are expected to pass legislation restricting or banning abortion in the coming months. A conservative estimate suggests that over half the States in America will have laws in place before the end of this year which ban abortions completely or severely restrict the circumstances under which an abortion can take place.
America has never been so divided on so many issues, but this is by far the divisive single issue in that once great ‘Christian’ nation. Conservative voters and many Christians are dancing in the streets following the decision of the Supreme Court this week. Others are genuinely mourning the loss of a ‘basic human right’ every woman once had ‘over her body.’ The depth of feeling on both sides of this debate is unparalleled. It is also incredibly dangerous.
Over 63 million babies have been aborted in America since that first ruling of the Supreme Court in 1973. So those who oppose abortion under most circumstances are overjoyed that monumental mistake by the Supreme Court has been fixed. However, nothing is really fixed at all. Abortions will still be available in many states – and California will lead the way in buildings hundreds more abortion clinics and will welcome women from all over the nation and even pay their travel expenses. So whilst this is a victory in terms of correcting a major error in a Supreme Court ruling, the issue has now become the largest political time bomb since the abolition of slavery.
My prayer is that all the Christians who are celebrating now will be on their knees in prayer for America and for every State Government as this explosive development seeks to overshadow all other issues facing this broken, divided nation. Somewhere in the middle of all the hot air and anger and political debate are frightened women trying to deal with an unwanted pregnancy and being bombarded on both sides by very passionate advocates who feel the right to tell these woman what they should do. As we pray for courts, legislators, activists and the whole nation of America, let’s make sure we pray for the women and unborn children who are the most important characters in this drama which plays out every day across many nations in the world, including our own.