20 June 2005

Lyndon Bowring
CARE
53 Romney Street
London
SW1P 3RF

Dear Mr Bowring

On Saturday 11 June I heard the repeat of the UCB Europe programme ‘A Right to Life’ on UCB Talk.  I was horrified to hear Roger Smith say that it was "possibly appropriate" for an abortion to take place up to birth in the case of very serious fetal handicap.

As a representative of CARE I would have assumed that he should have said it is NEVER appropriate for a child to be killed by abortion no matter how severe the handicap or disability.  If he thinks that there is ever a case that could be "possibly appropriate" for an unborn baby to be killed by abortion, does he also think that there could be cases that are "possibly appropriate" for elderly or incapacitated people to be killed by euthanasia?

I also heard Joanna Thompson say she "had never seen abortion help anybody".  I note that she didn’t say abortion is wrong.  When is CARE going to actually start saying the killing of any children by abortion is not only wrong, but is a sin?  How can women who have killed their children by abortion ever seek repentance and find the forgiveness of Jesus if they are told it could have been ‘possibly appropriate’ or that it ‘doesn’t help anybody’.  Women actually need to be told they were wrong in their actions, not given false compassion that says they did right in their particular circumstances.

When confronted with a crisis pregnancy mothers should not be in a position of having to decide which option to choose - indeed if they were told that killing their children is a sin and is wrong as well as explaining precisely how babies are torn limb from limb in the womb, maybe then the rates of abortion would reduce, but while abortion is seen as one of three options, then of course she will choose one of the three and the killing of her child by abortion is often the choice she sadly makes.

I do agree with Roger Smith that all women should be fully informed of the procedures before consenting to killing their child by abortion, but unless we keep saying that it is killing children by abortion and not just ‘abortion’ or ‘termination’ then mothers will not be fully informed.  They also need to be shown pictures and life size models of developing babies as well as pictures of aborted babies prior to making any decision.  Joanna will confirm that women who come for post abortion counselling invariably ask why they were not told about the baby’s development or the precise method of how their child died.  Just because women ask for an abortion doesn’t mean they know what goes on in the actual procedure.  Having done the pregnancy crisis counselling training in the past we were told not to show such pictures or models to clients, nor even to have them on display in the counselling rooms.  What was the reason for this policy?

Another very important point I would like to make is that Joanna said "Every life is made in the image of God".  Bearing this in mind, and considering that apart from condoms, all other forms of contraception can actually work as abortifacients, including the Oral Contraceptive Pill, the Morning After Pill, Depo Provera, Norplant and the IUD, why is it Evangelical Christians still persist in using contraception?  I thought we worshipped the God who opens and closes wombs and who supplies all our needs according to His riches in glory.  Obviously the vast majority of Christians prefer to trust in man-made contraception that prevent them from receiving the blessing of children, made in His image, that God may wish to give them.

It was after reading the book ‘Bible and Birth Control’ that I realised personally how wrong I had been to even consider the use of contraception, but trying to explain this to evangelicals who would then individually have to repent from using birth control methods and make a radical life change and trust in the Lord, is like trying to turn a massive ship that is caught in the rapids and is heading for destruction over a waterfall.  It is because we have a contraceptive mentality that abortion is rife, as abortion is a backup for failed contraception which people think they are being ‘responsible’ in using.

I assume that those who go into schools on behalf of CARE, do not promote any form of contraception as, apart from the abortifacient nature of the majority, condoms leak, fall off, split and just do not work.  The condom failure rate of at least 15% is based on pregnancies so that number needs to be multiplied by four as girls can only become pregnant one week in every four (approx) yet condoms can leak every time.  This also explains the high rise of sexually transmitted diseases that are occurring in youngsters.  I assume that Natural Family Planning, chastity and waiting until marriage are promoted in schools to the young people.

Once Christians of all persuasions reject contraception, then maybe the Lord will bless this nation again and Christian morals will return.  Then we will see an end to teen pregnancies, further rises in sexually transmitted diseases, and the killing of children through abortion.  We may also get back to marriages lasting instead of the high divorce rate we currently have and the majority of children actually born in wedlock instead of being born illegitimately.  All these issues are intrinsically linked.

I look forward to your considered prayerful response to this letter.

Yours sincerely

Grace Mason
Co-ordinator
United for Life

cc: various interested parties