Pro-Life: What does it REALLY mean...?

If you've been following my blog, you may have noticed a recent entry on "the least of these".  That concept seems to be following me everywhere this week, in what I read, the discussions I have, sermons I have heard...God must be trying to get my attention about something.  Maybe he has always been, and I just finally started listening.

Either way, there was a profound portion in the book I'm reading by Brennan Manning that I had to share.  He is talking about the concept of pro-life, and those who claim to be activists in this area.  It's a challenging thought for anyone who claims to believe in the sanctity of life.

The way we are with each other is the truest test of out faith.  How I treat a brother or sister from day to day, how I react to the sin-scarred wino on the street, how I respond to interruptions from people I dislike, how I deal with normal people in their normal confusion on a normal day may be a better indication of my reverence for life than the antiabortion sticker on the bumper of my car. 

We are not pro-life simply because we are warding off death.  We are pro-life to the extent that we are men and women for others, all others; to the extent that no human flesh is a stranger to us; to the extent that we can touch the hand of another in love; to the extent that for us there are no "others".

For others.  All others.  That is the vital truth that comes though loud and clear in what Brennan is saying, but more importantly, in what Jesus Christ himself is saying.


Take some time to think about your "pro-life stance" today.  Are you living up to your beliefs?  With your neighbors?  Coworkers?  Enemies? With the poor and the broken right in your city?  With the irritating and the annoying souls you run into everyday?  With the difficult and argumentative?  With the least of these.

Former post regarding the "least of these".