The pro-choice position

Fr. Roy Cimagala .

WE have to be familiar with the so-called pro-choice position that is now becoming the prevalent ideology affecting many countries and especially the young ones, the so-called millennials. We need to be familiar with it so that we can be better prepared to deal with it, since it is now invading our own country. In fact, there is now a strong foreign-funded pressure to instil this kind of liberal pro-choice view on us.

The pro-choice position, of course, refers to the so-called life-issues, like abortion, population control, same-sex marriage, divorce, euthanasia, etc. It has an eminently moral question that we need to be clear about.

We need to understand that there are moral principles that derive from the very nature of things, and especially of our own. And they have a universal applicability, going beyond our natural and artificial differences in race, culture, religion and other categories.

In a nutshell, the pro-choice position can be expressed in the following words as expressed by many of its advocates and followers: “I am pro-choice, even if that means abortion. I am also for same-sex unions, and I also support legalizing divorce. What people want to do with their lives and their body should not be controlled by other people’s religious beliefs.

“If you do not want abortion, don’t get one. If you don’t want to marry one of the same sex, by all means, don’t. Don’t divorce if that’s what you prefer. But to take away other people’s choices because you don’t agree with them is evil and wrong. The terrible thing is that many people can only imagine a world where their religion is absolute. What tyranny!”

It’s incredible that this view can be held even by very educated people, and people who are even products of Catholic schools and other very prestigious centers of learning.

At least two possibilities can explain this disturbing phenomenon. One is that these schools are not anymore teaching morals and are just focusing on technical things. And two, that the students may be taught morals but are not internalizing them. Of course, there are still many other possible explanations.

With this pro-choice position, one is practically saying that there are no absolute moral principles with a universal applicability, that everyone is absolutely free to do whatever he wants to do. In other words, one makes himself his own lawgiver, if not his own god. He cannot be told and taught anything. He has to be left alone. He can do anything he likes.

It is amazing that many people with this position do not realize that they are going against even the very basics of common sense. We are never alone. We can never be alone. We have to live by certain laws. We cannot escape the fact that we have to submit to certain do’s and don’ts.

Abortion is not about exercising the right over a woman’s body. Whether one is a believer or not, abortion is simply killing a human person. A fetus inside the mother’s womb is not just a clump of cells. A fetus just cannot be but a baby.

And the so-called same-sex marriage is a contradiction since marriage can only be between a man and woman. It is not meant only for good-time, for giving in to what our flesh desires. It is meant for procreation, for education and upbringing of children and family, and the good of society.

Divorce simply goes against the very nature of marriage. It is rejecting one’s commitment of love however the marriage may go. The concerned parties in marriage promise “to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part.”

Let’s hope that families, churches, schools, offices and the government units help in clarifying these moral life issues both with clarity and charity always. Hardly anything is gained when we start fighting.

***

God’s creative and redemptive work. We need to realize that the entire span of time we have on earth as in the whole material universe is part of the eternity of God. Time is a property of material beings, including ourselves, that God created in his eternity. That is why in the second letter of St. Peter, it is said that: “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” (3,8) That is a rough description of the relation between our time and God’s eternity. Our time is like a blink of the eye in the eternity of God. I doubt if we can make a better description on this mysterious reality.

And he continued by saying that “the Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (3,9)

These words simply show that our time here on earth is the time in God’s eternity for our creation and redemption by him. In other words, our creation includes our redemption, and our creation and redemption are still a work in progress. The completion of God’s creation and redemption of us is when we truly become what he wants us to be: image and likeness of his, children of his.

We need to understand that our creation and redemption by God needs our correspondence or cooperation, because being designed by God to be his image and likeness, we are supposed to be at least aware of this truth about ourselves and try our best to conform ourselves to such divine design for us. God does not impose his will and design for us. We are expected to knowingly and willingly correspond to his will and design.

That is why we are endowed with intelligence and will, and are freely given his grace, so that we can identify ourselves with him, until we can really say that we are “another Christ,” echoing those words of St. Paul, “it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” (Gal 2,20)

That God became man to save us is not an afterthought in the divine mind. That truth of our faith is part of the eternal plan God has for us. God knew from the start how we would fare with the tremendous gifts he has given us—that we would be spoiled by them. And he readied the plan of redemption from all eternity.

This God-man, Jesus Christ, is the pattern of our humanity and the redeemer of our damaged humanity. That is why he declared himself to be “the way, the truth and the life” for us. We can only be image and likeness of God through him.

Here we can readily see why Christ should be the constant focus of our attention, and why we need to know him and love him, by following his commandments.  “If you love me,” he said, “you will keep my commandments.” (Jn 14,15)

Thus, we need to study his life, his words, his example. We need to learn how to talk to him and to see him everywhere. We need to know how to deal with him as he continues to deal with us. For this, God has sent the Holy Spirit so that the living God can continue to be with us, guiding us and sanctifying us.

We really have to develop a life of filial piety with God to correspond well to his continuing creative and redemptive work on us in this life. This is something that we have to realize more deeply. It is the most important truth we have to know and live. Everything else in our life is secondary to it and serves only as material, means, occasion to achieve that goal.

E-mail: roycimagala@gmail.com