In many ways, we are obsessed with the topic of life. Need proof that life is big news? Pick up a newspaper and see how many stories are about life, or more specifically, the loss of life. In recent days, most of us have sat in front of our televisions and watched in horror as reports of mass shootings, terrorist attacks and other senseless murders played across the screen. Why do we have a fascination with watching these stories unfold? I believe it is because we all realize that when a life is lost, our world loses something of intrinsic worth.

That is because somewhere in our human spirit, we know that life is sacred. It was sacred from the beginning of creation because God made mankind in His own image. Genesis 1:27 tells us, “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” There is no other creation that bears the image of God — nothing in nature, no animal, nothing in the firmament or in the seas that bears the image of God…only human beings.

But in our modern culture, there are serious misunderstandings about what is priceless and of inestimable worth. Turtles and puppies and trees are often treated with more respect than human beings. As a society, we are especially confused about the value of life as it pertains to the unborn. Until 1973, when the Supreme Court issued a ruling that made abortion legal for the first time in history, unborn life was protected by law. But the legalization of abortion started our nation down a slippery slope that has caused us to lose our moral compass.

 

Sanctity of Human Life Day

On January 16, 1984, Ronald Reagan issued a presidential proclamation, designating Sunday, January 22, 1984 as National Sanctity of Human Life Day, in honor of his firmly held belief that our Constitution provided the “right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” to the unborn, as well as to those who were born. That year was the 11th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion, stripping the unborn of the right to life.

The tradition of Sanctity of Human Life Sunday has continued in many Christian communities, and is still observed in many churches, in spite of the fact that some presidents over the years chose not to re-affirm Reagan’s presidential proclamation on the Sanctity of Human Life. Our nation has become polarized over the issue of abortion, and earlier this year, the battle heated up when The Center for Medical Progress released a series of undercover videos exposing many Planned Parenthood ®abortion clinics’ participation in the sale of fetal body parts.

Abortion suddenly became the centerpiece of discussion on the nightly news. Social media platforms became hotbeds of controversy as everyone posted their opinions and frustrations. The law was on the side of legal abortion, but as an enlightened people, many were outraged that this organization was profiting from the sale of aborted babies’ body parts, and possibly breaking Federal laws in doing so.

Made in the image of God

It is time for people of faith to get back to the Book and figure out what we really believe about the Sanctity of Human Life. If we can live with legalized abortion, then what does it matter if someone makes a profit on the sale of the leftover body parts?

But if we accept the Bible as Truth, and we agree that each human being bears the very image of God, then we find ourselves at a crossroads. To live out a consistency in our faith, we must treat all human life with respect — the unborn, the disabled and the elderly. We have to stand up for human life at all its stages.

Standing up for life means we have to get involved. We have to spend our time, our energy and our money to support organizations that minister to the modern-day widows and orphans, and help defend the rights of all people to be treated with dignity and respect from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death.

If you would like to celebrate Sanctity of Human Life Sunday at your church, resources are available including church bulletin inserts, flyers, brief videos, sermon notes and speakers. Find out how you can get involved. In Palm Beach County, visit www.first-care.org or call 561-688-2163. In Broward County, visit www.thereishope.org or call 954 372 7089.

Nancy McDonald is president/CEO of Hope Women’s Centers, which exists to encourage and equip women to make informed choices regarding unplanned pregnancies. Visit www.thereishope.org