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“Why are abortion activists so aggressive? Because at the end of the day, they are defending their own demonic version of the Lord’s Supper, taken at their own twisted version of the church: Planned Parenthoods. As Christians, we must not only smash these idols, but we must pray for the conversions of those trapped in this false religion.”
–WILLIAM WOLFE
Have you ever wondered why pro-abortion advocates are often so unhinged in their defense of the “right” to kill the unborn in the womb?
If you spend any time protesting outside of a Planned Parenthood, or the Supreme Court, you know exactly what I mean. Pro-abortion advocates scream profanities at the pro-life side; they howl with rage at the thought of any restrictions on abortion; they engage in what appear to be ritualistic performances — with groups of women (I’m sorry, “people with a uterus”) publicly taking abortion-inducing pills or “shouting their abortions.” Or remember how Senator Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., viciously attacked crisis pregnancy centers, accusing them of “torturing” pregnant women and demanding that the federal government should “shut them down all around the country.”
What’s driving these extreme levels of animosity? If it seems like the fierce pitch of “religious fervor,’ that’s because it is. Indeed, as Christians construct a comprehensive biblical worldview about abortion, it is important to understand that this isn’t just a political fight — it’s a religious clash. It’s a battle of completing “faith” claims in the public square.
Yes, there is a divide between those who believe that an unborn child is fully human or those who do not. Abortion activists argue the baby is “just a clump of cells” and that it’s the “woman’s body and the woman’s choice.” Abortion advocates claim they follow the “science,” but those are scientifically disproven statements.
In fact, in his recent article, “Biblical Worldview: Abortion,” my colleague Tim Yonts explained how both science and the Christian worldview support the reality that unborn babies are fully human at the moment of conception:
“Conception is the only time a radical break occurs and a new, biologically distinct entity comes into existence — the sperm and egg fuse to become a zygote. Second, the SLED Test. There are no essential biological differences between an embryo and an adult. The only differences are size, level of development, environment, and degree of dependency (SLED). Third, from the moment of conception, the zygote possesses a human nature. It does not become a human being; it already is a human being and is developing in accordance with its nature. With time, it grows and develops into and through the different stages of human personhood, from zygote to fetus to infant to toddler to teen to adult. For these reasons, attributing personhood to the unborn from the moment of conception is the most biblical and logically consistent position.”
What does this mean? It means that for those who hold to the radical pro-abortion view that unborn babies aren’t humans deserving of equal protection under the law until they pass through the “magical birth canal,” their belief isn’t based in “science” or “reason.” It’s based in a perverted version of religion — in a “faith.” And that faith has core commitments and ritual practices, just like the Christian faith.
The philosopher Peter Kreeft explains this deeper issue, the religious nature, behind support for abortion in his book Jesus-Shock. He explains that those who reject God and Christ ultimately embrace the spirit of “Anti-Christ” — whether they intend to or not. In that embrace, they find an entirely different set of religious commitments, albeit demonic ones. He writes:
“The spirit of Antichrist says, through his deluded slaves who think they are asserting their freedom, ‘This is my body, not Yours. You did not create me. You have no rights over me. I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul. When I die, I will not repent in shame but I will hold my head erect and sing ‘I did it my way’ as I enter the realm of my chosen lord and model, Satan, who did exactly that same thing many eons ago.
This is my body, and therefore I will fornicate, contracept, sodomize, or commit suicide as I choose. I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul. I will do whatever I please with my body because it is mine, not Yours.’”
What Kreeft is uncovering here is that the rejection of the Creator God leads humans to view themselves as “gods.” In being a “god,” man views himself as the “sovereign” over creation, dethroning the one true God. As the new “imposter king,” man believes he has the right to do whatever he wants with his creation, and even with the life of the unborn. The godless “god-men” and “god-women” then demand sacrifices and sacraments, bodies to be broken for them. Kreeft goes on, putting words in the mouths of these self-worshippers:
“In fact, the tiny child I carry in my womb is also mine, not Yours. She is not even her own. She is mine. She is my body. Therefore I will kill her, because I am her God, and You are not.’
You see, abortion is the Antichrist’s demonic parody of the Eucharist. That is why it uses the same holy words, ‘This is my body,’ with the blasphemously opposite meaning.”
Kreeft supplies a chilling but fitting description of abortion, pinpointing what it truly is — a “demonic parody” of the Lord’s Supper. In the Lord’s Supper, Jesus provides a preview of what is about to happen on the cross — His body broken and His blood shed for us. But in abortion, the unborn baby’s body is broken and his or her blood is shed for the sake of the “unfettered freedom” of its mother and father. As our savior, Christ left His heavenly throne and condescended to earth, and even to death, as he laid down His life for sinners. But in abortion, parents lay down the life of their child, putting it to death on the altar of their own selfish ambitions and earthly convenience.
At the end of the day, abortion in America is little more than a reincarnation of Molech worship, an ancient evil religion that God denounced in the Old Testament because it demanded child sacrifice to demons. In Jeremiah 32: 34-36, we read:
“They set up their abominations in the house that is called by my name, to defile it. They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.”
As we think about the evils of abortion, we have to realize that when it comes to pro-life versus pro-abortion, the differences aren’t just political, scientific, or philosophical. The difference is fundamentally religious; it’s a matter of which god is being worshipped and served — the one true God, or Satan and man, the imposters?
As 19th century Russian Orthodox theologian Sergei Bulgakov put it,
“A question slithers like a serpent over the earth: Whose world is it? The God-Man’s, or the man-god’s? Christ’s or the Antichrist’s?”
Abortion says the world belongs to Antichrist, to man who takes the fruit and thereby takes the throne of God. But Christianity says it belongs to Christ — the conquering King.
Why are abortion activists so aggressive? Because at the end of the day, they are defending their own demonic version of the Lord’s Supper, taken at their own twisted version of church — Planned Parenthoods.
As Christians, we must not only smash these idols, but we must pray for the conversions of those trapped in this false religion. We can both make abortion illegal and close abortion clinics while we simultaneously pray that God would deliver pro-abortion activists from their sin and delusion, that He would open their eyes to the truth, hope, and power of the Gospel.
So, the next time you protest against abortion, don’t forget to also pray for those screaming at you about their right to kill the unborn in the womb. Indeed, for we know that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12), but we also know that Christ has “disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross” (Colossians 2:15).
Follow William on Twitter! @William_E_Wolfe
Ready to dive deeper into the intersection of faith and policy? Head over to our Theology of Politics series page where we’ve published several long-form pieces that will help Christians navigate where their faith should direct them on political issues.
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