Pro-Life Ministries Stay The Course To End Abortion In A Post-Roe Nation
An anti-abortion protester. Unsplash photo.
With the United States Supreme Court’s decision last month in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case to overturn almost 50 years of a federally recognized right to abortion, anti-abortion ministries across the country are not closing their doors.
Some may tweak their strategies, but the essential work remains the same — to faithfully serve women and promote the message that all life is precious.
The Radiance Foundation, founded in 2009 by Ryan and Bethany Bomberger, is an educational ministry committed to creating “a culture that believes every human life has purpose.”
After the recent Dobbs decision sent the abortion question back to the states, Bomberger said his group will continue working to promote its same life-affirming message. “Our focus has always been nationwide,” he told MinistryWatch, adding that the organization plans to focus especially on those states with radical abortion laws.
“As an adoptee and adoptive father, I’m just rejoicing,” Bomberger emphasized.
He pointed out that currently, the Radiance Foundation is helping with research for a case before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. In that case, Bomberger said, it is fighting against the claim that it is “racist not to fund abortion through Medicaid.”
The Radiance Foundation has been very active is demonstrating the connection between race and abortion. “Abortion is the leading killer of Black lives in America, outnumbering the top 15 causes of death — combined,” Bomberger said.
In reaction to the notion that — as some have suggested — “now the real work begins” since Roe is overturned, Bomberger was a bit incredulous.
“They haven’t been paying attention,” he noted. “The work has been being done by Christians for a long time. In a way, it’s a bit insulting.”
However, he did acknowledge there is likely to be an exponentially greater need for Christians to “step up to adopt children, especially from foster care.”
Bomberger is optimistic about the continued financial support for pro-life ministries. “Pregnancy centers do the work with love and compassion,” he said. “They meet the need. They don’t need to change their message; they just need to be bolstered.”
CareNet supports one of the largest networks of pregnancy centers in North America, claiming to have saved 823,000 babies from abortion since 2008.
CareNet president and CEO Roland Warren is grateful for the Dobbs decision, but acknowledged, “While it’s been overturned, it has not been overturned in the hearts and minds of many.”
He has been working to prepare CareNet’s network of pregnancy centers and staff for the overturning of Roe v. Wade for years by asking, “What would you be doing the day after Roe is overturned? Then that’s what we should be doing now.”
He said CareNet has focused its efforts on two aspects: 1) building strong families by encouraging them to follow God’s design for marriage, motherhood and fatherhood and 2) helping those families become disciples of Christ.
Warren said 86% of women who have abortions are unmarried.
The ministry to women with unplanned pregnancies must be “transformational, not transactional,” Warren told MinistryWatch. “We’re not just saving the baby.”
But he also pointed out that “pregnancy centers alone can’t be the response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade.” Instead, he wants to see “armies of people in churches” supporting women and helping in discipleship.
One tool CareNet has developed is a kit for small groups called “Making Life Disciples” to be used for training church members to offer practical help for women in case of an unplanned pregnancy.
Live Action founder and anti-abortion activist Lila Rose reacted to the Dobbs decision, saying while overturning Roe “is a necessary first step, giving states the prerogative to regulate abortion is not a final victory.”
She recognizes many states will still have legalized abortions within their boundaries, so the work must continue. “We will not have true justice until the Supreme Court acknowledges the truth that under our Constitution, every American — born or preborn — has an inherent right to life protected by the 14th Amendment.”
In an email to supporters in late June, Rose acknowledged that financial support for her group is down, a phenomenon she said Live Action has never experienced before.
Rose attributed the decrease to the current financial strain many Americans are facing due to rising inflation but also added, “Many people who care deeply about ending the killing of preborn children think that ending Roe will completely end abortion … so they’re no longer investing in the fight.”
Although the once-recognized constitutional right to abortion was recently overturned, Rose believes there is still much to be done to “change hearts and minds from pro-abortion to pro-life and activate more individuals than ever before in this fight — in every city, town and state.”
This piece is republished from MinistryWatch with permission. Kim Roberts is a freelance writer who holds a Juris Doctor from Baylor University. She has homeschooled her three children and is happily married to her husband of 25 years. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, gardening, and coaching high school extemporaneous speaking and debate.