Perhaps the greatest argument for the church staying out of the abortion argument comes this week from the most unbelievable and ironic of places – LifeWay Research. And yes, LifeWay Research is part of LifeWay Christian Resources (Originally named, “The Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention.”), a Southern Baptist-affiliated organization. You may remember the Southern Baptists, they are the denomination of Hobby Lobby, best known of late for their fight against covering contraceptives under the Obamacare. Incidentally in addition to free or low-cost contraceptives, the Southern Baptists are also against sex education in schools. Both of which have been proven to lower the abortion rate.

Oh wait, guess who sponsored this research study? Care Net. According to their About Us page, Care Net is:

Founded in 1975, Care Net supports one of the largest networks of pregnancy centers in North America and runs the nation’s only real-time call center providing pregnancy decision coaching.

Vision – Care Net envisions a culture where women and men faced with pregnancy decisions are transformed by the gospel of Jesus Christ and empowered to choose life for their unborn children and abundant life for their families.

Mission – Acknowledging that every human life begins at conception and is worthy of protection, Care Net offers compassion, hope, and help to anyone considering abortion by presenting them with realistic alternatives and Christ-centered support through our life-affirming network of pregnancy centers, organizations, and individuals.

Surprise, surprise, Care Net is listed on the Southern Baptist North American Missions Board page.

That brings us to the article I read today. I first saw it on Facebook when a friend posted it. The headline read:

Christian group conducts study, finds out that Christians have the most abortions

Then my husband instant messaged me this one:

Christian group’s survey finds that Christians have the most abortions in U.S.

So I read them both. Then I went to the source…the study itself.

They surveyed 1,038 women who have had at least one abortion. Here is just a small sample of the findings:

• 70 percent of the women they surveyed identified as Christians.
• 23 percent of Christian women who have had an abortion consider themselves evangelical Christians.
• Over one-third of the women surveyed attends a church once a week or more.
• Over half of the women who attend church regularly have kept their terminated pregnancy secret from their church community.

I encourage you to go read it. The whole thing. And then I want you to tell me how the church can claim any moral high ground or authority when it comes to how best to reduce the number of abortions. It seems pretty clear that the church does not have the first idea of how to reduce abortions or they wouldn’t be the number one source of women who see termination as their best option.

Do you want to know what has been scientifically proven to reduce abortions?
Abstinence only education? No.
A “true love waits” promise ring? No.
Purity balls? Nope.
Bad illustrations using duct tape, roses or a glass of water everyone has spit in? Nope.
Shame and judgment? No again.

No, what has actually been proven to work is sex education and free or reduced cost contraceptives. Sadly, much of Christendom is against both which makes them look more anti-sex rather than pro-life. Kind of explains the survey results doesn’t it?