Missourians will vote Nov. 5 on whether the right to abortion will be codified in their state’s Constitution. The Missouri Secretary of State’s office announced on August 13 that pro-abortion advocates had gathered enough signatures to present their proposed state constitutional amendment to voters. (Read the proposed amendment here.)
“If passed, the amendment would grant women in Missouri the right to abort their unborn babies until those unborn babies can survive outside the womb. The law allows doctors to abort unborn babies even after the point of viability if the mother’s life, physical health or mental health is believed to be in danger. Missouri law currently protects all unborn babies from abortion except in cases of medical emergencies,” reported The WORLD News Group.
According to Missouri Right to Life (MRL), the pro-abortion ballot initiative—called the “Right to Reproductive Freedom Initiative”—will strip back protections that have been written into Missouri law for the sake of both the unborn and their mothers.
In a document published earlier this year, MRL warned that—if this constitutional amendment succeeds—abortion will ultimately be allowed through all nine months of a woman’s pregnancy and that abortions could be performed on minors without the permission from or notification of parents. Also, MRL said, existing state laws requiring the health and safety standards at abortion clinics would be eliminated – threatening the health and safety of women. Women wouldn’t be able to sue abortion clinics or doctors for malpractice. Pro-life pregnancy resource centers would be forced to refer women to abortion facilities. And taxpayers would be forced to fund the abortion industry – making Missouri’s recent defunding of abortion providers null and void.
The Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) is working with other pro-life entities to protect women and the unborn and has passed resolutions mirroring that position.
Similarly, MBC Executive Director Wes Fowler has made clear his opposition to the proposed constitutional amendment: “… [H]uman life is distinct, sacred, and of great worth,” Fowler wrote in The Pathway, June 17. “… [D]estroying human life through abortion is wrong. If we end up voting on this issue in November, I’m choosing life – and I would humbly ask you to do the same. If we’re truly made by God, in the image of God, and for the glory of God, how can we choose otherwise?”
MBC President Chris Williams, pastor of Fellowship Church, Greenwood, has also called Missouri Baptists to stand for the sanctity of human life: “Prior to the reversal of Roe v Wade, 8,000 babies were aborted each year,” Williams wrote in The Pathway, May 31. “Thankfully, our state was prepared, in large part due to the church’s influence, to lead the way and establish Missouri as a pro-life state where every baby had the opportunity to flourish. That momentous occasion also kick-started a fight for life in our state. But now there is a well-funded, strategic initiative to enshrine a culture of death in Missouri.
“This is the church’s moment to stand and defend life, and uphold the value of image bearers from conception to grave,” Williams added. “It will take every believer leaning in, working and praying to ensure that clinical abortions never take place again in our state. It will take every pastor actively shepherding the 400,000 plus Missouri Baptists to engage in our process to protect babies. It will take every one one of us to keep Missouri a pro-life state for His glory, our good and their flourishing.”
Williams announced the “Cultural Impact Conference,” which takes place at First Baptist Church, Ozark, Sept. 7. The conference theme is “Defending Life & Freedom in Missouri.” Featured speakers, alongside Williams, include: Bill Federer, host of the American Minute Radio Feature; Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council; Seth Gruber, founder/CEO of The White Rose Resistance; Lisa McIntire, executive director of Springfield Pregnancy Care Center; Jodi Hammond Widhalm of Jodi Grace Ministries; Kathy Forck of 40 Days for Life; and Jason Rapert, president of the National Association of Christian Lawmakers.
To learn more or to register, visit https://www.ciconference.org/.
–Benjamin Hawkins of The Pathway