Abortion Rites

ABORTION
RITES
How Feminist Spirituality is
Re-framing the Abortion Debate
BY KENDRA WILCOX
WITH A FOREWORD BY REV. PHILIP L. BENHAM
ABORTION
RITES
ABORTION
RITES
How Feminist Spirituality is
Re-framing the Abortion Debate
BY KENDRA WILCOX
WITH A FOREWORD BY REV. PHILIP L. BENHAM
ABORTION RITES
published by Operation Rescue
© 2005 by Kendra Wilcox. All rights reserved.
Cover Photo by Digital Vision
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from

the Authorized King James Version.
Other version used:

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation,
copyright ©1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.,
Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
ISBN 0-9770702-0-4
For information:
Operation Rescue/Operation Save America

P.O. Box 740066
Dallas, TX 75374
To Jesus Christ my personal Savior
and the Only Legitimate Human Sacrifice.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
(John 3:16 KJV)

CONTENTS
Foreword 9
Preface 11
Part I: Feminist Spirituality
1. The Seduction of Eve

Prelude
The Goddess Butcher
Do-it-Yourself Spirituality Kits
Eve: Mother of All Living
Father of Lies
2. The Rise of Women
Heroine of Disobedience
Biting the Apple
Women’s Liberation?
3. Ritualized Sex
God’s Love for Women
“Lady of the Beasts”
Carnal Knowledge
Altar of the Goddess
Part II: Abortion Rites
4. Whetting the Knife

The Power of a Priestess
Circle of Life
Nothing New Under the Sun
God Hates Abortion
5. Goddess of Blood Sacrifice
Invoking the Goddess
The Holy Abortionist
Spiritism
Abortion Rituals
Manasseh’s Example
6. The New Morality
Filling the Moral Void
Reframing the Debate
A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing: Naomi’s “Acts of Redemption”
CONTENTS
National Coalition of Abortion Providers (Oops, I meant Providers)

Abortion Leaders: Waiting to Exhale
Planned Parenthood’s Religious Right
Lying Prophetesses
7. A Call to Repentance
The Church’s Responsibility: Watchmen, What of the Night?
Tent of Sacrifice
The Missing Church
FOREWORD
For years now we have been shouting from the housetops
that abortion is preeminently a Gospel issue. America is embroiled
in a battle that began with the devil’s rebellion in heaven and has
come to this earth with all of the rage, violence, and fury that hell
can muster. It is a battle over who is Lord, and whose laws reign.
When Jesus is acknowledged and honored as Lord, there is life.
When any other false deity (the devil has many of them) is
acknowledged as lord, there is death.
Abortion was a spiritual issue long before it manifested
itself in the physical realm. Kendra Wilcox, in her fascinating new
book, pulls back the curtain of the abortion industry’s lies and
rationalizations and gives us a look into the very depths of the evil of
child sacrifice. She vividly portrays how child sacrifice has become a
veritable sacrament in the “prochoice movement,” offered up to the
devil himself for prosperity and spiritual peace with “god.” This
“god” however, is not the God of the Bible.
Have you ever wondered how a young mother can walk
into an abortion mill, with her Bible tucked safely under her arm,
and kill her child in the name of “jesus?” Ever wondered how
abortionists and staff can live with their consciences after murdering
children? Ever wondered why those in the prochoice movement
believe that abortion is actually a way of honoring God? Ever
wondered how socalled “ministers” in the Religious Coalition for
Reproductive Choice (RCRC) became so depraved and deceived?
Have you ever wondered how an abortionist in Wichita,
Kansas can kill lateterm babies, have a “minister” from RCRC
baptize their dead little bodies, and then incinerate them in his “on
premises” crematorium? This same abortionist is a member of good
standing in the Reformation Lutheran Church in Wichita, Kansas.
Kendra Wilcox meticulously lays out the spiritual
foundation of how these things came to be. She shows us the root of
the problem. Abortion not only kills children, it destroys women,
marriages, families, churches, cities, and nations. Child sacrifice has

always done this. Abortion is the crown jewel of Satan himself.
Kendra slays the devil on every page of her marvelous book with the
sharp double edged Sword of the Spirit – the Word of God! This is a
thoroughly documented work that will keep you reading and will
equip you in overcoming the lies being told women today.
If it is true that abortion is a Gospel issue then the only
institution ordained by God to overcome the horrible holocaust
savaging our nation is the Church of Jesus Christ. The gates of hell
cannot prevail against God’s Church. That’s what the Bible says!
They will, however, prevail against the President, the Congress, and
the Supreme Court of the United States of America.
There are no political compromises, legal mandates, or
executive orders coming out of Washington, D.C., that will extricate
us from the mess we are in. Abortion is not a political issue and
therefore cannot be fixed with our failed prolife strategy.
Kendra makes it very clear that abortion will come to an
end in America when the Church of Jesus Christ makes up her mind
it will come to an end – not one second sooner!
Flip Benham
Director
Operation Rescue/Operation Save America
PREFACE
“Why should I care?” one blunt Christian friend asked.
“Feminist spirituality, what does it have to do with me?” I was asked
some form of this question more then once during the writing of
this book. The Christians who asked the question know their Savior.
They know Jesus Christ is “the way, the truth, and the life.” 1 They
know he is the only way. They also know a relationship with Jesus
Christ is the only true legitimate woman’s spirituality. But many
other women do not.
Within the pages of this book, I uncover a religious
movement loosely termed feminist spirituality, a label coined by
feminists. This spirituality is not limited to the feminist movement,
although that would be reason enough to care. Its special danger is
how it is reframing the abortion debate. The first half of this book
1
John 14:6.
explores feminist spirituality’s destructive doctrine. The second half
uncovers feminist spirituality’s influence on the abortion rights
movement.
This book is a Christian response to feminist spirituality
and its spiritual justification for abortion. Since this book contains
references to sexuality, abortion, and the occult it is intended for
mature readers.
To highlight the dangerous hypocrisy inherent in this
movement, I have elected to use feminine pronouns when referring
to unborn children. I have included biblical “Points to Remember”
at the end of each chapter and, unless otherwise cited, all scripture is
the Authorized (King James) Version of the Bible.
Feminist spirituality, or womenspirituality as it is more
presumptuously called, attempts to persuade women that goddess
worship, not Christianity, is a better way, a better truth, and a better
life for them. Its labels imply it is the spirituality for women.

Feminist spirituality is a mixture of predominately non
Western religions, a spirituality of numerous beliefs making it
difficult to narrowly define. It can be as obvious as witchcraft and as
subtle as feminist liturgy.
At its center, feminist spirituality is self worship. Feminist
spirituality is a modern, feminist version of goddess worship
prevalent before the spread of Christianity. Within feminist
spirituality, women are taught they are embodiments of the goddess
they worship. In other words, a woman is a goddess.
Rather than reject the Bible outright, feminist spirituality
often reinvents scripture to facilitate feminism and the worship of a
goddess. Though it incorporates many spiritual beliefs, feminist
spirituality is completely lacking crucial elements of Christianity. An
immutable and transcendent God, absolute truth, original sin, and
salvation are rejected within feminist spirituality. Instead, spiritual
feminists insist JudeoChristian religions are to blame for the
institution of patriarchy and what they consider to be its
accompanying injustices. Due to this belief, as one feminist author
put it, “The feminist movement in Western culture is engaged in the
slow execution of Christ and Yahweh.” 2 The same author maintains,
“Women are going to bring an end to God.” 3
Feminist spirituality has found fertile ground in North
America, popular with feminists here in America as well as in
Canada. The philosophies of relativism, morality is relative to a
particular culture’s requirements, and existentialism, morality and
truth are determined by an individual in accordance with his or her
own circumstances and feelings, have proved to be wonderful
compost for feminist spirituality’s growth. Feminist spirituality
teaches women they are goddesses. Since truth is whatever a goddess
2
Naomi R. Goldenberg, Changing of the Gods (Boston: Beacon Press,
1979), 4.
3
Ibid., 3.
determines it to be, feminist spirituality answers society’s longing for
religious identification but does not demand obedience to a
transcendent, absolute truth.
Feminists believe the goddess will “shake, rattle, and roll
the status quo right off its pedestal.” 4 At one time, feminist
spirituality was considered the fastest growing faction of feminism.
It evolved from the feminist consciousnessraising sessions, the
sexual liberation movement, and radical environmentalism that
defined the 1960’s and 1970’s.
Anjelica Huston’s $35,000 goldandcitrine necklace
imprinted with the Greek goddess Rhea 5 reveals the fascination
celebrities have with feminist spirituality. Hollywood personalities
Olympia Dukakis and Cybill Shepherd are blatant in their worship
4
Sheryll Hirschberger, “Speaking Honestly About the Goddess”, Cape
Woman, Pg. 29, Summer/Fall, 1999, Vol. 2, No. 1
5
Nancy Perry Graham, Insider, People, July 19, 1999.
of the goddess.
Singer Tori Amos; the movies Practical Magic starring
Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman with the tag “There’s a little
witch in every woman;” The Craft starring Neve Campbell; the
Albert Brooks comedy about a goddess titled, The Muse; and
television programs such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Charmed
have done much to popularize goddess worship among teenagers.
The program Sabrina, about a kindly teenage witch, was
once rated prime time’s number one show among the preteen set.
The popular internet site and board game Go Goddess! teaches our
daughters “There’s a goddess in every girl!” 6 The internet site
instructs girls to identify with various goddesses and a game called
“Goddess Guide Me!” allows for players to ask the goddesses
questions about life. Moving beyond pop culture, books like Teen
6
Go Goddess, “There’s a Goddess in Every Girl! Which One Are You?”
Go Goddess, http://www.gogoddessgirl.com/index.php (Accessed
October 3, 2004).
Goddess: How to Look, Love and Live Like a Goddess, which I found
prominently displayed in the young readers section of my local
library, and Maiden Magick: A Teens Guide to Goddess Wisdom and
Ritual make feminist spirituality accessible to even our youngest
daughters.
Visit any college ground or university campus, channel surf
with your remote control during prime time, browse the Internet, or
frequent the trendy boutiques your daughter shops at and you will
find overt feminist spirituality.
Green goddess salad dressing, bronze goddess nail polish, a
line of Bob Mackie designer goddess Barbie dolls as an ad in the
“personals” section of our community newspaper indicated,
“EARTH GODDESS SWF, 27, brown/blue, liberal,” 7 feminist
spirituality is mainstream.
There are those who, when asked, will clearly identify
7
Personals, Cape Cod Times (Hyannis, MA), January 24, 1999.
themselves as “spiritual feminists” or maintain that they are part of
feminist spirituality. However, it is more often a mindset then an
affiliation. An article in the New Age Journal reveals, “The
movement is so diffuse that many women who consider themselves
spiritual feminists have no idea they are part of a larger trend.” 8
It is possible for an individual to practice feminist
spirituality and yet not identify herself as a spiritual feminist. Many
who follow or promote its beliefs are ignorant as to the existence of
an organized movement called feminist spirituality. These
individuals are simply expressing their own views or unconsciously
reflecting the social climate.
Writers may, through the imagination of their own hearts,
instruct others in feminist spirituality theology without that being
the specific intention. Advertising executives or Hollywood insiders
8
Marguerite Rigoglioso, “Awakening to the Goddess,” New Age Journal,
May/June, 1997, 63.
may commercialize feminist spirituality not out of devotion but
simply because it sells. And a woman who is unaware of feminist
spirituality may nevertheless live it. When the term feminist
spirituality is used in this book, it does not necessarily confer a
conscious religious affiliation.
Within feminist spirituality, concepts of the goddess vary.
She is sometimes imagined as an impersonal force but more often as
a personal deity. The goddess is worshiped as the Goddess. Other
times she is worshiped as a specific goddess, one of various female
deities. For the purpose of this book, I will refer to the goddess when
speaking of any of the goddesses worshiped within feminist
spirituality. The goddess is also considered a psychological archetype
for women. As a result, a woman does not have to believe in a
supernatural being to practice feminist spirituality. According to its
promoters, since a woman’s awareness of her own power is
magnified through goddess worship, even an atheist can venerate the
goddess.
Like other religions, feminist spirituality has a sacrificial
element. Political feminism discovered women do suffer emotional
and spiritual ramifications after an abortion. Because of this spiritual
backlash and to safeguard abortionondemand, feminist leaders
decided to treat the abortion experience as a conscientious and
spiritual act. Religious justification became the new slogan and
abortion was repackaged to accommodate women’s grief.
Additionally, feminist leaders realized that by focusing on the
spiritual and ritual aspects of abortion, their new religion, feminist
spirituality, flourishes.
Within feminist spirituality, abortion is considered a blood
rite in honor of the goddess and the “witch is the holy abortionist.” 9
The blood of unborn babies is poured out as drink offerings to
9
Nevada Kerr, “Abortion as a Sacred Rite,”Snuff It, no. 4,
http://www.enviroweb.org/coc/snuffit4/abortion.html
Mother Earth; their remains are buried under trees or on
mountaintops; their life is exchanged for a magical colored stone. At
the impetus of feminists, abortion industry insiders are referring to
abortion in spiritual, even sacrificial, terms. In a gruesome reminder
of ancient paganism, unborn babies have become a socially
acceptable sacrifice to the goddess.
Why should you care about feminist spirituality? Because
not only is Jesus Christ the only legitimate women’s spirituality, he
is the only legitimate human sacrifice. The question, my friends, is
not “Why, should I care?” The question is what do we do.

PRELUDE
As she quietly considered her options, Eve placed her hand
on her belly. She imagined for a moment she could feel the baby
kick. A slight smile crossed her face. When she first thought she
might be pregnant, she tried to tell herself what was growing inside
her was not a baby. That was before she went to the clinic for the
pregnancy test. As she approached the walkway to the building, she
saw, in a protestor’s elderly hands, a picture the picture. Now she
couldn’t get the image out of her mind. Grotesque little mangled
limbs, flesh like pulp, and blood covering tiny hands with perfectly
formed fingers. “That’s what an abortion looks like,” the woman
told her.
Eve forced the thought from her mind and looked down at
her breasts. Even now, only ten weeks into her pregnancy, they were
tender. What should she do? Her mother wanted a Catholic priest to
baptize the aborted baby with holy water but her boyfriend thought
it was foolish. A practicing Buddhist, he said the baby caused its
own karmic destiny and wanted to die. Though he never said it, Eve
wondered if he blamed her for the pregnancy. Did he think she
caused her own karmic destiny and wanted an abortion? Is that why
he never offered to help her care for the baby, why he seemed so
distant? Or was she the distant one? Eve was not sure anymore.
Her friend told her of a place she could go where she could
memorialize her baby with a handwritten message on a pink paper
heart. 1 They hang them on the walls like valentines, her friend said
matteroffactly. Eve remembered a story she heard at college, a
friendofafriend selfinduced an abortion by using herbs. The
gossip around campus was that she fed the blood from her abortion
to her plants.
1
Daryl Chen, “Are You Ready to Really Understand Abortion?”
Glamour, September 2003, 264.
Eve’s older sister, a feminist who knew the trauma of
abortion first hand, insisted Eve “connect with the spirit life while
it’s in the womb.” Her sister even offered to arrange a religious
ceremony and burial. “You’ll need closure,” her sister said. When
Eve balked at the idea of a funeral her sister suggested she take the
remains and find a quiet spot under a tree or on a mountain top and
offer the aborted baby to Mother Earth. 2 “In that way,” her sister
claimed, “the fetus will become part of the circle of life.” Eve had
shrugged her shoulders, feigning indifference.
Her sister was hard to ignore, “Let me plan a grief ritual for
after the
abortion. We can go to the moonlodge.” Eve knew the moonlodge
was a shrine in the woods for the goddess, with rugged facilities
2
Ava TorreBueno, Peace After Abortion, 2 nd ed. (San Diego: Pimpernel
Press, 1997), 154155.
available for postabortion healing. 3 Her sister called it a “magical
womban's space.” 4 Eve called it silly.
Her sister continued, “If you won’t even have a grief ritual,
at least let my friends come and bless you afterwards.” She described
how she would prepare a scented bath of flower petals for Eve, as
part of a wiccan ritual of purification. It would help her regain a pre
abortion state of grace, her sister said. Eve reluctantly agreed.
Sensing her conflicting emotions, her sister explained Eve was a
daughter of a goddess and as such she possessed the power of life and
3
Sacred Groves for Women’s Mysteries, “Rituals and
Circles,”http://www.sacredgroves.com/rituals.html.
4
Sacred Groves for Women’s Mysteries, “The Moon Lodge,”
http://www.sacredgroves.com/moonlodge.html.
5
6
Debi Jackson, “Abortion Rhetoric Doesn’t Help: Caring Does,”
Cincinnati Women’s Services,
http://www.wpmensservices.com/pages/01htm1(accessed August 21,
2004).
death. She encouraged Eve to choose any abortion ritual that felt
meaningful to her.
What should she do? The time was going by so quickly Eve
thought, as she mindlessly stroked her belly. She had to make up her
mind because she did not want indecision to lead to a lateterm
abortion. Eve eventually decided on a clinical abortion at the same
place she had her pregnancy test. She liked that clinic staff gave out
colored stones to women after their abortions. 5 Eve was required to
meet with the clinic’s “patient advocate.” 6 As she entered the
building, Eve noticed the picture again. She hurried past, careful not
to look.
Once in the office, Eve blurted out, “But is it a baby? Will
I be killing something?” She emphasized killing. An awkward silence
hung in the air.
“Do you consider it a baby, Eve?”
Remembering the picture, Eve fidgeted.
The advocate asked about her background. When she
learned she was raised Catholic, she asked, “Wouldn’t your god
forgive you?”
Eve was uncomfortable with the question. Well of course,
she thought.
The advocate continued, “Most Christian religions are pro
choice . . . The Bible doesn’t say anything about abortion
directly.” 7
Feeling embarrassed and unsophisticated Eve asked, “So
God doesn’t care if I have an abortion?”
“God gave us free will.”
Eve nodded.
7
Charlotte Taft, Abortion Resolution Workbook: Ways to Connect the
Head and the Heart, Cincinnati Women’s
Services, http://www.womenservices.com/pages/02b.html.
The advocate reached across the table and handed her a
pamphlet. Eve read the first line, “God loves abortion, God loves
children, God loves you, God loves choices that feel positive to
you.” 8
“Now we need to work through some of the peripheries,”
the advocate said with a smile. “Would you prefer low lighting or
hospital lighting?”
“Lighting?” Eve repeated.
The counselor chuckled, “This isn’t the 70's. We offer a full
assortment of abortion options to personalize your experience,
including aromatherapy. 9 You deserve to be pampered. Have you
given any thought to music? Some patients enjoy listening to
8
The Spiritual Rebel/Yes Center, Abortion (Venice Beach, CA:
Spiritual Rebel/Yes Center, [1994?]).
9
Northland Family Planning Centers, “About Northland Family Planning
Centers,” Northland Family Planning
Centers, http://northlandcenters.com/content/index.asp?id=59 (Accessed
September 25, 2004).
classical.”
Eve mumbled something about wanting to hear soothing
music, twisting the pamphlet nervously between her hands. She took
a deep breath and asked in a slightly louder voice then she intended,
“What happens to the baby?”
“Everything living is part of a cycle of life and death. 10 Your
baby,” the
advocate said baby slowly and carefully, “is part of that miracle.” She
motioned to an open journal containing scrawled notes. 11 “Why
don’t you write a letter to the baby?”
As Eve feathered through the pages, the advocate explained
10
Head and the Heart ([Dallas:Routh Street
Women’s Clinic, 1991?]), http://www.womensservices.com.
11
abortion is a holy act and the clinic staff performs sacred work. 12
The advocate reminded her all people have souls. She explained the
women she counsels understand their baby’s soul is in heaven
waiting to be born again. She then told a story of a woman who
described her abortion as “flinging a star back into the sky.” 13
Lying on her back with her legs in the stirrups, Eve didn’t
think of stars in the sky. She didn’t think of grief ceremonies or her
boyfriend. She thought of the picture. As the suction aspirator
vibrated and moaned, she felt the life leave her body.
Eve studied the stones aventurine for emotional
tranquility, tiger’seye for personal power and crystal for amplifying
energy and meditation. “That one,” Eve said, pointing to the rose
12
Cincinnati Women’s Services, “Providing Quality Healthcare to
Women Since 1973,” Cincinnati Women’s Services,
http://www.womensservices.com/pages/frame_content.htm.
13
Head and Heart ([Dallas: Routh Street Women’s Clinic, 1991?]),
http://www.womensservices.com.
quartz. She liked the soft pink color. “Good choice,” the clinic
staffer said, reaching for the quartz. “This stone aids forgiveness and
heals the heart. It helps with sexual and emotional imbalances too.”
The woman handed the small stone to Eve, in a black velvet sack.
“Don’t forget to attach meaning to your stone,” she said softly. The
clinic worker advised Eve to project her feelings of the baby onto the
stone.
Eve took out the stone and studied it closely. It looked
glassy and smooth. She held it up and noticed some light shined
through. She felt the stone in her hand and imagined that it held the
soul of her baby girl. Girl? Yes. For some inexplicable reason Eve
knew she was a mother of a daughter. Was a mother? She held the
stone tighter and swallowed a sob. The picture flooded her mind.
For a moment she relived the sensation of life being sucked from her
womb but also from somewhere deeper her soul. The memory
caused her body to quiver.
Eve rubbed the stone. She heard her own broken voice from
far away, “It’s ok. It’s ok. My baby is floating with the stars. She’ll
come back again when I’m ready for her. It’s true. It’s true. They
couldn’t say it if it wasn’t true.” Eve looked down at the stone again,
cold, like she felt. She turned it over in her hands studying it for life
nothing. As she left the clinic, she touched the stone to her belly.
CHAPTER 1
THE SEDUCTION OF EVE
But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his
subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
2 Corinthians 11:3
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but
after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And
they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
2 Timothy 4:34
“Diana, protect this place,” the woman prayed.
Diana? Goddess Diana? Could she really be praying to an
ancient Roman goddess from mythology? I tried to take in the
enormity of what I was witnessing. I was with a large prolife prayer
gathering at an abortion clinic in southern California. I had left the
group, clutching their Bibles and kneeling in prayer on the
1
pavement behind the building, to walk around to the front sidewalk.
That was when a friend motioned to the woman praying to the
goddess.
The attractive woman was neatly dressed and her blonde
hair was swept up into an elegant French twist. With her arms
stretched out above her head she cut a dramatic figure on the
sidewalk.
“Diana,” she repeated. I watched as the woman appeared to
cast spells. It was clear she was praying to the Goddess Diana to
defend the abortion clinic. I had read enough mythology to know
Diane is considered “the Huntress” and “Goddess of the Moon.” I
also knew in Greek mythology the Goddess Diana is known as
Artemis. But what was the Goddess Diana’s connection to abortion?
The Goddess Butcher
2
So began my research to unveil this mysterious goddess and
her relationship to abortion. What I discovered became the
inspiration for this book.
Goddess Diana is a patroness of childbirth and of women.
But like the moon she symbolizes, she has a dark side. A dark side
that insists “The Goddess who has the strength to support women as
they give birth does not falter when, with her swift arrow, she
provides a quick death.” 1
At various times in human history, bloodletting and human
sacrifice 2 was practiced in the goddess’ name. As Artemis, she was
“goddess of birth” and “goddess of blood sacrifice.” 3 In ancient
1
Ginette Paris, The Sacrament of Abortion, trans. Joann Mott (Dallas:
Spring Publications, 1992), 51.
2
Barbara G. Walker, The Woman’s Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets
(New York: HarperSanFransico, 1983), 58.
3
Michael Jordan, Encyclopedia of Gods: Over 25,000 Deities of the
World ( New York: Facts on File, Inc.,1993), 26.
3
Sparta, Artemis was called Artamis, meaning “Cutter” or “Butcher.” 4
As goddess of fertility and the hunt, Artemis was “killer of the very
creatures she brought forth.” 5
According to a popular feminist, spirituality, women must
identify with the goddess to complete their personal and political
liberation. Empowerment is actualized by women when they
understand they are embodiments of this goddess.
A goddess is both a creator and a destroyer. If a woman
possesses the power to create life it only follows that she owns the
moral authority to end the life she created. Like the Goddess
Artemis, a woman who practices feminist spirituality could become
a “killer of the very” life she conceives.
4
Robert Graves, The Greek Myths (New York: Penguin Books Inc.,
1995), 1:86, quoted in Barbara G. Walker, The Woman’s Encyclopedia
of Myths and Secrets (New York: HarperSanFransico, 1983), 58.
5
Erich Neumann, The Great Mother: An Analysis of the Archetype
(Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1963), 276, quoted in Barbara G.
Walker, The Woman’s Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets (New York:
HarperSanFransico, 1983), 58.
4
In a shadowy image of ancient human sacrifice, within this
feminist spirituality a woman is “Butcher,” her body is “the first and
best altar of the Goddess,” 6 and “abortion is a sacred act.” 7 As one
goddess worshiper put it, abortion is a “sacrifice to Artemis.” 8
The title of this chapter, “The Seduction of Eve,” refers to
the seduction of women through this feminist spirituality. Seduce is,
“to persuade to disobedience or disloyalty” or “to lead astray usually
by persuasion or false promises.” 9 It is from a Latin word meaning,
“to lead away.” 10 Succinctly put, to be seduced is to be led away or
6
Marguerite Rigoglios, “Not for Women Only” (includes an interview
with Daniel Campbell), New Age Journal, May/June, 1997, 140.
7
Ginette Paris, The Sacrament of Abortion, trans. Joanna Mott (Dallas:
8
Ibid., 107.
9
MerriamWebster Online Dictionary, s.v. “Seduce,” http://www.m
w.com/cgibin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=seduce&x=12&y=10
(accessed August 17, 2004).
10
Ibid.
5
led astray.
Not content to rest on the Word of God, the first woman
was seduced. Eve was led astray by the Serpent’s temptation. She was
led away from an intimate relationship with the God of her creation.
The intimacy she had previously known with the God who loved
her was shattered, her Paradise lost. Eve divorced herself from
everlasting life when she left her first love.
Women of today are experiencing the very same temptation
that confronted Eve. Like the first woman, they are tempted to
doubt God’s word and to transgress his law. Women are being led
astray by feminist spirituality’s false promises. They are being led
away from faith in the One True God. Whereas women were
created to be morally virtuous, full of faith, loyal to and in love with
God, many women know degradation in place of virtue, a self
gratification in lieu of moral obligation and lies instead of truth.
Women are being seduced by a feminist spirituality that whispers
6
“ye shall be as gods.” And tragically, women are listening.
A survey conducted by the Brand Futures Group of Young
and Rubicam found that to fiftyfour percent of Americans, religion
is an important part of their life. The results of the consumer
marketing survey caused the CEO of the company to claim, “God is
back.” 11 Yet, with the increasing popularity of alternative religions,
there is ample evidence to suggest that it is not the God of the Bible
who is “back” in the lives of women. Women are moving toward the
spiritual, but this spiritual awakening is not predicated on the Word
of God. Women are having “religious experiences” but we are seeing
a move toward darkness, a movement away from the light of Christ.
There is deepening spirituality but it is a counterfeit of the one true
faith.
11
Associated Press, “God is Back Says Trend Watcher,” In Brief,
San Diego Union Tribune, June 4, 1999.
7
Doityourself Spirituality Kits
There is a new trend of spiritual acceptance evidenced in
the lives of women. Women in growing numbers are substituting
the God of the Bible for doityourself spirituality kits. A November
1998 Ladies’ Home Journal survey discovered that eightthree
percent of women polled “consider themselves spiritual” and of that
number, fortythree percent said “they feel more so now than in the
past.” 12 The same Ladies’ Home Journal contained an article, “30
days to a More Spiritual Life,” which suggested women broaden
their religious outlook because every religion has an appreciation for
holiness. 13 The article went on to suggest that women read the
Koran, the Tao Te Ching and the Bhagavad Gita while the Bible
12
“Ladies’ Home Journal’s American Woman Survey,” Ladies’ Home
Journal, November 1998, 156.
13
Ibid., “30 Days to a More Spiritual Life,” 158.
8
was not recommended. 14 Within the article, there was an underlying
implication that all faiths, beliefs, and practices are acceptable as
long as they increase a woman’s spirituality.
During a recent trip to my local bookstore, I met a
woman who typified this spirituality. She introduced herself as I
stood reading the titles in the “Religious” section. Displayed on the
shelves was a confusing assortment of subjects. With books on
angels, paganism, and the occult placed near the Bible it was
impossible to tell where the “Religious” section ended and the “New
Age” section began.
An attractive blonde in her thirties, the woman wore a silver
Buddha and a Christian cross from a delicate chain around her neck.
She immediately struck me as intelligent and friendly, eager to share
14
Ibid.
9
her New Age reading preferences. This opened up an opportunity
for me to share the truth of the Gospel.
As we spoke, I learned the woman considered herself a
Christian but did not believe the Bible is the inspired, inerrant
Word of God. She described the account of the Fall in the Garden
of Eden as an allegory. In her feminist spirituality, there is no
original sin or need for a personal Savior.
She searches through the spirituality section of the
bookstore looking for the mysterious. Jesus Christ is “the same
yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” 15 There is no esoteric secret to
Jesus Christ so she merges aspects of Christianity with what she
discovers. Buddhism, Christianity, New Age Spiritualism, it is all
the same. For this woman, Christ is just another idol on her self
made spirituality charm necklace. 16
15
Heb. 13:8.
16
Anonymous conversation with the author, Summer, 1998.
10
I heard a Christian woman once say, “The Word of God is
not a salad bar. You can’t choose what you want and leave the rest
behind.” True. Neither is God a blank page on which a woman can
draw her own image and color according to her preference. Yet, that
is what is happening in the lives of women.
The woman from the bookstore and the goddess worshiper
at the abortion clinic, are not the only women creating their own
spirituality. Hallie, quoted in the feminist spirituality workbook, A
God Who Looks Like Me, explained her religious exploration this
way, “I imagine an empty table upon which I can try out different
images and concepts of a God of my understanding. I discard those
that don’t feel absolutely right.” 17
The premier issue of Women’s Faith and Spirit magazine
reported a survey by DYG, Inc., in which 66% “of women describe
17
Patricia Lynn Reilly (includes an interview with Hallie), A God Who
Looks Like Me: Discovering a WomanAffirming Spirituality (New
York: Ballantine Books, 1995), 177.
11
themselves as spiritual.” 18 The article continued by pointing out,
“spiritual fulfillment can come in any of a number of ways” and
many women “try a mixandmatch approach to find what works
best for them.” 19 This “mixandmatch” spirituality is growing in
popularity and it can be easily mistaken for genuine Christianity. A
former coworker of mine, an attractive middleaged woman with a
vivacious personality, described herself as a Christian when we first
met. She spoke openly of her active prayer life, her Catholic
background and, more important, her love for Jesus.
I soon learned when she said prayer she meant something
decidedly different then what Christians, as taught by Jesus,
practice. The “jesus” she worshiped was not the God of the Bible
but a deity of her own making a cross between a comforting
18
Shana Aborn, “Why Women Need Faith,” Women’s Faith and Spirit,
Premier Issus, 15.
19
Ibid., 19.
12
childhood memory and a mystical teacher.
Once, during a coffee break, she explained her beliefs. She
told me she did not believe in an original sin and denied the need
for a personal savior. Without querying her on the tenets of her
faith, one would assume that she is a Christian. I did and so did
many women in our workplace. In reality, her “Christianity” was a
blend of Catholicism, meditation, crystal energy, New Age healing
and goddess worship.
Eve: Mother of All Living
Although faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is our country’s
religious heritage, of late we have adopted a one nation under any
god creed. We have gradually moved from Bible believing
Christianity into religious pluralism.
We live in a pluralistic society, a society in which the
strange and the sacred compete for cultural acceptance. There are as
13
many accounts of the creation of the world as there are cultures, as
many concepts of God as there are human faces. Yet, there is only
one truth, just as there is only one God. The truth is life did not
originate from primeval waters, a cosmic egg, or a big bang. Life is
not the interaction between yin and yang. God is not she, not an
abstract it, not an impersonal force, and not a distant first cause.
The God of creation is the God of the Bible.
Although our finite human nature limits our understanding
of God, we are graced with his Word. His Word discloses to us a
part of his hidden person and a portion of his eternal purpose. It
explains the end of all things just as it explains the beginning. “All
scripture is given by inspiration of God.” 20 When translated more
accurately from the original Greek, “given by inspiration from God”
becomes “Godbreathed.” The Bible is Godbreathed. We learn
from the Bible, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
20
2 Tim. 3:16
14
with God, and the Word was God.” 21 Jesus, in a prayer to the
Father, said, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” 22
God’s Word is truth. The Word was made flesh in Jesus Christ. 23
Your truth, or mine, is not the truth if it does not originate from
him, if it is not contained within his word.
Within the Scriptures, the book of Genesis is mentioned
more often than any other book in the Bible. 24 Christian author
Dennis Gordan Lindsay writes, “Every major [biblical] doctrine has
its basis in Genesis.” 25 The first book of the Bible introduces the
saving grace of God to a sinful world. It explains the origin of man,
the fall of man, the beginning of mankind and the promise of
21
John 1:1
22
John 17:17
23
John 14:6
24
Dennis Gordan Lindsay, Foundations for Creationism ([Dallas?]:
Christ for the Nations, Inc., 1990), 20.
25
Ibid., 21.
15
redemption.
Genesis is a timeless account of man’s greatest honor
(fellowship with God) and man’s worst tragedy (dissolution of the
same). It is the first scene in an unfolding human drama that points
the way to Christ’s sacrifice. It reminds us that there was once a state
of Paradise, this Paradise was lost to us by human folly, and the way
back requires God’s direct and personal intervention.
Contained within Genesis is the story of man’s separation
from the Creator. This separation devolved us into creatures at odds
with life and at war with God. Genesis lucidly describes our origin
and our proclivity to sin. A genesitic outlook on the nature of man
prepares us for a perfect relationship with the God of our creation.
Without a comprehension of man’s inherently sinful state as
outlined within Genesis, a person is right in his or her own eyes. If
there is no original sin, then why need a savior? Genesis is the reason
for, and the promise of, the Messiah. It is within verse one of
16
chapter one of Genesis that God introduces himself to the world.
The initial verse of Genesis reads, “In the beginning God created.”
God is from the Hebrew Elohim, Supreme God. He is Elohim,
Supreme God and Creator. As the Creator, all is his. We must
acknowledge his divinity and our dependency. It is his selfportrait,
as observed in the first verse of Genesis, which illuminates him to us.
God’s description of himself foreshadows for us a right relationship
with him. These first words, “In the beginning God created” 26
establish the foundation upon which the ensuing Bible, indeed all of
creation, rests.
Genesis chapter one, verse two discloses the very act of
creation, “And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness
was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon
the face of the waters.” 27
26
Gen. 1:1
27
Gen. 1:2
17
In Genesis, we read the Lord “created the heaven and the
earth,” 28 the seas, the seasons, the light, the day and night, and all of
creation. The verb, “created” is from the Hebrew, “bara,” “to make
from nothing.” Through a movement of his Spirit, God created all
that is from nothing. It is this creation from nothing, creation ex
nihilo, which sets the tone for all of Genesis.
We learn in Genesis chapter two, after the Lord created the
heavens and the earth, He caused a “mist from the earth” to water
the ground. 29 Afterwards, the Lord God created man, “of the dust of
the ground” and bestowed within him a soul. 30 The book of Job,
perhaps the oldest book of the Bible, describes the creation process
this way, “The spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the
28
Gen. 1:1
29
Gen. 2:6
30
Gen. 2:7
18
Almighty hath given me life.” 31
Genesis chapter two, verse eight reveals, “the LORD God
planted a garden eastward in Eden. There he put the man whom he
had formed.” 32 Surmised as lying between what we now call the
Tigris and Euphrates rivers in the Armenian highlands, the garden
was fertile and teeming with life. Eden is from a Hebrew word that
means pleasure and delight. The Garden of Eden was a place of
pleasure and delight.
“And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow
every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of
life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of
good and evil.” 33 The first man was given rapport with every
creature. Still, God’s omniscient will saw that it was “not good that
31
Job 33:4
32
Gen. 2:8
33
Gen. 2:9
19
man should be alone” 34 amongst the creatures, and created one like
the man from the man.“And the rib, which the LORD God had
taken from the man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the
man.” 35
Eve, “the mother of all living,” was composed of the first
man’s form to become his companion, equivalent and counterpart.
She was taken from Adam’s side, indicative of their mutual
dependency and unity. However, Eve was not identical to Adam.
Yet, just like Adam, she was consecrated to a purpose. 36 She was
created as a “help meet” to aid the man. This in no way implies a
pejorative role. Help is the vernacular used to describe one of God’s
own attributes. 37
34
Gen. 2:18
35
Gen. 2:22
36
see Gen. 2:18
37
see Ps. 70
20
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of
God created he him; male and female created he them.” 38 Life in the
garden was a paradise for the man and the woman. Together the
man and the woman tended the garden. They knew Peace. The
Bible does not state how long this idyllic state lasted, but we learn
from Genesis chapter three that something happened that broke the
fellowship the first couple enjoyed with their Creator.
“Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the
field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the
woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the
garden?
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the
fruit of the trees of the garden:
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the
garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it,
38
Gen. 1:27
21
lest ye die.
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely
die:
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then
your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good
and evil.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food,
and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make
one wise, she took the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also to her
husband with her; and he did eat.” 39
A few verses down we read, “And the LORD God said unto
the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said,
The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.” 40
Eating the forbidden fruit brought about a fall from
39
Gen. 3:16
40
Gen. 3:13
22
perfection to a condition of total depravity. The Fall in the garden
caused a state of corruption called original sin. Original sin is passed
down to us through Adam. As a result, the whole human race is
born into a state of sin and suffers under the curse of death.
Isaiah chapter fiftynine, verse two reads, “But your
iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins
have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” God is holy. Sin
separates us from his holy presence. Yet, because God loves us, he
has provided the way back to a relationship with him.
The first preaching of this good news is found in Genesis
chapter three, verse fifteen. God is speaking to the serpent but the
promise is for Eve’s consolation, “And I will put enmity between
thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall
bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”
God has promised, “The wages of sin is death; but the gift
23
of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” 41 Despite the
fact Eve was the first woman to sin the promise is that through her
body a savior will come. He will deliver all who put their faith in
him from “the wages of sin,” by paying the price for all of mankind.
Jesus Christ’s willing sacrifice on the cross for our sins is the
atonement necessary for reconciliation with God.
Father of Lies
We learn from God’s Word, “He that committeth sin is of
the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose
the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of
the devil.” 42 Jesus Christ said of the devil, “He was a murderer from
the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth
in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a
41
Rom. 6:23
42
1 John 3:8
24
liar, and the father of it.” 43
Satan is a liar. Just as he did in the Garden of Eden, the
Serpent still causes mankind to doubt God’s word. The subtle
whisper heard and then repeated is that God did not create the
world. Another common temptation relegates God to an impersonal
and unintrusive force; if there is an Author of the Universe then
this entity is vastly different from the personal and loving God of
creation described in Genesis. Both beliefs cause the account of
Genesis to be rejected.
Others have their own account of the creation of the world.
Though they concur that a male god did not create the universe,
they reject secular humanism’s godless world view. The women who
hold to this peculiar cosmogony believe a female deity created the
universe and she caused evolution. These women repudiate most, if
not all, of Christianity and insist on a female godhead. They parrot
43
John 8:44
25
the claim that “the oldest cosmologies start with a primal goddess” 44
and ascribe the creation of the universe to this goddess.
Proponents of this cosmogony believe Genesis is an allegory
for a supreme goddess and her consort the snake. Patriarchy, they
claim, perverted their story of creation and stole their symbols.
While they acknowledge various parts of the JudeoChristian
creation story, in their version the serpent of the Garden is
esteemed. The serpent, rather than a figure of temptation and evil, is
the goddess’ enlightened counselor and a symbol of her worship.
The snake’s ability to shed its skin signifies the rejuvenating and
recycling power of the goddess. The relationship between Eve and
the serpent was one of peers, not one of tempted and the tempter,
they say.
They assert the goddess created the Tree of Knowledge and
44
Buffie Johnson, Lady of the Beasts: Ancient Images of the Goddess
and Her Sacred Animals (New York: Harper and Row, 1988), 87.
26
Eve, as a daughter of the goddess, had every woman’s right/rite to
eat it. These women celebrate the first mother's pluck of its fruit and
her taste of its pulp. Eve's reach for the tree's fruit, her finger's gentle
snap of its stem, the presumable way in which she studied it
curiously, and finally her bold bite into its skin and flesh is
interpreted by these spiritual feminists as liberation through self
empowerment. According to this growing feminist spirituality, the
Fall in the Garden was the Rise of women.
Points to Remember:
1. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God” (John 1:1). Jesus Christ is the “Word
made flesh.” He is truth and life (John 14:6).
2. God created you, the universe and all that exist (Gen. 1:1).
3. The Devil is the father of lies (John 8:44). Just as he deceived
Eve, he attempts to deceive you.
27
4. The Devil was “a murderer from the beginning” (John 8:44).
The curse of death was brought about through Satan’s
deception (Gen. 3:113).
5. The Devil “sinned from the beginning.” He wants you to die in
your sins. Jesus Christ destroyed the power of the devil when he
died for you on the cross (1 John 3:8).
28
CHAPTER 2
THE RISE OF WOMEN
Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? But my people
have changed their glory for that which doth not profit. Be astonished, O ye
heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD. For my
people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living
waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.
Jeremiah 2:11 13
Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn
aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then the LORD’s wrath be
kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the
land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the
LORD giveth you.
Deuteronomy 11:1617
In its eagerness to displace patriarchy, feminist
30
spirituality has created its own narrative of the past. In feminist
spirituality’s herstory, in lieu of history and for that matter accuracy,
the worship of the goddess and the fraternity accompanying such
worship is romanticized. Former cultures that worshiped the
goddess are said to have been peaceful, orderly and marked by
innovation. Within that utopia the goddess was worshiped as the
matrix of the known universe.
It is said the sons of women participated in the social strata
of the female centered community in limited ways. According to
spiritual feminists, since they could not create life as their mothers
and sisters appeared to, men were relegated to the role of help mate
and became provisional hunters. As women developed agricultural
and animal husbandry, the role of hunter became decidedly less
important. Base feelings erupted on the part of men. Feminist
theorists conclude that over an indefinite period of prepatriarchal
time, the goddess’ male creations began to reject matriarchy. Thus, a
31
rebellion was triggered against the goddess as sovereign ruler. They
believe a masculine usurpation stole from the goddess her rightful
scepter, ending her tranquil rule. This rebellion, they claim,
spawned the ethos of masculinity and God was made Father.
This decidedly feminist spirituality teaches that women are
the daughters of this great goddess, made in her image. As a result
women transcend mere womanhood. The advocates of this religion
maintain the goddess is “in nature, in life, in woman.” 1 Women are,
they tell each other, goddesses.
Feminist spirituality sees women as victims of religious
traditions that honor God as Father. They believe patriarchal
religions recognize God as male because these religions “were
founded to spread or buttress male supremacy.” 2 Spiritual feminists
1
Starhawk (Miriam Simos), “Witchcraft and Women’s Culture,” in
Womanspirit Rising: A Feminist Reader in Religion, eds., Carol P. Christ
and Judith Plaskow, 259268 (New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1979).
2
Marilyn French, The War Against Women (New York: Summit Books,
32
claim the “Adam and Eve story is blatant antiGoddess
propaganda.” 3 The Christian concept of original sin, feminists
assert, was instituted by patriarchy and its hierarchical religions that
pay homage to a masculine deity.
While feminist spirituality rejects the doctrine of original
sin, it advances in its place an “Original Goodness.” Within feminist
spirituality, eating the forbidden fruit actually affirmed the first
woman’s inherent goodness. In the workbook, A God Who Looks
Like Me: Discovering a WomanAffirming Spirituality, Patricia Lynn
Reilly retold the story of Eve to accommodate feminist spirituality’s
sinless Genesis account. In this rendition of the story, Eve bids
women, “Take, eat of the fruit, the good fruit of life.” 4 Eve then tells
1992), 51.
3
Sheryll Hirschberger, “Speaking Honestly About the Goddess,”
CapeWomen, Summer/Fall, 1999, 29.
4
Patricia Lynn Reilly, A God Who Looks Like Me: Discovering a
Womanaffirming Spirituality (New York: Ballantine Books, 1995), 129.
33
women “Affirm the Original Goodness of your children and your
children’s children until the stories of old [the biblical account of
Genesis] hold no power.” 5
The story of the Fall in the garden has been replaced with a
heresy of empowerment. In the feminist spirituality story, it was
liberating to bite the forbidden fruit. Eve is said to be the “first
woman to challenge the subjugation of woman in the patriarchal
garden.” 6
Dependent on the version of the story, the serpent was
either a symbol of, or an advisor to, the goddess. By modifying the
collective memory of the Fall and the role of the snake, feminist
spirituality is transforming spirituality. Feminist revisionism has
5
Ibid.
6
Kim Chernin, Reinventing Eve: Modern Woman in Search of Herself
(New York: Times Books, 1987), xvi.
34
made Eve into a protofeminist and the snake in the garden into a
benevolent, prowomen reptile. Together the woman and the
serpent consort to “free” the world from the God of patriarchy.
By calling into question the original true creation account,
with the woman as tempted and the tempter, feminist spirituality is
instilling a profeminist twist to the ageold creation story. The
drama of the Fall has been lifted up, becoming a glorified model of
power for feminists; the first woman’s reach for the forbidden fruit
is reinterpreted to imply a feminist grab for selfhood and
enlightenment.
35
Heroine of Disobedience
Since the inception of feminism, Eve has been used as an
example of female empowerment and autonomy. Certain leaders of
the women’s suffrage movement were not above using Eve’s
rebellion as justification for their political coalition. The first
woman’s rebellion has become a railing cry for independence.
Pioneering feminists Lillie Devereux Blake and Elizabeth
Cady Stanton, part of the committee of twentythree women who
reinterpreted Scripture to accommodate their feminist goals and
later published their version as The Woman’s Bible, were among the
first to endow Eve with both feminist and goddess characteristics.
Lillie Devereux Blake described Eve as “eternal mother.” 7 Blake
compared Eve’s behavior in the Garden to Adam’s and resolved,
7
Lillie Devereux Blake, “Comments on Genesis,” in The Woman’s Bible,
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the Revising Committee, 2627 (New York:
European Publishing Company, 1898), http://www.sacred
texts.com/wmn/wb/, also available in print.
36
“The conduct of Eve from the beginning to the end is so superior to
that of Adam.” 8
Stanton viewed the account of Genesis as an “allegory” 9 but
nevertheless wrote of Eve’s, “lofty ambition” and “courage.” 10
According to Stanton, the serpent “saw at a glance the high character
[of Eve] ... He did not try to tempt her from the path of duty by
brilliant jewels, rich dresses, worldly luxuries or pleasures, but ¼
with the wisdom of the Gods.” 11
Eve’s motive for eating the forbidden fruit becomes almost
laudable when an emphasis is placed on a desire for wisdom.
However, this completely ignores biblical context. We read in
8
Ibid. pg. 26.
9
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, “Comments on Genesis,” in The Woman’s
Bible, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the Revising Committee, 2326 (New
York: European Publishing Company, 1898), http://www.sacred
10
Ibid.
11
Ibid.
37
Genesis chapter three, verse four and five, “And the serpent said
unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in
the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall
be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Satan did not limit his
temptation to “you will know good and evil.” He seduced Eve with
deification. Taken in context, it is clear Eve was tempted with the
thought of being “as gods.”
The statements by Blake and Stanton should not surprise us
for one of the spiritual motivations behind political feminism has
always been feminist spirituality. On close inspection, the seeds of
feminist spirituality are seen planted in the early women’s
movement. A feminist reinterpretation of the Word of God and
glorification of the fallen Eve are but two examples. Spiritualism is
another.
According to Barbara Goldsmith, author of Other Powers:
The Age of Suffrage, Spiritualism, and the Scandalous Victoria
38
Woodhull “woman’s rights were inseparable from Spiritualism.” 12
Spiritualism, communion with the spirits of the dead, empowered
the seminal women’s movement. Leaders of the women’s movement
often communed with spirits, among the feminist icons that did so
were Isabella Beecher Hooker and Victoria Woodhull, the first
female presidential candidate. 13 Mary Ann McClintock and Amy
Post, signers of the Declaration of Sentiments in Seneca Falls, New
York in 1848, also practiced spiritualism. And, according to
Goldsmith, at the funeral for Elizabeth Cady Stanton, “At the head
of her coffin was placed the mahogany McClintock Spirit Table,
recalling the time when the woman’s movement had begun.” 14
It was at the mahogany tea table in the home of Mary Ann
12
Barbara Goldsmith, Other Powers: The Age of Suffrage, Spiritualism,
and the Scandalous Victoria Woodhull (New York: Alfred A. Knopf,
Inc., 1998), xi.
13
Ibid., 314.
14
Ibid., 435.
39
McClintock that Stanton composed the “Woman’s Declaration of
Rights and Sentiments.” 15 Yet what makes the table curious is not
what was communicated at it, but what communicated through it.
The McClintock Spirit Table was noted for being the first “spirit
table.” It was said that spirits used the table to communicate with
the living through a system of rapping. 16 It was at this Spirit Table
that Stanton reportedly received inspiration for the Declaration. 17
Together with birth control advocates, Annie Besant and
Margaret Sanger, pioneering feminists infused their cause with
feminist spirituality. Besant served as international president of the
Theosophical Society. Sanger believed in a “feminine spirit” that is a
“motive power of woman’s nature.” 18 It is in the context of Sanger’s
15
Ibid., 3839.
16
Ibid., 31.
17
Ibid., 3839.
18
Margaret Sanger, Woman And The New Race (New York: Brentano’s
Publishers, 1920), 10.
40
statement that a developing “feminist spirituality” is observed.
Sanger criticized Christianity and the teachings of the apostles. 19 She
claimed when the “feminine spirit” flourishes within women they
will “demolish old systems of morals” and “Dark Age religious
concepts.” 20 Sanger believed a new morality created by the “feminine
spirit” would take the place of tradition. 21
Thinking much the same, Stanton concluded women are
oppressed by Christianity, “The real difficulty in woman’s case is
that the whole foundation of the Christian religion rests on . . . the
necessity of a Redeemer and a plan of salvation.” 22 As part of an
attempt to address this “difficulty,” Stanton taught a concept of the
19
Ibid., 173174.
20
Ibid., 70.
21
Ibid., 182.
22
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, “Appendix” in The Woman’s Bible, Elizabeth
Cady Stanton and the Revising Committee, 213214 (New York:
European Publishing Company, 1898), http://www.sacred
41
holy trinity which included a feminine aspect. She called this third
person of the trinity, “Heavenly Mother.” 23 According to Stanton, it
is to her, as well as to God, women should pray. Women need to
identify with a female godhead, Stanton explained, for the “elevation
of woman to her true position.” 24 In 1895, feminist Lillie Devereux
Blake wrote this of Eve: “She was Life,
the eternal mother, the first representative of the more valuable and
important half of the human race.” 25
Compare Blake’s view of Eve to feminist spirituality author,
Patricia Lynn Reilly’s exaltation of Eve published a century later in
23
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, “Comments in Genesis,” in The Woman’s
texts.com/wmn/wb/, also available in print (italics mine).
24
Ibid.
25
Lillie Devereux Blake, “Comments on Genesis,” in The Woman’s
texts.com/wmn/wb/, also available in print (italics mine).
42
1995: “We remember the times when our Mother reached for the
apple, the moments when she remembered her former glory and
refused to obey. We honor the Mother among us.” 26 The forerunn
theme of female superiority can be found in contemporary
feminism. Reilly’s capitalization of “Mother” indicates the same
glorification of Eve as the capitalization of “Life” by Blake.
Much like feminism’s early pioneers, within feminist
spirituality Eve is thought to have shown remarkable courage in the
face of adversity. According to today’s feminist spirituality mind set,
Eve bucked patriarchy when she “heroically” rebelled against her
Heavenly Father.
Feminists maintain Eve’s, “direct violation of divinity’s
edict ... suggests not evil, but rather an evolutionary step toward
26
WomanAffirming Spirituality (New York: Ballantine Books, 1995), 125.
43
humanity’s cultural progress.” 27 She is a “heroine of disobedience,” 28
a “heroine who paved the way for an increase in knowledge.” 29 By
eating the forbidden fruit, Eve left independence to her female
descendants; her daughters must simply take back from patriarchy
what she has bequeathed to them. The fallen woman has become the
feminist ideal.
In her book, Lady of the Beasts, Buffie Johnson wrote an
idolized account of Eve’s transgression, “By following a dangerous
path that promises a wondrous prize, Eve shows courage and
initiative.” 30
27
Bettina L. Knapp, Women in Myth (New York: State University of New
York Press, 1997), 49.
28
(New York: Times Books, 1987), xvi.
29
York Press, 1997), 49.
30
44
In the feminist rendition of Genesis, Eve utilized her
“freedom of choice” when she disobeyed God’s command. Yes, Eve
did possess free will. But contrary to what feminist spirituality
teaches, Eve did not have a lawful choice between eating and not
eating of the Tree of Knowledge. God said, “Of every tree of the
garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of
good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it.” 31 Eve did not have the “right
to choose” disobedience.
God did not grant carte blanche to his creations. Eve’s
choice was limited to trees that were lawful. As created beings, not
gods, our options are limited to that which our Creator deems
lawful. It was the serpent that first whispered an egregious concept
of choice into a woman’s mind. Though the first woman’s choice
31
Gen. 2:1617.
45
resulted in sin and death, her “choice” or “right to choose” is
glorified. Today the feminist daughters of Eve justify and demand
the same expanded “freedom of choice,” most notably in regards to
abortion, regardless of permissibility or spiritual consequences.
In the minds of spiritual feminists, Eve represents a plethora
of images and characteristics. To certain spiritual feminists, Eve
personifies women collectively, during a time on earth when a
female deity was honored and women were the goddess’ venerated
priestesses. To others, Eve is seen as the first woman to indulge in
knowledge and selfawareness that together emancipates the
feminine gender from patriarchal religious and social controls, and
who, in her largess, shares this new liberation with the willing but
hesitant man (making her the dominate gender and the savior of
mankind). Still others regard Eve as the Supreme Goddess herself.
The variations on this theme continue. Spiritual feminists insist that
at the very least, Eve was willing, ingenious, and aggressive, possibly
46
a priestess of the goddess; at the most, she is the “Creatress.” Eve is
never, however, objectified as passive and seduced.
Feminist spirituality maintains that Eve was never tempted
by the wiles of the serpent, neither did she fall to temptation. Eve,
they insist, did not sin. For a feminist to admit to the truth of Eve’s
transgression would be to concede to original sin. It would force her
to acknowledge her own inherent sin and need for a personal savior.
The serpent, depending on the story, was an oracle, consort,
friend, or totem of the Goddess. Spiritual feminists believe that the
serpent from the garden was, and remains, a “wise adviser,”
“counselor,” and “interpreter of dreams.” 32 Eve hearkened to its
counsel after judging that its counsel was sound. Johnson
determined the first woman was “neither timid, credulous nor easily
32
47
swayed.” 33 Instead, she is regarded as thoughtful and open to
counsel. Eve’s dialogue with the serpent indicates to spiritual
feminists that she exercised her “right to choose” with full
cognizance. In any case, she did not fall to sin. She simply partook
of her right/rite “to be as god knowing good and evil.”
33
Buffie Johnson, Lady of the Beasts:Ancient Images of the Goddess
and Her Sacred Animals
(New York: Harper and Row, 1988), 188.
48
Within feminist spirituality, the descriptions of Eve are
nothing short of fantastic. She is feminism’s caped crusader a
heroine with the female symbol emblazoned across her chest,
wielding a piece of forbidden fruit in one hand and a rusty coat
hanger in the other. Blake described Eve as “fearless of death.” 34 She
is lauded as a “harbinger of a New World spirit,” 35 and an “heiress” 36
to the goddess. She is seen as, “intelligent, curious, eager, and
strong.” 37 According to author Bettina Knapp, Eve was “the genius
34
Lillie Devereux Blake, “Comments on Genesis,” in The Woman’s
35
Bettina L. Knapp, Women in Myth (New York: State University of
New York Press, 1997), 50.
36
37
49
of her day” 38 and compares her to, “Galileo, da Vinci, Shakespeare,
and Einstein.” 39
In contrast, the first man is regarded as obtuse and abjectly
obedient. As Knapp proclaims, it was Eve “who lifted the passive
and mindlessly obedient Adam out of blind subjection even while
instilling in him a zest for life.” 40
Although both Eve and Adam consumed the forbidden fruit
in the Garden, through which sin and death entered the world, the
first man presumably had no such right/rite. Within feminist
spirituality the original fallen woman is revered while the original
fallen man is ridiculed. Adam is referred to as violent 41 and
38
Bettina L. Knapp, Women in Myth (New York: State University of
New York Press, 1997), 49.
39
Ibid.
40
Ibid., 50.
41
Miriam Therese Winter, The Chronicles of Noah and Her Sisters:
Genesis and Exodus According to Women (New York: Crossroad
Publishing Co., 1995), 38.
50
“lonely.” 42 Feminist thinkers maintain, “Adam appeared to be a bit
of a clod, while Eve’s curiosity suggested an intelligent quest for
knowledge and autonomous experience.” 43
Women involved with feminist spirituality feel a kinship
with Eve that surpasses religious boundaries. Spiritual feminists
regard Eve as “Everywoman.” 44
She is “mother” or the “comprehensible sister.”
Catholic religious writer Barbara Grizzuti Harrison, in her
article, “My Eve, My Mary” in Newsweek, wrote of her affection for
Eve, “I have always been inordinately fond of Eve; it was she, my
comprehensible sister, who had planted in my blood and bones and
42
Ibid., 37.
43
Rosemary Radford Ruether, ed., Womanguides: Readings Toward a
Feminist Theology (Boston: Beacon Press, 1985), 86.
44
Monica Sjoo and Barbara Mor, The Great Cosmic Mother:
Rediscovering the Religion of the Earth, 2 nd ed. (New York:
HarperSanFrancisco, 1991), 277.
51
flesh a variable human love, the intoxication of the body.” 45
Harrison also suggested that it was “Eve’s fall from grace her radical
curiosity set in motion the wheels of salvation." 46
The theme “Eve as Savior” can be found throughout
feminist spirituality literature. Patricia Monaghan, in The New Book
of Goddesses and Heroines, described Eve as one of “the saviors of
humankind, seeking and winning the prize of resurrection.” 47 Reilly
wrote, “The Mother of All Living has been exiled from the myths of
old, from within us and from among us. For the salvation of the
world, may she return.” 48
Harrison, Monaghan and Reilly fail to point out that before
45
Barbara Grizzuti Harrison, “My Eve, My Mary”, Newsweek, August
25 th , 1995, 56.
46
Ibid.
47
Patricia Monaghan, The New Book of Goddesses and Heroines, 3 rd ed.
(St Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 1997), 120.
48
52
the Fall in the garden, there was no need for salvation. It was not
Eve or her action that caused salvation. It was God in his mercy who
provided unmerited salvation through His only begotten Son, Jesus
Christ.
Feminist spirituality promotes a belief that women possess
within themselves a “saving and sustaining power” 49 and do not
need to look “to men or male figures as saviors.” 50 If Jesus Christ is
acknowledged at all within feminist spirituality he is regarded as a
“child of a divine Mother,” 51 not the Savior of mankind.
Biting the Apple
49
Carol P. Christ, “Why Woman Need the Goddess: Phenomenological,
Psychological, and Political Reflections,” in Womanspirit Rising: A
Feminist Reader in Religion, eds., Carol P. Christ and Judith Plaskow,
273286 (New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1979).
50
Ibid.
51
Riane Eisler, The Chalice and the Blade: Our History, Our Future
(New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1987),102.
53
It is not enough for feminist spirituality to fictionalize
creation accounts or justify sin. Feminist spirituality encourages each
woman to duplicate, in her own life, original sin. According to
feminist spirituality author Kim Chernin, the goddess “presides over
our rebirth as women.” 52 Cherin believes the goddess requested Eve
eat the forbidden fruit because women “seem to be afraid of
eating.” 53 Eve “knows what woman will become when one day she
creates herself in the image of a goddess.” 54 One way in which a
woman “creates herself in the image of a goddess” is through
conscious, goddesscentered crafts. In her book, The Knitting
Goddess, Deborah Bergman wrote that knitting is a means to
“connect with the ancient goddesses.” 55 According to Bergman,
52
(New York: Times Books, 1987), xx.
53
Ibid.
54
Ibid., xix.
55
Deborah Bergman, The Knitting Goddess: Finding the Heart and Soul
54
“knitting patterns we learn and execute can literally repattern us
within.” 56 Bergman explained the process this way, “As the fiber
runs through our hands . . . an exchange that is both physical and
spiritual can happen.” 57 As women knit, “We ourselves become
knitting goddesses.” 58
In the feminist spirituality workbook, A God Who Looks
Like Me: Discovering a WomanAffirming Spirituality, women are
encouraged to explore a “womanaffirming spirituality” either alone
or within group settings. This book served as the spiritual
curriculum for a woman’s participatory study course held at a
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in my hometown.
of Knitting Through Instruction, Projects, and Stories (New York:
Hyperion, 2000), xvi.
56
Ibid., 66.
57
Ibid., xvi.
58
Ibid.
55
In a chapter called, “Eve, The Mother of Living,” women
are told, “Bring apples into your sacred space.” 59 They are then
encouraged to visualize Eve coming into their own sacred area, “As
she looks into your eyes, she hands you an apple. Hear her say,
‘Take, eat of the fruit, the good fruit of life’.” 60 Women are then
instructed, “As you eat the apple, write a creation story that
celebrates your Original Goodness.” 61
Although not advocating an actual reenactment of the Fall
in the garden, Cait Johnson, author of Cooking Like a Goddess:
Bringing Seasonal Magic into the Kitchen, encourages women to
consume food in such a way that we connect with the goddess.
Johnson maintained food is the “key to sacred experience.” 62
59
60
Ibid.
61
Ibid.
62
Cait Johnson, Cooking Like a Goddess: Bringing Seasonal Magic into
56
Johnson wrote, “According to the Goddess Way, food can be our
spiritual guide, a guide that leads us to direct experience of the
numinous, the Divine.” 63 She suggests women build a “kitchen
altar,” 64 choose a kitchen goddess 65 to worship and place her image
in the kitchen. Cooking Like a Goddess teaches women to sin by
ritually preparing food and consuming it in honor of the goddess.
How does food invoke the goddess? Just ask JoAnn. A
grandmother who resides with her husband on Cape Cod, JoAnn is
an active senior with an energetic personality. Raised in the
Congregational Church and mother to a grown Christian daughter,
the Kitchen (Rochester, VT: Healing Arts Press, 1997), 1.
63
Ibid., 8.
64
Ibid., 21.
65
Ibid., 22.
57
spirituality has remained an important part of her life. Yet sadly, her
image of God has changed over the years.
When I met JoAnn, she was teaching a religious course for
women at her new church, a Unitarian Universalist Fellowship. She
offered to share the curriculum for her course as part of my research
for this book. The religious course she teaches is entitled “Cakes for
the Queen of Heaven.” The curriculum promotes goddess worship.
The Queen of Heaven is a reference to an ancient goddess
condemned in scripture. Identified variously as the Assyrian Ishtar,
the Canaanite Astarte, or the Phoenician Asherah, women in ancient
Israel worshiped this goddess by baking cakes made with her image.
“Seest thou not what they do in the cities of Judah and the
streets of Jerusalem? The children gather wood, and the fathers
kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to
the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other
58
gods, that they may provoke me to anger.” 66
The women shamelessly led her worship in public and
involved their children and compliant husbands. Jeremiah
prophesied against their idolatry but they refused to repent. The
women and their husbands replied to the prophet, “As for the word
that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will
not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing
goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen
of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have
done.” 67
Diana, Artemis, Queen of Heaven the goddess worshiped
within feminist spirituality has many personifications. One of her
titles is the “Goddess of Ten Thousand Names.” In addition to her
various images, the goddess is frequently envisioned as a “triple
66
Jer. 7:17, 18.
67
Jer. 44:16 17.
59
goddess.” This means she comprises three aspects of aging, maiden,
mother and crone. Since goddess worship teaches women they are
made in her image, these three aspects of aging glorify three phases
of a woman’s life. When I arrived at her home for the
material, JoAnn invited me in. She was a gracious hostess and
enjoyed chatting. We spent a few moments discussing her
spirituality. JoAnn was passionate and articulate but when the
conversation turned to her daughter, she became sorrowful. It was
clear by what JoAnn shared with me her newfound spirituality was
at odds with her daughter’s.
In spite of her daughter’s disapproval, JoAnn seemed
comfortable with merging her new spirituality with her childhood
memories of Jesus. Within feminist spirituality the goddess is
sometimes imagined as having a male consort. This god is the
goddess’ son, who later becomes her lover. She seemed to think this
could be Jesus Christ.
60
JoAnn did not understand how the goddess actually created
her son and it was clear the hint of incest offended her sensibilities.
Regardless of her confusion, JoAnn firmly believed her goddess is
more powerful then God. She was unwavering in her worship of the
goddess. I reminded her of what Jesus said about himself, “I am the
way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by
me.” 68 Slightly shaken, she replied she had never heard the quote
before.
Like the deity she worships, JoAnn is a curious blend of
contradictions. She is a member of the Covenant of Unitarian
Universalist Pagans and high priestess of the Moon Tree Circle. She
is a former churchgoer and a practicing pagan, a teacher of religion
and a student of witchcraft, grandmother and crone. Reminiscent of
the rebellious women in Israel, she honors the goddess through
ritual and openly instructs other women to do the same. Like the
68
John 14:6.
61
biblical women before her who answered “we will certainly do
whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth,” JoAnn offers
“Cakes” for the Queen of Heaven. 69
Women’s Liberation?
The doctrine of original sin is rejected within feminist spirituality.
Instead, spiritual feminists maintain, while it may be beneficial for a
woman to commit sin, women are not subject to an inherent
inclination to do so.
The Bible teaches man is born in sin, “Behold, I was shapen
in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.” 70 In Romans we
read, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” 71
Ignoring Jesus’ warning, “Verily, verily, I say to you,
69
JoAnn, conversation with the author, April 29, 1998; also prior
telephone communication with the author.
70
Ps. 51:5.
71
Rom. 3:23.
62
Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin,” 72 in the make
believe world of feminist spirituality there is no bondage to sin.
Instead, women are encouraged to sin for their own purposes; sin is
viewed positively as a means to liberation and personal
empowerment.
In the “Garden of the Goddess” women are not punished
for wanting to be gods, “In the much more ancient, original, and
beautiful Garden of the Goddess, human beings are asked to
participate in her immortality, to know and enjoy the ecstasy of
divine oneness.” 73
Feminist authors, Monica Sjoo and Barbara Mor, in The
Great Cosmic Mother: Rediscovering the Religion of the Earth, describe
a growing feminist prejudice; “The tragedy of Christianity is that it
72
John 8:34; see also Prov. 5:22, Rom. 6:16, 7:23, and 2 Pet. 2:19.
73
63
has kept untold millions of human beings from sinning, i.e., from
knowing their own souls.” 74
Sjoo and Mor cite feminist author Mary Daly, as the
academic basis for their conclusion that sinning is, “knowing.”
Daly, in her book, Pure Lust: Elemental Feminist Philosophy, devoted
a portion of chapter three to, “The Courage to Sin.” Daly
maintained sin can likely be traced to, “the IndoEuropean root es,
meaning to be.” 75 She concluded a woman’s, “courage to be, implies
the courage to be WRONG. Elemental being is Sinning; it
requires the Courage to Sin.” 76
Daly even attempted a defense of Satan. She wrote,
“Clearly, this ‘fallen’ angel’s problem was that ‘he’ wanted to find
74
Ibid. 343.
75
Mary Daly, Pure Lust: Elemental Feminist Philosophy (Boston:
Beacon Press, 1984; San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1992), 151.
Citations are to the HarperSanFrancisco edition.
76
Ibid.
64
happiness commensurate with his own natural ability, rather than
remaining an eternal recipient of divine care packages. ‘He’ was
proud and independent, valuing ‘his’ own nature.” 77
This reads as an attempt to reframe the nature of sin. Based
on the sum of Daly’s writings, women are seduced into believing
that the Fall and expulsion from the garden represent emancipation
from “divine care packages” and sin is empowerment. Through this
retooling of the creation story, women are encouraged to embrace
the spirit of “independence” the serpent has come to represent.
Feminist spirituality teaches women the snake from the
garden, “is very good” 78 and the Fall was vital for human (or more
precisely, female) evolution. As one author put it, “Yes, Adam and
77
Ibid., 190.
78
65
Eve did Fallthey fell into life!” 79 Daly wrote the Fall that is currently
occurring at the impetus of feminism is “a Fall into the sacred and
therefore into freedom.” 80 She also wrote, “The beginning of
liberation comes when women refuse to be ‘good’ and/or ‘healthy’
by prevailing standards.” 81 Women’s liberation occurs when
women sin? In an ironic twist, by justifying sin and refusing the
Savior, women involved in feminist spirituality are never truly
liberated. A cycle of doubt ("I'm not sure that I believe the Word of
God" or "I don't believe in the God of patriarchy"); sin (rebellion,
lust, hate, idolatry, witchcraft, blasphemy, delusion); and goddess
affirmation ("You shall be as goddess" or "I am a goddess") keep
women in Satan's bondage.
79
York Press, 1997), 50 (italics in original).
80
Mary Daly, Beyond God the Father: Toward a Philosophy of
Women’s Liberation (Boston: Beacon Press, 1973), 67 (italics in the
original).
81
Ibid., 65.
66
In spite of Daly’s confusing play on words in Pure Lust,
“being is sinning,” she fails to address the true meaning of the word
sin. Though she advocates sinning as a woman’s way of being, sin,
according to standard usage, implies a “transgression of the law of
God” or “an offense against religious or moral law.” 82 The Bible
states, “Whosoever committeth sin transgreeth also the law: for sin is
the transgression of the law.” 83 Our Creator established rules of
conduct. When we sin, we violate God’s law.
Through etymology Daly obscures this critical point. One
must also question her philosophy. Is sinning considered a purely
personal experience with no impact on the world we live in and, if
so, is that possible? If not, will our community norms and biblical
82
MerriamWebster Online Dictionary, s.v. “Sin,” http://www.m
w.com/cgibin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=sin7x=21&y=17.
83
1 John 3:4.
67
morality be dismantled to allow for the free uninhibited expression
of sin? Without God’s Word as our standard, how is society to judge
between the profane and the holy and the evil and the good? How
are we to protect the innocent from the wicked?
Spiritual feminists also fail to consider that God’s law is for
our best. The Bible instructs, “And now, Israel, what doth the
LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to
walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy
God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, To keep the
commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command
thee this day for thy good?” 84
Again we read, “And the LORD commanded us to do all
these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that
he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day.” 85 Because God loves
84
Deut. 10:1213 (italics mine).
85
Deut. 6:24 (italics mine).
68
us, he commands us not to sin. Anything outside of God’s law is a
sin and sin results in death. 86
Daly and Sjoo and Mor fail to critically examine their
doctrine. If the only defense one can put forth for the unrestrained
practice of sin, is that its very essence is to be, surely this is a
viewpoint without practical worth. If being is sinning, being is also
filling ones belly, digesting food and expelling waste. It makes as
much sense to center feminist spirituality on excrements as it does
on sin.
86
Rom. 6:23.
69
Points to Remember:
1. You are a sinner (Rom. 3:23).
2. You sin when you violate God’s law (1 John 3:4).
3. God’s law is for your good (Deut. 10:12,13).
4. Your freedom to choose is limited to options that are not sin (Gen.
2:16, 17).
70
CHAPTER 3
RITUALIZED SEX
And Israel abode is Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom
with the daughters of Moab. And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their
gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.
Numbers 25:12
For the lips of a strange woman drop as honeycomb, and her mouth is
smoother than oil: But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword.
Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.
Proverbs 5:35
Feminism’s defense of abortion rights goes something like
this attack the messenger instead of the message and when that fails
attack the messenger again. Feminists love to rail at Christians,
calling them narrow minded, bigoted, misogynistic (which is
72
amusing if you are Christian woman) and my personal favorite,
intolerant. They reserve a special animosity for Bible believing,
Spirit filled Christians who exercise their faith in the public square.
A woman in an online abortion discussion group in which I was a
participant complained, “Fundamentalism is fundamentalism ... all
harmful.” She was comparing fundamentalist Christianity to the
Taliban, the fanatical Islamic terrorist group known for its gross
abuse of women. When her arguments in favor of abortion were
condensed her support for abortion was essentially, “Your God hates
women so why should I care about anything the Bible has to say
about abortion?”
Feminists love to compare Christianity to repressive
religions but the good news is the Good News. Feminist spirituality
can stand in as the liberating spirituality for women only as long as
feminists can convince others that biblical Christianity is anti
women and oppressive.
73
God’s Love for Women
Christian fundamentalism came into being to preserve
fundamental biblical truths. It acknowledges the virgin birth of Jesus
Christ, his bodily resurrection, substitutionary atonement, and his
Second Coming to judge the living and the dead. It also professes
the inerrancy of Scripture.
An understanding of Jesus’ work while he was on earth and
his Word as set forth in the Bible, are of incomparable worth. The
Bible is all about Jesus; it is about God reconciling the world to
himself through the Son. Yes, there are people who use the Bible to
batter women with but the message of the Bible is one of love and
forgiveness. It is the most empowering proclamation of freedom ever
written. History teaches that liberation and empowerment flow to
women when the good news of Jesus Christ is preached. Because the
74
Bible teaches that women are made in God’s image, 32 everywhere
Christianity is faithfully and truthfully preached the dignity and
status of women improves.
It is also important to note, Christianity is not about
religion. It is about being in love with God. An expert at religious
law once tried to trap Jesus. He asked him which of the
commandment was the greatest. Jesus replied, “Thou shalt love the
Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all
thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the
second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On
these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” 33
Jesus defied the religious traditions of men by keeping the
law of God. In Israel during the time of Jesus, women were
prohibited from speaking to men in public never mind travel around
32
Gen. 1:27.
33
Matt. 22:3740.
58
with them to do ministry work. Yet, Jesus, through his love and
inclusiveness, repeatedly lifted women’s social status to a level on par
with men. He met with the Samaritan woman, a social outcast, who
in turn preached the Gospel to her community. He taught Mary the
way a rabbi taught male pupils, “which also sat at Jesus’ feet, and
heard his word” and when her sister complained, he responded
“Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away
from her.” 34
While Jesus walked on earth, he cared for the social outcast,
the downtrodden, the oppressed the person without a voice. He
reached out to women and identified with their suffering. In one
example, Jesus disregarded the convention not to come in contact
with dead bodies when he touched an open bier and healed the dead
son of the widow of Nain; 35 her well being was more important to
34
Luke 10:3842.
35
Luke 7:1115.
59
him then ceremonial cleanness.
Jesus turned power on its head when he preached the
greatest in the Kingdom of God is humble 36 and the meek shall
inherit the earth. 37 He said, “Ye know that the princes of the
Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great
exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be so among you: but
whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; And
whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Even as
the Son of man came not to be ministered unto but to minister, and
to give his life a ransom for many.” 38
An elderly woman was the first to preach of the arrival of
the Messiah to the Jews 39 and it was a woman, Mary, whose heart
36
Matt. 18:4.
37
Matt. 5:5.
38
Matt. 20:2528.
39
Luke 2:38.
60
was pierced at the suffering of Christ. 40 Because of their famous love
for Jesus, women were the last to leave Christ’s side 41 and the first to
gaze on His empty tomb. 42 The resurrected Jesus appeared first to a
woman 43 and women were the first to proclaim his resurrection to
others. 44
Women were the first to hear the Gospel preached in
Europe 45 and one of the women, Lydia, the first to experience
conversion. 46 The New Testament is replete with references to
women who loved Jesus and followed him. Women were committed
40
Luke 2:35 and John 19:25.
41
Mark 15:4447 and Luke 23:4955.
42
43
John 20:1118.
44
45
Acts 16:13.
46
Acts 16:1415.
61
laborers in the early Church. 47
The women who personally met Jesus, and the earlier
women who lived their lives in expectation of him, are just like us.
We can identify with their personal struggles because they are our
struggles. The Bible gives examples of notable women so we can
learn from their lives. They were prostitutes (Rahab) and pagans
(Ruth). They had adulterous affairs with politicians (Bathsheba) and
challenged political powers (Jehoshabeath). They were young virgins
(Mary) and postmenopausal (Naomi). They were infertile (Hannah)
and part of extended families (Rachel). They were victims of
domestic violence (Abigail). They were surrogate mothers and
unwed mothers (Hagar). They were victims of incest (Tamar),
victims of date rape (Dinah) and victims of gang rape (Levites
Concubine). They were slaves (Moses’ Mother) and victims of
forced abortion and population control (Women of Gilead). They
47
Acts 18:26, Rom. 16:3, 6, and Phil. 4:3.
62
were forced to give up (adoption) or hide their children to protect
them from government death warrants (Moses’ Mother, Mary).
Some women were beautiful (Rachel) and some disfigured or
physically challenged (Leah).
Among other things, women in the Bible were conquerors
(Jael); spies (woman in 2 Sam. 17:17); military leaders, judges
(Deborah); deliverers (Jehoshabeath); prophetesses (Huldah,
Miriam); survivors (Tamar, Dinah); patriots (the wise woman of
Abel); midwives (Puah); queens (Esther, Queen of Sheba); disciples
(Tabitha); career women (Lydia); mothers and martyrs.
The very first preaching of the Gospel was by God himself
and it was for the comfort of the first woman. 48 God loves the
women he created so much he chose to die for us rather then let us
remain under the curse of sin and death. His willing sacrifice on the
cross guaranteed freedom to any woman who calls on his name. His
48
Gen. 3:15.
63
dying words, “It is finished,” 49 are an eternal pronouncement of
women’s liberation.
“Lady of the Beasts”
Regrettably, spiritual feminists refuse to accept or
acknowledge God’s sacrificial love for them. Instead, they make
women out to be victims of the God of the Bible the very God who
died for them! Feminist spirituality maintains “traditional religions
of the West have betrayed women” and therefore “must be reformed
or reconstructed to support the full human dignity of women.” 50
Those who sympathize with feminist spirituality suggest,
the "seemingly innocent myth of Paradise and how the world began
was actually carefully constructed and propagated to ‘keep women in
49
John 19:30.
19
Carol P. Christ and Judith Plaskow, eds., Womanspirit Rising: A
Feminist Reader in Religion (New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1979), 1.
64
their place’.” 51 Spiritual feminists overlook the reality of the dual
expulsion from the Garden and the chastisement and consequences
that befell both sexes. As a result, they read an indictment against
women within Genesis.
Yes, some women do suffer abuse at the hands of certain
men who claim to be Christian. The Bible calls this a false
profession of faith, “They profess that they know God; but in works
they deny him.” 52 Scripture has always been twisted to fit ambitions,
prejudices, and societal whims and marginalized members of society
too often bear the brunt of false religious teachings (today, we see
this happening to the unborn). This is an ugly reality of living in a
fallen world. But by ignoring the totality of scripture, and in
particular the teachings of Jesus Christ, it is feminist spirituality
51
Merlin Stone, When God was a Women (1976; repr., New York:
Barnes and Noble, 1993), 197.
21
Tit. 1:16.
65
which has betrayed women, not the God of the Bible.
It is also true that women have been objectified, by some
men, as earthly or sensual in nature. Feminism has been quick to
charge that such generalizations are sexist. Indeed they are. However,
if spiritual feminists characterize women in a similar manner, their
descriptions are not considered stigmas. The very adjectives that
were regarded as disagreeable when used by men have become
tokens of esteem when applied by women. This is indicated by one
of the titles conferred on Eve, “Mistress of Vegetation and Lady of
the Beasts.” 53
Suppose a man stated the first woman “preferred the wild
places,” 54 “wore flowers” 55 in her hair, and “ran with wolves.” 56 A
53
Buffie Johnson, Lady of the Beasts (New York: Harper and Row
Publishers, 1988), 186.
23
24
Ibid. 36.
66
shrill cry would be heard coming from feminist camps. Yet, that is
exactly what spiritual feminists’ claim. In one reimagined story of
creation, the first woman is depicted this way, “Eve and her
daughters swam in the water, sang with the birds, danced among the
growing things . . . wore flowers in their hair . . . played by the
apple tree, told stories and made ritual, and even talked to serpents
and snakes.” 57 Spiritual feminists have objectified women by
identifying them with wildness and nature. These word pictures of
Eve indirectly color all women. Her descriptions parallel
descriptions of the goddess. Anciently, the goddess Artemis was
“Mistress of Wild Animals.” 58 Her Roman equivalent, Diana, was
56
Ibid. 35.
57
Ibid. 37.
58
Encyclopedia Mythica, s.v. “Artemis” (by Ron Leadbetter),
http://www.pantheon.org/articles/a/artemis.html; Artemis is associated
with Potnia Theron, Mistress of Wild Animals.
67
“Mother of Animals” and “Lady of Wild Creatures.” 59
In addition to the goddess’ association with animals, the
earth is viewed as the body of the goddess. The goddess is often
referred to as Gaia or “Mother Earth.” Within feminist spirituality,
a woman is a “Mistress of Wild Animals” and a daughter of the
Earth.
In the creation account contained within, The Chronicles of
Noah and Her Sisters, original sin is eliminated. In this story Eve was
allowed to eat from the forbidden tree. The female deity within this
myth permitted it so that Eve “could grow to be more like” a
goddess. 60 In this version of Genesis, the first couple was not cast
out of the garden paradise because of transgression. Instead, Adam
59
Barbara G. Walker, The Woman’s Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets
(New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1983), 233.
60
68
“knew that his world was slipping away, for he could no longer
control it.” Eventually, when the first man, “could bear it no longer,
he let the woman lead him to a place beyond the garden.” 61
Here again we observe a description of the first man that is
pathetic and impotent. In contrast, Eve is depicted in a dominant,
leadership role. The first man is the woman’s companion,
submissive to her leadership. The first woman is noted for her
religious ritual suggesting that it is the woman, not the man, which
is the family’s high priest. In this garden paradise, headship is
conferred on the woman.
61
Ibid., 37.
69
Carnal Knowledge
Feminist spirituality's interpretation of Genesis stands in
dark contrast to Christian interpretation. Although the Bible teaches
there was a literal Fall in the Garden of Eden, in the minds of
spiritual feminists the account of the Fall is nothing more than an
allegory.
Feminist spirituality maintains Eve did not sin by eating
forbidden fruit; she simply “committed the sexual act.” 62 Feminist
spirituality teaches that just as Eve discovered her sexuality and
procreative powers in the garden, women must learn to harness and
control their sexual energy. In the minds of spiritual feminists, sex is
62
Woman Affirming Spirituality (New York: Ballantine Books, 1995), 165.
70
power. Although it would be incorrect to claim that all women
involved with feminist spirituality hold to this unusual sexualized
account of the Fall, many do. Those who do, view the fruit in
Genesis as a metaphor for sex; the consumption of the forbidden
fruit meant “being” sexual.
"What?” you may be asking. How has Eve's consumption of
the forbidden fruit come to mean indulging in forbidden sexuality?
When Eve expressed her sexuality, she discovered her sexual
prowess and tapped into a source of female power, or so the story
goes. Power that, in spiritual feminists' minds, patriarchy wants to
suppress. Hence, Eve's sexuality was "forbidden" by men who fear
women's power. The serpent, according to spiritual feminists,
simply instructed Eve in the pleasures of the flesh. The “Fall” took
place when Eve was made conscious of her natural sexual identity
and experienced it for the first time. They claim the forbidden fruit
was invented to obscure the truth and "keep women in their place.”
71
Feminist spirituality teaches Eve was curious about her
sexuality. When Eve tasted the forbidden fruit, she “received the
wise secrets of life and the awareness of sexuality.” 63 Eve’s curiosity
resulted in wisdom, sexual awareness and personal empowerment.
Eve was curious? No. The Bible states Eve was deceived. 64
Eve's deception led to her rebellion. By yielding to temptation, the
first woman effectively revolted against the God that loved her,
created her and cared for her and surrendered her allegiance to the
enemy of God, albeit, however inadvertently. She divorced herself
from everlasting life when she left her first love.
Through feminist spirituality rationale, sin is softened.
"Curious" implies she was merely desirous “to investigate and
63
Woman Affirming Spirituality (New York: Ballantine Books, 1995), 129
(italics mine).
64
1 Tim. 2:14.
67
learn." 65 As such, Eve’s sin sounds harmless, even meritorious.
Feminist spirituality has done away with the concept of sin by
justifying, lessening or denying Eve's action in the Garden.
Although Eve transgressed Divine law, women are manipulated to
sympathize with and thereupon justify Eve's disobedience. As one
bumper sticker stated, “Eve was framed.”
Through feminist spirituality’s influence, Eve is no longer
remembered as bereft of her perfect, sinless state and of Paradise.
Instead, she has become the memory of idealism, autonomy,
sexuality and power.
Sexuality is a gift from God. He tells us to exercise this gift,
"And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and
multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion
over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every
65
MerriamWebster Online Dictionary, s.v. “Curious,” http://www.m
w.com/cgibin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=curious&x=10&y=14.
68
living thing that moveth upon the earth." 66 This command was
given before the Fall.
On the sixth day of creation, God observed everything He
had made in the Garden and “it was very good,” 67 this includes a
woman’s sexuality. The Bible reveals “Every good gift and every
perfect gift” 68 is from God. Sexuality should be celebrated as another
expression of God’s goodness.
“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and
shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and they
were not ashamed.” 69
Sex is for unity, procreation, comfort, joy and pleasure.
66
Gen. 1:28.
67
Gen. 1:31.
68
James 1:17.
69
Gen. 2:2425.
69
Sexuality is a beautiful part of God’s creation. It allows women to
experience and participate in a portion of God’s creative process.
When God gave the gift of sexuality, He set moral perimeters
to ensure the appropriate exercise of this blessing. 70 Feminist
spirituality, by attributing the pleasure and satisfaction of physical
intimacy to rebellion against God, teaches women to indulge in
sexuality outside of God’s established boundaries. Although the “will
of God” is that we should “abstain from fornication,” 71 feminist
spirituality encourages sin.
Altar of the Goddess
As stated earlier, feminist spirituality envisions the earth as
the body of the goddess. The goddess is said to have created the world
70
Exod. 20:14, 22:19, Lev. 18:6, 22, Deut. 22:1330, Rom. 1: 2627,
and 1 Cor. 6:18.
71
1 Thess. 4:3.
70
without male contribution the goddess is attributed all the power of
fecundity. Within feminist spirituality myths, sexuality is the divine
agent through which the universe, earth, and life were created. These
stories present a lascivious, inordinate goddess who possesses the
power of life and death. In an article within SageWoman, Kathy
Larson wrote an eroticized version of creation, comparing the earth to
a lustful goddess. Her account is too graphic to relate but in her
article she maintains women need to “create new stories in which sex
is sacred, and women are teachers.” 72
Merlin Stone, in her book, When God Was a Woman,
suggested that “in the worship of the female deity, sex was Her gift
to humanity.” 73 She was, according to Stone, “Goddess of Sexual
72
Kathy Larson, “Sex Magic: Sacrament of the Goddess,” SageWoman,
Summer 1996, http://www.sagewoman.com/samp34_3.htm.
73
Merlin Stone, When God was a Women (1976; repr., New York:
Barnes and Noble, 1993), 154.
71
Love and Procreation.” 74 Since the goddess is viewed this way,
adherents of feminist spirituality worship her through indiscriminate
sexuality. Sexual activity is ritualized. Lesbianism is esteemed.
Masturbation is exalted as sex with the inner goddess. Ifitfeels
gooddoit is the accepted standard.
Within feminist spirituality, sexuality is a “moment of
Divine presence.” 75 Feminist spirituality instructs women to let
“your acquaintance” with the goddess “transform your relationship
to your body.” 76 As a result, women are encouraged to experiment
with their own sexuality. Since the “Goddesses loved themselves,”
women are encouraged to “wrest” their bodies “out of the hands of
men” and meet their own sexual needs. 77
74
Ibid., 154155.
75
Shirley Ann Ranck, Cakes for the Queen of Heaven: An Exploration
of Women’s Power Past, Present and Future (Chicago: Delphi Press,
Inc., 1995), 45.
76
WomanAffirming Spirituality (New York: Ballantine Books, 1995),
72
Although not speaking specifically of lesbianism, Larson
wrote, “The Goddess has helped me to let go of my inhibitions.” 78
She maintained, “If we understand that plants, animals, rocks, all
beings, are not only sacred, but sexy, the bond between ourselves as
humans and the rest of the cosmic web grows stronger.” 79 According
to Larson, sexuality is “a door to creation” and orgasm is a “magical
tool.” 80 She advised, a “woman who loves sex and knows her own
body is powerful and harder to dominate.” 81 In way of
empowerment, she suggested “Sex Magic,” a ritual that begins with
casting a circle and invoking a sex goddess. According to Larson, if a
181.
77
Ibid., 181182.
78
79
Ibid.
80
Ibid.
81
Ibid.
73
woman surrenders to an “animalself, you never know what might
happen.” 82 She then listed “bark[ing] hoarsely in the rain,” and “a
sudden desire for that maple tree in your backyard” 83 as possibilities.
The Charge of the Goddess reads “all acts of love and
pleasure” are goddess rituals. Laurie Cabot, a practicing witch and
author, asserted a woman’s “entire existence is sexual” and her
“sexuality is extraordinary power.” 84 Cabot advised, “When it comes
to sex, a modern woman must say to herself, ‘I am the Divine
Goddess.’” 85
Many men would agree. According to one male goddess
82
Ibid.
83
Ibid.
84
Laurie Cabot with Jean Mills, The Witch in Every Woman:
Reawakening the Magical Nature of the Feminine to Heal, Protect,
Create, and Empower (New York: Dell Publishing, 1997), 83.
85
Ibid.
74
worshiper, sex is “a doorway to a much deeper kind of passion” 86
and women’s bodies are “the first and best altar of the Goddess.” 87
As I sipped my hot chocolate, the light dimmed and a
reverent hush fell on the audience. With her long flowing hair and
smoldering kohl lined eyes, it was easy to imagine the dancer,
Katrina, as an Egyptian. In the dimly lit coffeehouse the delicate
jewel in the middle of her forehead sparkled with each catch of the
light. As her scarf draped form wove around the small round tables,
her hips swayed to the Arabian music. Some of the customers looked
surprised as the sipped their coffee. Those who came expecting the
performance were deeply moved. For them, this was more than a
belly dance. It was a worship service. 88
86
Marguerite Rigoglioso, “Not for Women Only,” (includes an interview
87
Ibid., 140.
88
Khadija and the Kharamana Dance Troupe, Prodigal Son Coffeehouse
(Hyannis, MA), August 25, 2001.
75
As Katrina belly danced, she conjured up an inner priestess.
This evening she was dancing as “Khadij,”an Egyptian priestess of
the goddess. The other women of her dance troupe channeled
priestesses or goddesses of their own choosing. One woman danced
as the bloodthirsty Goddess “Kali.” Kali is the gruesome Hindu
goddess of destruction, often depicted with a necklace of skulls and
holding a severed head. The Indian manifestation of Kali often
shows her dancing on the body of a male deity in domination.
Katrina teaches a dance called “Awakening the Goddess.”
According to Katrina and her dance troupe, “Middle Eastern Dance
is the most ancient dance form known, originating in the temples of
the Goddess.” 89 Goddess dancing is described as “centered in the
belly and firmly connected to the earth” on Katrina’s web site.
Goddess dancing “exalts the form and presence of the Goddess in
89
Khadija and the Kharamana Dance Troupe, “Marhaba! Welcome!”
(handout, Prodigal Son Coffeehouse, Hyannis, MA, August 25, 2001).
76
each woman.” 90
I watched as the “goddesses” and the “priestesses” circled
the floor and gently drew women from the audience into their
dance. The sultry women enraptured the men. It was not long
before a married man left his seat by his wife and kneeled before one
of the “priestesses.” The beautiful woman’s movements grew more
suggestive, more arousing. Still on his knees, he slowly lifted his
arms in worship of the goddess. Her body writhed in response.
Imbedded within feminist spirituality is the belief that
women merit worship by men. There is hypocrisy in the spirituality
as well. Picture the feminist protest that would occur if a powerful,
political lobby of men were reinventing scripture, revising history,
promoting a new religion to further their ideological goals, and
declaring themselves gods to be worshiped by women! This form of
90
Transformation Tours, “Egyptian Dance/Awakening the Goddess,”
www.Transformationstours.com/dance/egyptiandance.html.
77
chauvinism would never be tolerated by feminists.
The not so subtle reverse sexism in feminist spirituality can
likely be traced to the ancient myths associated with the goddess. In
many of these accounts, the goddess is said to have conceived a son
god who later became her lover/consort. It is important to note, the
goddess’ consort is always subordinate to the goddess for he is her
divine creation.
In feminist spirituality, women are embodiments of the
goddess. If women, as the goddess incarnate, create life then the
world is made up entirely of mothers and their offspring. Because of
this dynamic, within goddess worship men are minimized as
“women’s children.” Although there are women, in particular
witches, who maintain the male deity is not inferior to the goddess,
in practice, the goddess takes preeminence.
78
Unlike feminist spirituality, in Christianity holiness and
intimate fellowship with God is not circumscribed to a specific
gender. The Holy Spirit is promised to all believers regardless of
gender, “For John truly baptized you with water; but ye shall be
baptized with the Holy Ghost.” 91 Women and men who accept
Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, receive His Spirit. In contrast
to feminist spirituality where women alone embody the divine, in
Christianity both sexes are “heirs together of the grace of life” 92
Women and men are equal in worth and personhood, “For as many
of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There
is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is
neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” 93
Together women and men are “joint heirs” 94 of the Kingdom of
91
Acts 1:5.
92
1 Pet. 3:7.
93
Gal. 3:2728.
94
Rom. 8:17.
76
God.
According to spiritual feminists, in the coming feminist
spirituality consciousness, the original social order (matriarchy) with
its feminine godhead and “lifehonoring” ethos, will replace
patriarchy and its masculine “death centered” ethics. How do men,
who worship the goddess, relate to feminist spirituality’s relationship
paradigm?
Some men are willing to, “restructure their relationships
with women in their lives” 95 in order to receive it. According to
author John Kalb, men “need the love of the Goddess.” 96 In an
article in Spirit of Change he advised, “The Goddess [in a woman]
needs to have her wants, needs, fears and feelings heard.” 97 “Men
will have to die into the Goddess,” another claimed, “in order to be
95
John Kalb, “The Green Man,” Spirit of Change: New England’s
Holistic Magazine, July/August, 1998, 55.
96
Ibid..
97
Ibid.
77
reborn.” 98 One goddess worshiper hears the goddess saying, “It’s ok
you’re my son!” 99
Sex with a priestess enables men to experience the goddess
“through the body of a woman.” 100 Larson believes, “women in a
variety of cultures had the role of sex priestesses, holding open the
door to the mysteries of the Goddess through sexual energy.” 101
Spiritual feminists describe this sacred prostitution as women
surrendering to the goddess. 102 Sacred prostitution, according to
author Shirley Ann Ranck, was the “way for both women and men
98
Marguerite Rigoglioso, “Not for Women Only,” (includes an interview
99
Marguerite Rigoglioso, “Not for Women Only” (includes as interview
with Mark Roblee), New Age Journal, May/June, 1997, 142.
100
HarperSanFrancisco, 1991),159.
101
102
HarperSanFrancisco, 1991),159.
78
to participate in the essence of the divine.” 103
For a believer to commit a sexual sin is to defile the temple
of the Holy Spirit. Our body belongs to God; we have been
“bought with a price.”
“Know you not that your bodies are the members of Christ?
Shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the
members of a harlot? God forbid.
What? Know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is
one body? For two, saith he, shall be one flesh.
But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. Flee
fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he
that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the
Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not
103
Shirley Ann Ranck, Cakes for the Queen of Heaven: An Exploration
of Women’s Power Past, Present and Future (Chicago: Delphi Press,
Inc., 1995), 44.
79
your own?
For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in
your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 104
In contrast to Christianity, feminist spirituality encourages
women to surrender to the goddess through indiscriminate sexuality.
Women are instructed to glorify the goddess in their body through
ritual sex. In so doing, they afford the way for men to experience the
goddess’ presence. In essence, feminist spirituality is advocating a
return to temple prostitution, a time when men engaged in sexual
relations with temple priestesses believing they were worshiping the
goddess incarnate.
An example of this type of goddess worship can be found in
the movie, Practical Magic. One aspect of the movie portrayed sacred
prostitution. Nicole Kidman played a witch involved in a sexual
relationship with a man. In describing their physical intimacy,
104
1 Cor. 6:1520
80
Kidman’s character explained “sometimes we just stay up all night
worshiping each other.”
Feminist spirituality claims, “Women in ancient Goddess
worshipping societies were free to take as many lovers as they
chose.” 105 Even the term, virgin, has been reinterpreted to reflect
goddess worshiping sexual mores. According to Ranck, the term
virgin once referred to “sexual independence” not sexual purity. 106
Since the goddess is imagined as always lustful and as “the
heat in cats and dogs,” 107 as women identify with the image of the
goddess, sexual immorality abounds. One author admits “there are
105
Shirley Ann Ranck, Cakes for the Queen of Heaven: An
Exploration of Women’s Power Past, Present and Future (Chicago:
Delphi Press, Inc., 1995), 44.
106
Ibid.
107
Zsuzsanna E. Budapest, The Grandmother of Time: A Woman’s
Book of Celebrations, Spells, and Sacred Objects for Every Month of
the Year (New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1989), 69.
81
few taboos about sexuality” within paganism. 108
There are no sexual standards or moral absolutes within
feminist spirituality. The closest anything comes is the Threefold
Law or the Wiccan Rede. A twist on the Eastern philosophy of
karma, the Threefold Law is the ambiguous belief that what you do
comes back to you threefold. The closest thing to a moral code of
conduct is the Wiccan Rede which states “An it harm none, do what
ye will.” This should be read, “Do what you want and pretend it
harms no one.” Sin always hurts us. Moreover, the “harm none”
clause is habitually discarded when a woman is confronted with an
unplanned pregnancy brought about by her goddess worshiping
sexual mores.
108
Vivianne Crowley, Phoenix from the Flame: Pagan Spirituality in
the Western World (San Francisco: Aquarian/Thorsons, 1994), 163.
109
Shirley Ann Ranck, Cakes for the Queen of Heaven: An
Exploration of Women’s Power Past, Present and Future (Chicago:
Delphi Press, Inc., 1995), 45 (italics mine).
82
Ranck recommends this ritual for women, “Caress and
anoint yourself with your favorite lotion or perfume or oil. Know
that for a millennia the menstrual, lifegiving and lifetaking female
body was worshiped as Divine, and that lovemaking was a sacred
ritual. Say aloud: The Goddess affirms my sexual pleasure.” 109
This ritual conveys:
1. Women’s bodies are made in the “Divine” image of a
goddess.
2. Women merit worship.
3. Sexuality was a method of worship.
4. Women possess the power to create life and the authority to
destroy it.
Ritual is a vehicle for expressing intangible, spiritual
concepts in a nonverbal way. The intrinsic meaning of a ritual is
absorbed by a woman through participation in the religious act or
83
acts. Because the goddess is seen as comprising both “lifegiving and
lifetaking” aspects, the impression that is communicated to women
is that they have supremacy over life. A woman who thinks she is a
goddess, capable of creating life, has little if any qualm bringing that
life to an end. The goddess is “sexual goddess and death goddess all at
once.” 110 As a result, if a woman becomes inadvertently pregnant
through ritualized sex, abortion is considered an appropriate option.
As one goddess worshiper put it, the goddess “who whets your
appetite with sexual pleasures also whets the knife.” 111
Points to Remember:
1. Sexuality is a gift from God (Gen. 1:28).
110
111
Nevada Kerr, “Abortion as a Sacred Rite,” Snuff It, no. 4,
http://www.enviroweb.org/coc/snuffit4/abortion.html.
84
2. A woman’s sexuality is “very good” (Gen. 1:31).
3. God has set moral perimeters to ensure the appropriate
exercise of this gift (1 Thess. 4:34).
4. A woman is filled with the Holy Spirit when she accepts
Jesus Christ as her personal Savior (Acts 1:45). His Spirit
indwells her physical body (1 Cor. 6:19).
5. A woman is to glorify God with her body (1 Cor. 6:20).
85
CHAPTER 4
WHETTING THE KNIFE
Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils, And shed
innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they
sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood.
Psalm 106:3738
Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after
that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their
gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.
Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination to the
LORD which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and
their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.
Deuteronomy 12: 3031
Leaders and advocates of feminist spirituality understand
“by worshiping the Goddess, women internalize those qualities
86
associated with the Goddess.” 1 The undeniable danger of idolizing
a lascivious, bloodthirsty deity is that a woman incorporates within
herself these same characteristics. In addition, by projecting onto
women glorified sexual images or those of death, women are
objectified in the basest of ways. In other words, goddess worship
legitimizes and reinforces what was once considered unconscionable
characteristics idolatry, sexual immorality and abortion while
creating cultural stereotypes. What is worse, because of their
identification with the deity, these qualities and stereotypes are
then made sacred.
Idolatry, although arguably a peril to one’s emotional,
mental and spiritual health, does not necessarily pose a danger to
others. And generally speaking, sexual immorality is primarily a risk
to those who live it. However, abortion does categorically affect
1
Vivianne Crowley, Phoenix from the Flame: Pagan Spirituality in the
Western World (San Francisco: Aquaria/Thorsons, 1994), 120.
87
another human being by violently ending her precious life but
through its association with the goddess, abortion is sacred.
Feminist spirituality has elevated abortion to a form of religious
expression, endangering the most innocent and helpless among us.
The Power of a Priestess
Recognized as the mother of the feminist spirituality
movement, Zsuzsanna E. Budapest 2 , teaches that abortion is a
woman’s holy responsibility. Speaking of the goddess, she contends
“abortion is the prerogative of the Dark Mother.” 3 Because of this
2
Zsuzsanna E. Budapest is a Hungarianborn witch and a prolific
writer. She is the founder of the Women’s Spirituality Forum, a
nonprofit organization dedicated to instructing girls and women in
feminist spirituality. In the early 1970s, she founded the Susan B.
Anthony Coven #1, likely the first feminist coven in the United States.
It served as a model for other feminist witches’ covens.
3
Zsuzsanna E. Budapest, The Grandmother of Time: A Woman’s Book
of Celebrations, Spells, and Sacred Objects for Every Month of the
Year (New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1989), 127.
88
prerogative, abortion is a woman’s “responsibility, making the
choice of life and death as much a part of the Goddess as her life
giving good nature.” 4
Budapest’s claim makes abortion an exclusive right of
women by virtue of their deity. As one abortion supporter
succinctly put it, “Women as the goddess incarnate” have
“sovereign power over issues of life and death.” 5
Similar to Budapest’s view, author Ginette Paris suggested
abortion is a “mother’s responsibility.” 6
Not only is abortion a woman’s “responsibility,”
according to postabortion counselor Terra Wise, abortion is an
expression of love. In her article”Midwife for the Soul: Unbiased
4
Ibid.
5
Nevada Kerr, “Abortion As A Sacred Rite,” Snuff It, no. 4,
6
Spring Publications), 95.
89
PostAbortion Healing Support,” in Vision magazine, she described
abortion as a decision motivated out of love and “maternal
compassion.” 7
According to Paris, “It is morally acceptable that a woman
who gives life may also destroy life under certain circumstances.” 8
In other words, according to feminist spirituality, if a woman
possesses the power to create life she also owns the moral authority
to end the life she created.
In her book The Sacrament of Abortion, she argued
“abortion is a sacred act.” 9 She asked, “If the issues surrounding life
and death and children and love are not religious issues, or at least
7
Terra Wise, “Midwife for the Soul: Unbiased PostAbortion Support,”
Vision, June 2004, 27.
8
Spring Publications), 53.
9
Ibid. 8.
90
spiritual ones, what is left that is religious?” 10 Paris suggested a
woman reflect on her reasons for abortion. She wrote, “To what
ideal or what set of values is she sacrificing the fetus?” 11 Her choice
of the word sacrificing is purposeful. In her book she exalts the
Goddess Artemis and compares abortion to ritual sacrifice. The
premise of the book is that abortion is a sacrifice to the goddess.
The last paragraph reads, “Abortion as a sacrifice to Artemis.
Abortion as a sacrament for the gift of life to remain pure.” 12
Although Paris’ position on abortion is shocking, it appeals
to radical abortion supporters. A feminist study group on birthing
and abortion used Paris’ book as a topic for discussion. Notes from
the meeting where transcribed into an essay. In it, abortion was
10
Ibid.
11
Ibid., 94.
12
Ibid. 107.
91
referred to as “a woman’s decision to sacrifice a fetus,” 13 echoing
Paris’ views from her book. One woman in the group commented
to the effect, “For a millennia abortion was carried out responsibly,
conscientiously, and sacredly.” 14 The essay revealed the group’s
consensual “support for abortion was grounded in a profound
understanding that, as in nature, the taking of life is sometimes
necessary.” 15
It was January 22, the anniversary of the United States
Supreme Court decision to legalize abortion. I was not welcome
here. I was supposed to be across the street at the March for Life
but for some inexplicable reason I wanted to hear what the other
side had to say today. I slipped away from the prolife crowd,
13
Cathleen and Colleen McGuire, “Birthing and Abortion” (transcribed
from an ecofeminist study group, New York, NY, October 5, 1992),
Eve Online, http://eve.enviroweb.org/perspectives/issues/birth.html.
14
Ibid.
15
Ibid.
92
quickly crossed the street, and smiled at the police officer as I
entered the gate.
Refuse and Resist, a militant faction of the abortion rights
movement, organized the rally. Their event took place on a grassy
clearing a short distance from the White House. On that cold
afternoon, a wire fence surrounded the gathering.
I tried to blend in as well as I could. Signs reading “Keep
Abortion Legal” and “Feed the Christians to the Lions” were
scattered throughout the crowd. Someone forced a flyer into my
hand. I scanned it then shot a glance up at the man who handed it
to me. The flyer read, “Ban Christianity, not Abortion.” Could he
tell I was a Christian? I tried to look behind his angry eyes,
wanting to make a human connection. Since biblical Christianity
opposes abortion, the leaflet encouraged participants to make
“being a follower of Christ socially unacceptable.” By his attitude I
could see he was doing his job.
93
I positioned myself to listen to the speakers. It was not
long before an attractive African American woman in her late
twenties addressed the crowd. She displayed a feminist confidence
typical of her generation. Unlike the other speakers, she did not
lapse into vulgarity. Her comments were direct and personal.
Standing on a makeshift platform, she shared the
circumstance that surrounded her abortion. As I listened, I was
surprised by what I heard. In the end her justification for abortion
was not that it is a private matter between a woman and her doctor.
Abortion is a private matter between a woman and her goddess. “I
prayed to my goddess and my god, she explained.” 16 I learned that
day that for women influenced by feminist spirituality, abortion is
not just a political right. It is a religious.
Practicing witch and author, Starhawk, in the book The
16
Tamara, untitled (speech, Refuse and Resist! Rally, Washington,
D.C., January 22, 1998).
94
Pagan Book of living and Dying: Practical Rituals, Prayers, Blessings,
and Meditations on Crossing Over, described when human life
begins as a mystery. Speaking of abortion, she wrote, “It is in our
encounter with the mysteries of birth and death ... that we meet the
Goddess. So to take away our right to have that encounter, to face
that often painful and difficult choice, is to deny a woman’s deepest
spiritual self.” 17
Starhawk makes abortion a time of communion with the
goddess, Paris maintains abortion is a sacrifice to the goddess, and
Budapest claims women possess divine authority to choose
abortion. These perspectives give rise to a religious justification for
abortion. A Wiccan High Priestess and abortion supporter put it
this way, “It is only in maintaining full control of our bodies that
17
Miriam Simos a.k.k. M. Macha Nightmare and the Reclaiming
Collective, The Pagan Book of Living and Dying: Practical Rituals,
Prayers, Blessings, and Meditations on Crossing Over (NY:
HarperCollins Publishers, 1997), 234.
95
we maintain our full empowerment as Priestesses.” 18
Circle of Life
Spiritual feminists claim female centered, goddess
worshiping societies were lifehonoring. Ancient women are
remembered as peaceful cultivators of life and nature. This is in
contrast to men, who, as huntergatherers, are said to have been
deathcentered. This is feminist revisionism at its most dangerous.
As unborn children are killed at the insistence of political feminism,
spiritual feminists claim the moral high ground by assuming a
nonviolent past, transferring a lifehonoring ethos to a death
centered political movement. The reality is that early agricultural
communities were more given to human sacrifice not less.
According to a theory put forth by Adolf E. Jensen, “Blood sacrifice
18
Lady Lee, “Ethics of Abortion: A Witch’s Perspective,” Feminista!
3, no. 3 (1999): http://www.feminista.com/archives/v3n3/lee.html.
96
is linked not with the cultures of the huntergatherers but with
those of the cultivator.” 19
According to authors Monica Sjoo and Barbara Mor,
human sacrifice “undoubtedly occurred under the Great Mother.” 20
“From the beginning there was a primary human perception that
our living is sustained by death; by the death of other life forms,
animal or vegetable. For all the world was seen to be alive, and
humans lived by eating the world. The Mother’s creatures lived by
eating each other, within her body. There is a kind of ontological
pain in this perception that can be resolved only through ritual,
which was always a fusion of sex and eating, of fertility and death,
of life through death and vice versa.” 21
19
Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 th ed., s.v. “Sacrifice.”
20
21
Ibid.
97
As Sjoo and Mor explained, the underlying sentiment
within goddess worship is that “living is sustained by death.” This
attitude informs the beliefs and practices of feminist spirituality.
Spiritual feminists will point to stories like the one above,
“all the world was seen to be alive,” or analogies, “to ensure a fertile
garden, excess sprouts are pulled so that the overall crop can
thrive,” 22 which ascribe the same value to all life as justification for
their support of abortion. In the minds of feminists, “death often
sustains life.” 23
For the reason that goddess worship is pantheistic, spiritual
feminists undervalue human life, in particular unborn human life.
Pantheism is the belief god is the creation, which is to say a tree is a
goddess or a woman is a goddess. In pantheism, the goddess is not
22
Cathleen and Colleen McGuire, “Birthing and Abortion” (transcribed
from an ecofeminist study group, New York, NY, October 5, 1992),
Eve Online, http://eve.enviroweb.org/perspectives/issues/birth.html.
23
Ibid.
98
distinct from the created world. All creation is interconnected, an
emanation from the goddess. Since all life is interconnected, there
is no distinction between the earth and its human and animal
inhabitants. There is no intrinsic worth ascribed to human life. All
share in the goddess’ life force. All life is sacred. In the web of life,
who is to say what or whom is more precious? Life is in a continual
cycle of death and rebirth. Given that life is a cyclical process, death
is meaningless. According to Starhawk, who also happens to be a
licensed minister of the Covenant of the Goddess, “everything in
nature is cyclical.” 24 If everything in nature is cyclical, including the
unborn, abortion is a nonissue.
For the most part, practitioners of feminist spirituality
agree an unborn baby is a human life. On the other hand, they do
not believe life begins at conception; life is a cyclical process.
24
Starhawk, “Envisioning the Future” in the Fabric of the Future:
Women Visionaries of Today Illuminate the Path to Tomorrow, ed. M.J.
Ryan, 300307 (Berkley: Conari Press, 1998).
99
According to Sjoo and Mor, when abortion or infanticide was
practiced among ancient goddess worshiping people, it was believed
“the spirit of the dead child was returned to the earthwomb to
await new birth, partaking still in the substance of the Great
Mother. It was not lost; but the wellbeing of the living group was
maintained.” 25
This view defines an unborn baby as an embodied spirit,
capable of being reborn or transferred to something else. An
aborted child is simply waiting reincarnation. A spiritual feminist,
who kills her child by abortion, believes her child will be released
back into the goddess’ cosmic life force.
25
100
A new friend, a Catholic who attended church regularly,
confided to me that she had an abortion prior to the birth of her
sons. She made this confession over the din at a crowded
restaurant, as the waiter hovered at nearby tables. She briefly
explained the difficult situation which led her to make her decision.
Because we had both experienced similar circumstances in our life,
she assumed I would support the abortion. I paused, wondering
how to approach the sensitive subject. It was Friday night and the
place was overflowing with people; the booths behind and across
from us were full. Her vulnerability and lack of timing took me off
guard. I did not want to open up an intimate, perhaps painful,
discussion in public but I did not want to be in tactic agreement
either.
“May I take your order?” After the waiter left, I leaned in
and asked, as gently as I could, “What do you think happened to
the baby?” It was my weak attempt at humanizing her unborn
101
child. She was surprised by my question. After a moment and with
great confidence she replied, “The baby is in heaven with God.”
Her tone said, “That’s final.”
102
Though my new friend, whom I sadly lost contact with
shortly after, was not involved with feminist spirituality her story
demonstrates just how attractive its abortion rational is to suffering
women. As a Catholic, she could retain her faith (yes, a baby does
have an eternal and precious soul) while still choosing to abort (but
the soul will be in a better place).
In her book, The Grandmother of Time, Budapest admitted
an unborn baby has a soul, “When the woman decides that she is
not ready to take on the responsibility of developing and bringing
to life and adulthood this fertilized egg with the soul in it, the soul
is sent back to wait a little longer.” 26
In a chapter called “Rites of Passage,” Budapest teaches
postaborted women to construct a white altar and place pictures of
deceased relatives and flowers on it. As a candle is lit, women are
instructed to recite a special goodbye to the soul of the aborted
26
103
baby, “Goodbye, my friend, until we meet again! Seek your
relatives among my own! When the time comes, you will know!
Goodbye, my friend, goodbye, my own!” 27
According to Budapest, “women are surrounded . . . by a
multitude of souls asking to be born.” 28 These entities are portrayed
as pesky spirits, waiting to reenter life through the body of a
woman. “But where,” asks Budapest, “does it say that every little
soul that manages to land a fertilized egg is entitled to
occupancy?” 29
Another practicing witch rationalized, “If you are pregnant
and abort your baby, don’t you think that your baby’s soul will
come to you the next time you get pregnant?” 30
27
Ibid., (italics mine).
28
Ibid. 126
29
Ibid. pg. 127
30
She of the Storm, “Abortion: A Responsible Choice,” The Witches
Voice Adult Pagan Essay Series,
http://www.witchvox.com/words/words_2001/e_abortion3.html.
104
A similar belief is promoted in the book, Abortion¼is not
a sin: A New Age Look at An Age Old Problem. It is suggested in the
book that the spirit of an unborn baby determines what time to
enter a womb and which womb to enter. Thus, an unborn baby has
chosen its own aborted destiny. 31
In its litany of spiritual excuses for abortion, the book
offers that the unborn baby would not want to be born 32 and since
souls cannot die, the spirit of the aborted baby will come to earth at
a later time. 33 These same spiritual justifications for abortion can be
found within feminist spirituality.
In defense of abortion, a wiccan high priestess asked,
“might a soul . . . choose an abortive experience?” 34 She also
31
K.B. Welton, Abortion¼is Not a Sin: A New Age Look at An Age
Old Problem (Costa Mesa, CA: Pandit Press, 1987), 22.
32
Ibid., 19.
33
Ibid., 16.
34
Lady Lee, “Ethics of Abortion: A Witch’s Perspective,” Feminista!
3, no. 3 (1999): http://www.feminista.com/archives/v3n3/lee.html.
105
implied a woman’s unborn baby could return in the future, “It’s
like asking company to wait for Friday instead of coming on
Wednesday.” 35 Mitigating any qualms over abortion, she
maintained “no life force is ever truly destroyed.” 36
In The Holy Book of Women’s Mysteries, a book by Budapest
teaching Dianic witchcraft, 37 women are instructed in how to
perform a postabortion ritual that aids a woman’s release of her
aborted baby’s soul.
Once the stars arrive at night, friends of the aborted
woman draw a bath and add rose petals to the water. As the
aborted woman bathes, they sing. The aborted woman then
watches “the life she created stir, grow and then leave her to fly up
the Milky Way to join the dance of the stars.” After the woman
says goodbye to her baby, she “gathers the rose petals to sprinkle on
35
Ibid.
36
Ibid.
37
A feminist form of witchcraft in which a goddess is worshiped
exclusively.
106
her garden.” 38 This ritual demonstrates the danger of a “womanis
goddess” mindset. It is affirmed during the ritual the woman
aborted a “life she created.” However, by suggesting the baby’s soul
is freefloating in a cosmic life force, much like a little astronaut in
outer space, the ritual facilitates a denial of the baby’s actual death.
Given that life is regarded as a cyclical process, placing flower petals
in her garden allows a woman to memorialize her baby while
reconnecting with the web of life. According to Deborah Maia, a
postaborted woman, “Giving death to a Spirit Life is giving birth
to a Spirit Life.” 39 Abortion is “the passage from Womb to the
Heavens.” 40
Maia published a diary of her selfinduced herbal abortion,
38
Chris Carol, ritual within, The Holy Book of Women’s Mysteries,
Wingbow Press edition, by Zsuzsanna Budapest (1980; Oakland, CA:
Wingbow Press, 1989), 82 (italics mine).
39
Deborah Maia, SelfRitual for Invoking Release of Spirit Life in the
Womb (Great Barrington, MA: Mother Spirit Publishing, 1989), 24.
40
Ibid.
107
which she called a “gentle, loving release of life,” 41 In her diary, she
insisted the goddess is “creatress of all.” 42 She explained how,
during her abortion, she returned the remains of her baby to the
goddess, “I squat near a grandmother tree. My red moon blood
flows upon Mother Earth.” 43
Maia referred to abortion as a “passage” to heaven, yet she
used her baby’s remains as fertilizer for the planet. Maia’s
conflicting mental attitudes establish the two patterns of thought in
feminist spirituality’s abortion rites. There are spiritual feminists
and abortion supporters who emphasize the eternal quality of the
unborn baby’s soul, the aborted baby’s soul will be released into the
cosmic life force, while others focus on the corporeal aspect. The
latter are the ones who choose to imagine their aborted baby’s life
as having returned to earth, not the cosmos. In that way, the baby
41
Ibid., 5.
42
Ibid., 2.
43
Ibid., 18.
108
becomes a tangible part of the circle of life. Author Ava Torre
Bueno, psychotherapist and former Director of Counseling at
Planned Parenthood, described a woman searching for spiritual
closure after an abortion. The woman buried her aborted child
under a tree on a mountain. 44 TorreBueno explained, “Placing the
fetus out in nature was her way of recognizing that it was part of
the ‘wholeness’ of life.” 45 Her “spiritual sense of her self was found
in nature, and of being part of a bigger ‘whole.’ Burying the fetus
was a way to help her baby be part of the ‘whole’ again.” 46
Nothing New Under the Sun
While feminist spirituality claims “sovereign power” over life
in the womb, it is important to remember human sacrifice did not
originate with feminist spirituality. The book of Ecclesiastes
44
Ava TorreBueno, Peace After Abortion, 2 nd ed. (San Diego:
Pimpernel Press, 1997), 38.
45
Ibid., 155.
46
Ibid., 39.
109
reminds us, “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and
that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new
thing under the sun. Is there any thing wherefore it may be said,
See, this is new? It hath been already of old time, which was before
us.” 47
The biblical nation of Israel provides examples of the sin of
human sacrifice. In the Prophet Elijah’s time, child sacrifice had
likely reached its peak in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. During
the reign of King Ahab and his pagan wife Jezebel, apostasy was
rampant. Their combined leadership resulted in the destruction of
the Lord’s altars and the disavowing of his covenant. 48 Jezebel
orchestrated the massacre of virtually all the Lord’s prophets 49 and
replaced them with 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of the
47
Eccles. 1:910.
48
1 Kings 19:10.
49
1 Kings 18:4.
110
goddess, Baals’ consort. 50 Their worship involved gross sexual
immorality and child sacrifice.
While excavating near Samaria, the Oriental Institute of
Chicago University discovered the ruins of an ancient temple of the
goddess Ashtoreth in the stratum of the time of Ahab’s rule. “Just a
few steps from this temple was a cemetery, where many jars were
found, containing remains of infants who had been sacrificed in
this temple.” 51
The book of Isaiah reveals child sacrifice was also practiced
in the Southern Kingdom of Judah during the eightcentury BC
people were worshiping idols under trees and “slaying the children
in the valleys” and under overhanging rocks. 52 So common was this
barbarism, children were being sacrificed in valleys and under rocks,
notice the plural. Child sacrifice was not circumscribed to just one
50
1 Kings 18:19.
51
Henry H. Halley, Halley’s Bible Handbook, 24 th ed. (Grand Rapids:
Zondervan Publishing House, 1965), 198.
52
Isa. 57:5.
111
location.
In the book of Jeremiah, we read how the murderous
practice reared up again. Just outside the holy city of Jerusalem, in
the southeastern area of the Valley of Hinnom, men and women
sacrificed their young children to Molech, 53 a blood thirsty deity
adopted from the Ammonites. Homer W. Smith, author of Man
and His Gods wrote “the custom of burning children long persisted
at Jerusalem,” 54 Smith described how the young victims “were
rolled from the hands of a bronze image of the god into a pit of
fire.” 55
Molech is identified with the pagan god Baal. 56 With the
goddess Ashtoreth, his female consort, Baal was representative of
the Semitic fertility cults popular in the region. Molech was the
53
Also known as Moloch.
54
Homer W. Smith, Man and His Gods, (New York: Grosset’s
Universal Library, 1957), 106.
55
Ibid.
56
Cf. 2 Kings 21:36, 23:10; Jer. 19:46, 32:35.
112
Ammonites principal deity. However, new evidence uncovered
from an ancient stone monument inscribed in Phoenician, suggests
the word Molech may refer to more then a deity. Moloch may also
describe a practice. 57
Describing the evidence as a “biblical bombshell,” 58 the
weekly CBS news program, Sunday Morning, presented the new
information. “The inscription commemorates a military battle, but
computer reconstruction revealed something else, something
shocking: That the Hebrews sacrificed their children.” 59 Steven
Kaufman, “a biblical studies scholar from the Hebrew Union
College,” 60 stated the inscription explains “in detail about this
practice, which went by the name, which is known in biblical
57
From the transcript, In the Beginning, Sunday Morning, April 21,
1996, CBS News,
58
Martha Teichner, “In the Beginning,” Sunday Morning, CBS News,
April 21, 1996.
59
Ibid.
60
Ibid.
113
records as Molech . . .” 61 According to the broadcast, “For
generations, scholars have argued that the word ‘Molech’ was the
name of a pagan god or described a dedication
ceremony.” 62 Kaufman stated, “This inscription now makes clear
that that’s not the case.” 63 The new evidence indicates the
“Hebrews practiced Molech.” 64
People practiced Molech. Was child sacrifice so closely
identified with the worship of Molech, the terms were
synonymous? We can only imagine. We do know a prophet of the
Lord in 600 BC, confronted the people with this sin. Speaking for
the Lord, Jeremiah said, “For though thou wash thee with nitre,
and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me,
61
Steven Kaufmann, interview with Martha Teichner, In the
Beginning, Sunday Morning, CBS News, April 21, 1996.
62
April 21, 1996.
63
Steven Kaufmann, from the transcript, In the Beginning, Sunday
Morning, April 21, 1996, CBS News
64
April 21, 1996.
114
saith the Lord God. How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have
not gone after Baalim [Baal]? See thy way in the valley, know what
thou hast done.” 65
It is clear from the Bible child sacrifice was carried out
openly during this time. It was an accepted practice for the
obstinate nation. “Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls
of the poor innocents: I have not found it by secret search, but
upon all these.” 66
According to Matthew Henry, in his classic commentary
on the Bible, the description, “Also in thy skirts is found the blood
of the souls,” refers to “the lifeblood of the poor innocents, which
cried to heaven.” His reflection on this verse is insightful. He
wrote, “The reference is to the children that were offered in
sacrifice to Moloch; or it may be taken more generally for all the
innocent blood . . . the righteous blood, especially the blood of the
65
Jer. 2:2223.
66
Jer. 2:34.
115
prophets and others that witnessed against their impieties. This
blood was found not by secret search, not by diggings (so the word is),
but upon all these; it was above ground. This intimates that the guilt
of this kind which they had was certain and evident, not doubtful
or which would bear a dispute; and that it was avowed and
barefaced, and which they had not so much sense either of shame
or fear as to endeavor to conceal, which was a great aggravation of
it.” 67
In the Bible, we read of the Lord’s great displeasure with
the sins and violence of his people. He rebuked the people through
the Prophet Ezekiel, a contemporary of Jeremiah. The meaning is
unmistakable in the New Living Translation of the Bible, “They
have committed both adultery and murder – adultery by
worshiping idols and murder by burning their children as sacrifices
67
Matthew Henry, “Matthew Henry Complete Commentary on
Jeremiah 2,” Matthew Henry Complete Commentary on the Whole
Bible, http://www.searchgodsword.org/com/mhc
com/view.cgi?book=jer&chapter=002.
116
on their altars. Then after doing these terrible things, they defiled
my Temple and violated my Sabbath day! On the very day that
they murdered their children in front of their idols, they boldly
came into my Temple to worship! They came in and defiled my
house!” 68
Instead of approaching the Lord in repentance, the people
came boldly and selfrighteously into his presence. Apparently, the
people saw no inconsistency in murdering children and worshiping
a holy God in a sacred place. In the minds of the people, child
sacrifice was a form of religious expression.
The Lord never commanded child sacrifice. This
abhorrent practice never even entered his heart. 69 In fact, he
expressly forbids it. The Lord told Moses, “Whosoever he be of the
children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn in Israel, that
68
Ezek. 23:3739; the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright
1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. All rights reserved.
69
Jer. 7:31.
117
giveth any of his seed unto Molech; he shall surely be put to
death.” 70
In the face of this threatening prohibition, people still
sacrificed their children, “Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and
thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou
sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a
small matter, That thou hast slain my children, and delivered them
to cause them to pass through the fire for them?” 71
Is it inconsequential that you murdered my children? God
asked. Children belong to God. In way of example, God instructed
the Israelites to sanctify, or set apart, their firstborn sons. 72 In the
ancient Near East, the first male child was considered as belonging
to deity. Within paganism, child sacrifice was a way of dedicating
the child to the false god. In contrast, God validated the intrinsic
70
Lev. 20:2.
71
Ezek. 16:20, 21.
72
Exod. 13:2.
118
worth of individual life when he called for the consecration, not the
sacrifice, of that life. After sanctifying the firstborn son, the people
were to redeem their child at a price fixed by the law. 73 Instead of
being sacrificed, the children were to be redeemed! In a visceral
way, this ritual observance underscored the importance of life and
imparted to the people an understanding of God as the author and
redeemer of life. It revealed that children belong to God. The Law
of the Firstborn reminded the people of their deliverance from
Egypt and the death of Egypt’s firstborn at the hand of God,
another representation of God’s sovereignty over life. Children, all
children, belong to God. But are unborn babies children in the eyes
of God?
God Hates Abortion
I have been asked, “Where in the Bible does it explicitly
say that embryos are people and that killing them is murder?”
73
See Num. 18:16.
119
Nowhere in the Bible does it specifically state “embryos are people”
but neither does the Bible specifically state “toddlers are people” or
“prepubescent girls are people.” When we read the entire Bible in
context however, we understand that embryos, toddlers and young
girls are people at various stages of maturity. As such, they should
not be murdered.
God is the author of life, “Know ye that the LORD he is
God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves.” 74 God had a
personal relationship with us while we were still in the womb, “I
was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my
mother’s belly.” 75 God’s Word also reveals that at conception we
inherit the guilt of original sin, “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity;
and in sin did my mother conceive me.” 76 Only a human being
with a soul can inherit the original sin passed down from Adam.
74
Ps. 100:3; see Gen. 1:27, Deut. 32:39, John 1:13, 10.
75
Ps. 22:10.
76
Ps. 51:5.
120
Therefore, we had a soul at the moment of conception. Hence,
God was our God from the moment of conception. From these
Psalms we understand an unborn baby has a soul with a unique
personality.
The Bible teaches, “God is not the God of the dead, but of
the living” 77 and the psalmist wrote “thou art my God” from the
womb. God is our God while we are in the womb and he is the
God of the living. In other words, a baby is alive and living while
she matures in the womb. This is an important clarifying point;
because a tiny unborn girl is living, it cannot be argued biblically
that she is simply a free floating soul awaiting birth in some
spiritual realm.
Since she has a soul, she also experiences emotion. Mary,
who was pregnant with our Savior Jesus Christ, visited Elizabeth,
pregnant with John the Baptist. Elizabeth said to Mary, “For, lo, as
soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe
77
Matt. 22:32.
121
leaped in my womb for joy.” 78
Before a little baby leaves the womb, God determines a
personal plan and a purpose for her life, “Before I formed thee in
the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the
womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the
nations.” 79
The Bible also reveals conception is the beginning of life
and personhood. We read in the Gospel of Matthew, “Now the
birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary
was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found
with child of the Holy Ghost.” 80 Two verses down we read, “But
while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord
appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David,
fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived
78
Luke 1:44.
79
Jer. 1:5.
80
Matt. 1:18 (italics mine).
122
in her is of the Holy Ghost.” 81 According to God’s Word, when
Mary conceived, she was pregnant with a child, not a potential
child. Conception is the beginning of life and personhood.
It is not possible to determine exactly when Joseph
discovered his fiancé was “with child” but we can surmise it was
early in the pregnancy, before Mary was showing. Prior to being
visited by the angel, Joseph was planning on divorcing Mary
secretly so she would not be made a spectacle. 82 Joseph likely knew
of Mary’s pregnancy before her trip or immediately after. When
Mary was told of the miracle by the angel, she went “with haste” to
her cousin Elizabeth’s home. 83 We know Mary visited with her
cousin Elizabeth for “about three months.” 84 This means the angel
called Jesus a child at or before 12 weeks gestation.
81
Matt. 1:20 (italics mine).
82
Matt. 1:19.
83
Luke 1:39.
84
Luke 1:56.
123
In Genesis we read, “And Isaac intreated the LORD for his
wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him,
and Rebekah his wife conceived.” 85 The next verse reads, “And the
children struggled together within her.” 86 Not the “tissue,” not the
“product of conception,” not the “contents of the uterus,” but the
children struggled in Rebekah’s womb.
Consider this verse in Job, “Wherefore then hast thou
brought me forth out of the womb? Oh that I had given up the
ghost, and no eye had seen me!” 87 When Job says, “and no eye had
seen me” he is speaking of death while still in his mother’s womb.
The notable thing about the word ghost in this passage is that the
same Hebrew word 88 is used when speaking of adults that died.
85
Gen. 25:21.
86
Gen. 25:22.
87
Job 10:18.
88
See The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, James Strong
(Mclean: VA, Macdonald Publishing Company), #1478.
124
“Then Abraham gave up the ghost,” 89 “And Isaac gave up the ghost
and died,” 90 Jacob “yielded up the ghost.” 91 When an unborn baby
dies, she gives up the “ghost” in the same way born people do.
We learn from the Bible conception marks the beginning
of personhood; an unborn born baby has a soul; she is alive in the
womb and living; she experiences emotion; she is endowed with a
purpose for her life while still in the womb; lastly, and significant to
this discussion, she can die. An unborn baby is a maturing person
deserving of protection. This is why in the Old Testament the
punishment for injuring a preborn person was the same as for a
born person. 92
The totality of the Bible speaks to the personhood of the
unborn. Unborn babies are children, God’s children. One of the
89
Gen. 25:8.
90
Gen. 35:29.
91
Gen. 49:33.
92
Exod. 21:2225.
125
guidelines for proper biblical interpretation is to let scripture
interpret scripture. The Bible does not contradict itself. In other
words, if a Bible verse teaches that unborn babies are children other
verses should be read in light of that truth.
A certain Proverb describes “six things doth the LORD
hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him.” In the list of the
seven things God hates, we read “hands that shed innocent
blood.” 93
The murder of unborn babies, by Israel’s enemy the
Ammonites, was condemned by God in the book of Amos. One of
the reasons God determined to judge the Ammonites was “because
they have ripped up the women with child of Gilead, that they
might enlarge their border.” 94 In this barbaric practice, pregnant
women were sliced with swords and their babies were torn from the
womb. The Ammonites worshiped the bloodthirsty deity, Moloch,
93
Prov. 6:1617.
94
Amos 1:13 (italics mine).
126
so this violence should not surprise us.
In another example, Elisha weeps over the “evil” he
prophesied would happen at the hands of the king of Syria. One of
the evils mentioned by the prophet is that the king would “rip up
their women with child.” 95
These verses from Proverbs, Amos and Second Kings reveal
God’s mind on abortion: God hates the shedding of innocent
blood, a pregnant woman is pregnant with a child, not a potential
child, and murdering an unborn baby is evil.
Contrary to what feminist spirituality teaches women do
not own a claim to life in the womb. God’s Word makes it clear
children belong to him and his claim begins at the moment of
creation/conception. God hates abortion. In spite of the cultural
messages telling us otherwise, abortion is a sin.
As a Christian prolife woman, I have been accused of
wanting to force women “to carry a fetus to term.” I would like to
95
2 Kings 8:12 (italics mine).
127
answer that charge now. God is omniscient and omnipotent.
Women, on the other hand, are fallible and finite. A good analogy
would be a mother’s relationship with her child. By virtue of being
older and wiser, a mother knows more then her twoyearold does.
Yes, a child has her own will but a loving mother will forbid her
daughter to touch the hot stove because she knows her daughter
will be hurt by the experience. The daughter may rebel, but because
the mother loves her, she put limits on her freedom. If the daughter
chooses to disobey, the mother disciplines her so her rebellion will
not lead to further disobedience and greater suffering. In the same
way, God sets perimeters on our freedom out of love.
Biblically speaking, we are God’s children. He created us.
By virtue of whom he is, he knows what is best for us. When we
disobey him, we hurt and experience suffering. Is it his will for us
to suffer? No. Will he continue to love us? Yes. Will we be better
off because of the rebellion? Ask the little girl who touched the hot
stove if she feels empowered or pained. Yes, there are choices in life.
128
Short of God’s grace, we will continue to make bad ones. But we
should never defend a choice we know will murder someone else.
Liberation is not bought through the blood of an innocent child; it
is bought through the blood of Jesus Christ.
Points to Remember:
1. There is nothing new under the sun (Eccles. 1:910).
2. Children belong to God (Ezek. 16:2021).
3. Personhood begins at conception (Matt. 22:32, Ps. 22:10,
51:5, 139:1316).
4. A pregnant woman is pregnant with a child, not a
potential child (Gen. 25:22, Matt. 1:1820).
5. It is evil to murder an unborn baby (2 Kings 8:12).
6. God hates abortion (Prov. 6:1617).
129
CHAPTER 5
GODDESS OF BLOOD
SACRIFICE
There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his
daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times,
or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a
wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the
Lord: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out
before thee.
Deuteronomy 18:1012
And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits,
and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their
God? For the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not
according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
Isaiah 8:1920
130
Putting the lie to the assertion that feminist spirituality empowers
women, unborn baby girls are regularly aborted in honor of the
goddess. Far from creating empowerment for women, feminist
spirituality creates a class of females whose sole purpose is to serve as
sacrificial victims. Feminist spirituality calls its human sacrifice,
reproductive freedom. The question is freedom for whom. Certainly
not for the tiny females set aside for its abortion rituals. Neither is it
freedom for the women who abort.
In reality, spiritual justification for abortion, postabortion
rituals designed to minimize guilt, and goddess affirmation create a
cycle of abortion. Without the natural workings of conscience which
leads to repentance, women will experience repeat abortions but not
true spiritual reconciliation. A woman can abort, claim religious
sanction, perform a ritual and abort again a vicious cycle that may
make postaborted women perpetual victims.
131
Invoking the Goddess
According to Deborah Maia, “The incorporation of Feminist
Spirituality into my life has given me empowerment.” 1 Shortly
before Christmas, Maia began an abortion ritual that lasted nineteen
days. The ritual involved herbs, crystals, visualization, masturbation,
marijuana and the worship of the goddess. In a graphic diary of her
experience titled SelfRitual for Invoking Release of Spirit Life in the
Womb, Maia revealed the bloodthirsty, sacrificial side of feminist
spirituality.
On the eve of Winter Solstice, the pagan holiday in which the
goddess’ son is reborn, Maia wrote, “The release of Spirit Life
[through abortion] seems so appropriate during this Winter Solstice
as the Great Mother now, once again, out of darkness, gives birth to
1.
Womb, (Great Barrington, MA: Mother Spirit Publishing, 1989), 25.
132
the Divine Sun Child.” 2
On December twentythird Maia wrote, “The bleeding has
ended.” 3 Later that evening she worshiped the goddess in a sacred
circle of women.
In her last entry dated Christmas Eve, she wrote, “My sense of
wellbeing is restored.” 4 As Christians celebrated the birth of Jesus
Christ, Maia celebrated the birth of a pagan sun god. As Christians
rejoiced at the Savior’s reason for being born on Christmas Day,
Maia rejoiced at the sacrifice of her baby. As Christians worshiped
the Word Made Flesh, the Radiant Life, Maia worshiped a life
taking goddess.
Occult incantations, abortifacient tinctures, and descriptions
2
3
Ibid., 23.
4
Ibid.
133
of her ritual orgasm performed with the intention of miscarrying her
unborn baby, make Maia’s journal entries difficult to read. But it is
her devotion to “releasing” the life of her child to the goddess that is
most disturbing.
Maia described how over a course of a few days she collected
the blood from her abortion and fertilized her plants, “Allowing this
Womb Blood to flow onto a cotton flannel pad is comforting and
offers a sense of freedom. I rinse the Womb blood from these pads
and give it to Mother Earth, and to the plants within my house. As I
make an intentional connection with this Womb Blood and give
homage, an inner bliss comes upon me.” 5
Definitions for the word bliss include spiritual joy or perfect
happiness. Bliss can also mean heaven or paradise. Given that Maia’s
abortion was filled with religious significance, the word obviously
indicates spiritual joy. As Maia offered the blood of her baby to
5
Ibid., 20.
134
“Mother Earth,” she experienced spiritual joy. But was Maia’s
abortion performed as a conscious sacrifice to the goddess?
World Book Encyclopedia describes sacrifice as “a religious
ceremony in which something is given to a god or gods, thus
becoming ‘holy’.” 6 In her journal entry for December eleventh,
Maia wrote, “The vision of releasing Spirit Life here and now, to
Divine Mother burns brightly within my soul.” 7 From her own
admission, Maia intentionally sacrificed her unborn baby to the
goddess.
In the forward to her personal treatise, Maia explained, “As
the [abortion] ritual became manifest, I found myself making a
commitment to Goddess within.” 8 She continued, “For me, ritual is
6
World Book Online Reference Center, s.v. “Sacrifice” (by Jonathan Z.
Smith), http://www.aolsvc.worldbook.aol.com/wb/Article?id=ar481260>.
7
8
Ibid. pg. 3
135
a way of honoring Spirit. Ritual is a way of prayer. Ritual is a way of
invocation.” 9
Maia’s ritual was actually her third abortion. In her treatise she
revealed that during her past two clinical abortions, her spiritual
needs were unmet. She designed her own abortion experience to
address those needs. She wrote, “The intent for the series of ritual
involved in this treatise is to go within, to connect with my Eternal
Essence and with the Spirit Life within my Womb.” 10 In the forward,
Maia defined “Eternal Essence” as deity. 11 Her abortion ritual was
performed as a means to connect with the goddess within.
When Maia aborted her unborn baby, she was conjuring up
the goddess. Although Maia did not become pregnant to sacrifice
her unborn child, after realizing she was pregnant she did choose
9
Ibid.
10
Ibid. pg. 4
11
Ibid.
136
ritual abortion as a way to call upon the goddess’ presence.
Unfortunately, Maia is not the only woman to invoke the
goddess while attempting to ritually abort. In an article in the web
based magazine, Sentence ov Desire, a practicing witch suggested
women preparing for an abortion “become the Crone,” the third
aspect of the triple goddess. 12 According to this witch, “invoking the
Crone into yourself” will “give you strength as you go through the
abortion.” 13
In her article, An Abortion Ritual A Magickal Alternative to
Medical Abortion, the witch related how she purposefully invoked
the goddess to bring on a late period or, if need be, cause an
abortion. After lighting candles on her altar to the goddess, she
addressed each aspect of the triple goddess maiden, mother and
12
Zevaluz, “An Abortion Ritual A Magickal Alternative to Medical
Abortion,” Sentence ov Desire, January 9, 1999, http://www.sentenceov
desire.net/Magazine/volume2issue1/issueindex.html.
13
Ibid.
137
crone. When she spoke to the crone she demanded, “Kali, Hecate,
the Dark Vengeful aspect of Erzulie, all of the destructive death
bearing Goddesses that are the Crone. Take away this child, it is
NOT wanted!” 14 After more ritual, she put on a “black rob and
prepared to become the Crone.” 15 After falling into a trance, she felt
an “energy” enter her hands. 16 She used this energy to psychically
remove any life from her womb. The following evening her bleeding
started. She ended her article by insisting, “I do believe my period
was brought on by the Crone.” 17
In the fourth chapter, I shared a postabortion ritual
published in The Holy Book of Women’s Mysteries. As part of her
ritual healing, an aborted woman bathes in a bath of rose petals, salt
14
Ibid.
15
Ibid.
16
Ibid.
17
Ibid.
138
and herbs. 18 Once the woman “emerges from the water, the woman
and friends give each other the fivefold blessing on head, breasts,
womb, knees and feet.” 19
The fivefold blessing is a ritual in which five symbolic parts
of the body are kissed. With each kiss, a blessing is pronounced. In
Dianic witchcraft, the fivefold blessing is given to identify the body
as the temple of the goddess. The kisses honor the aborted woman as
the embodiment of the goddess. In other words, the aborted baby
was sacrificed for the goddess incarnate.
The Holy Abortionist
There are goddess worshipers who believe every abortion is
an offering to the goddess. This is because it is the goddess “who
18
Chris Carol, ritual within, The Holy Book of Women’s Mysteries,
Wingbow Press edition, Zsuzsanna Budapest (Oakland, CA: Wingbow
Press, 1989), 82.
19
Ibid.
139
devours life in her gaping mouth with her sharp fangs.” 20 In Abortion
as a Sacred Rite, Nevada Kerr argued that the “death goddess” is the
“holy abortionist.” 21 In view of the fact women are believed to
embody the goddess, “the midwife, healer, shaman or witch is the
holy abortionist.” 22
An abortion clinic in Ohio describes abortion as “sacred
work.” According to its website, “At Cincinnati Women’s Services,
we do sacred work that honors the circle of life and death.” 23 Tthe
clinic's executive director, Debi Jackson, believes abortion is a
20
Nevada Kerr, “Abortion as a Sacred Rite,” Snuff It, no. 4,
21
Ibid.
22
Ibid.
23
Cincinnati Women’s Services, “Providing Quality Healthcare to
Women Since 1973,” Cincinnati Women’s Services,
http://www.womensservices.com/pages/frame_content.htm.
140
“timeless and sacred ritual.” 24
A nonprofit, feminist abortion clinic in Seattle, Washington
is named after the goddess Aradia. In mythology, Aradia is the
Goddess of Witchcraft. She was conceived during an incestuous
encounter between the Goddess Diana and Lucifer, the one “driven
from Paradise.” 25 Aradia was sent to earth by Diana to teach witches
her mother’s divine powers.
Goddess worshipers affectionately refer to Diana as the
Goddess of Empowerment, often invoking her to protect abortion
rights. As I mentioned in the first chapter, in Greek mythology
Diana is known as Artemis, Goddess of Blood Sacrifice. It is eerie
that a feminist abortion clinic would call itself Aradia, daughter of
the Goddess of Blood Sacrifice. Every unborn baby killed there is
24
Debi Jackson, “The World As I Would Create It,” Abortion Providers
Speak, National Coalition of Abortion Providers,
http://www.ncap.com/promoting_providers.html.
25
Charles G. Leland, Aradia, or The Gospel of Witches, (1899), chap. 1,
141
killed under the bloody banner of the goddess.
Elizabeth Moonstone is a practicing witch and an
abortionist. In her “Blessing For the Abortionist’s Hands,”
Moonstone wrote, “Once the Wise Woman and the Midwife undid
the pregnant possibility … Now as an abortionist I have sterile
instruments, knowledge of anatomy, modern drugs, a suction
machine, and my hands.” 26
Moonstone’s blessing was published in a feminist abortion
rights book. Her reference to the suction cannula as a wand conjures
up images of witchcraft. Her prayer reads in part, “May my hands
be deft and tender … In my abortionist’s hands I hold the plastic
tipped wand attached to a suction machine. May my hands move
the wand skillfully, feeling the moment of emptying … May my
http://www.sacred_texts.com/pagaradia/.
26
Elizabeth Moonstone, “Blessing for the Abortionist’s Hands,” in Our
Choices, Our Lives: Unapologetic Writings on Abortion, ed. Krista
Jacob, 120121 (Lincoln, NE: Writers Advantage, 2002).
142
hands stay connected to my heart as I release this spirit and return
this woman to herself and other possibilities.” 27 Moonstones
“blessed” hands have killed over 16,000 unborn babies.
Wiccan high priestess Lady Lee, in her article in the online
journal feminista!, argued “access to abortion is truly a Witch’s
issue.” 28 According to Lee, in the same way “Goddessworshipers
have been active in reclaiming the midwifery movement, so we need
to be equally active in the prochoice movement.” 29
More then just supporting abortion rights, according to Lee,
it is a witches “ethical duty” to provide abortions for women. It has
been suggested by feminist historians that witches from earlier times
provided contraceptives, abortifacients, and even abortions to
27
Ibid.
28
Lady Lee, “Ethics of Abortion: A Witch’s Perspective,” feminista! 3,
no. 3 (1999): http://www.feminista.com/archives/v3n3/lee.html.
29
Ibid.
143
women. Lee maintained that if witches “kept knowledge of herbal
abortifacts alive, would it not follow that it is an ethical duty for
some to be prepared to provide abortion as it is an ethical duty to
keep coven traditions alive?” 30 In an attempt to safeguard women’s
access to abortion, Lee encouraged witches to rediscover ways to
abort. Her suggestions included herbal abortion and menstrual
extraction.
Today’s witches are a visible presence at abortion clinics and
proabortion rallies. They are creating many of the abortion rituals
found within feminist spirituality. They are reclaiming ancient
methods of birth control and abortion in an attempt to safeguard
access. Witches are using spells, herbal lore and rituals to protect
abortion rights, shifting the mainstream movement into a spiritual
30
Ibid.
144
realm.
In the first chapter I described a woman who invoked the
goddess Diana at an abortion clinic in southern California. Lee
invoked Diana at a demonstration she attended. In her article, Lee
related how she invoked the goddess while prolife Christians
prayed. Lee explained, “I stood before them, facing East, and did an
immediate simple, repetitive invocation to Diana. Casting
pentagrams in the air I yelled, ‘I invoke Diana, protect your
women.’” 31 She described how other proabortion women began
chanting, “We all come from the Goddess” and some brandished
rusty coat hangers. 32 According to Lee, “As they supported my ritual
they became a part of it, blending our energies together.” 33 Lee
ended her article with a petition to the goddess Diana to protect
31
Ibid.
32
Ibid.
33
Ibid.
145
abortion rights. 34
Spiritism
Even when the goddess is not consciously invoked, spiritism is
a central element of the abortion experience. Spiritual feminists will
often communicate with “the Spirit Life” in the womb before an
abortion or pray to their dead baby in counterfeit postabortion
reconciliation.
Lee instructed pregnant women to use divination as they
decide whether or not to abort their unborn baby. Some of her
suggestions included astrology, rune casting, tarot reading,
interpretation of dreams and hypnosis. 35
She also advocated spiritism. Lee interviewed another high
priestess who advises women considering abortion. Based on what
34
Ibid.
35
Ibid.
146
she learned from her, Lee recommended women communicate with
the spirit of the unborn baby, “Some souls choose inappropriately to
attempt to incarnate, and when this is discussed a mutual agreement
can be reached.” 36
According to author Jeannine Parvati, it was a “visitation”
from the Goddess Hygieia, 37 that inspired her book, Hygieia: A
Woman’s Herbal. An appendix in her book promotes psychic
abortion as a possible alternative to clinical abortion.
The appendix quotes a woman from a natural birth control
seminar. The woman claimed she prayed to her unborn baby,
reasoned with the baby to leave and regularly visualized light
flooding her womb. 38 After her second missed period, in an effort to
36
Ibid.
37
Jeannine Parbati, Hygieia: A Woman’s Herbal (A Freestone Collective
Book, 1978), iv.
38
Tami Slayton Glenn and Jeannine O’Brien Medvin, “Some Thoughts
and Feelings on Abortion (or You’ve Come Along Way, Baby),”
appendix to Hygieia: A Woman’s Herbal, by Jeannine Parvati (A
147
avoid a surgical abortion, she warned the baby what an abortion
would be like, “I imagined being in a hospital. I imagined someone
in white spreading my legs open. I imagined an instrument
thrusting in and a tug. At that instant I felt a very sharp twinge of
pain. I jumped. It was a sad and mystical moment. I didn’t dare
breathe. Had it left? The next day my period started, deep red, full
of clots. An incredible sense of loss filled me, and of relief. We [she
and her partner] thanked the being for leaving when it did.” 39
In another example of psychic abortion, written as a letter
to Paravati and published in her book, a woman described how she
put herself in a deep meditative state and attempted to end her
pregnancy. The woman wrote, “While lying on my bed that
afternoon, I put my consciousness into my womb until I could look
around inside and find the tiny fetus where it had implanted. It and
Freestone Collective Book, 1978), 202.
39
Ibid. 202203.
148
I had a long talk. I explained how things were for me . . . In the
end, the baby agreed to leave.” 40 After drinking a cup of pennyroyal
tea, a known abortion causing herb, the woman miscarried. 41
Abortion supporter TorreBueno in her book, Peace After
Abortion, teaches guided imagery to postaborted women. In an
exercise designed to help women process their feelings after an
abortion, an imaginary wise being probes the woman’s reasons for
ending her pregnancy. A taped recording leads the woman in the
visualization.
After mindful breathing and visualizing a “safe place” in
great detail, the woman is told to imagine a being entering her space,
“This being is wise and intelligent, kind and caring ¼Whatever
form this being takes, it is there to protect you, care about you, and
40
Carolyn, “The Letter,” Appendix to Hygieia: A Woman’s Herbal by
Jeannine Parvati (A Freestone Collective Book, 1978), 205.
41
Ibid.
149
help you understand yourself. When you’ve gotten used to this
being, have a conversation. Talk to him or her or it and say: ‘I have
had an abortion.’ Let the being ask you questions¼” 42
A postaborted woman, in the book, Abortion My Choice,
God’s Grace, defended her abortion by explaining, “My experience
with abortion opened me to communicate with the wise woman
within me.” 43 Although she did not describe herself as such, the
woman’s spiritual beliefs mirrored those of feminist spirituality.
When she discovered she was pregnant, she claimed, “I talked to the
Being growing inside me and asked for her forgiveness, trying to
communicate to her that I was doing this out of love.” 44
At first the woman referred to her baby as “the Being” but
42
43
Lucine Gadoorian, “Our Pain Becomes Our Power,” in Abortion: My
Choice, God’s Grace, ed. By Anne Eggebroten (Pasadena: New
Paradigm Books, 1994), 117.
44
Ibid. pg122
150
later named her Anahid Morningstar. Anahid is Armenian for
“mother goddess.” 45 She spoke with Anahid until just moments
before the abortion. She related how she asked the baby to leave her
womb but sensed definite unwillingness. According to the woman,
“I felt torn and as if there was no time for delay; I really wanted her
to stay with me but felt compelled to ask her to leave. I heard a voice
screaming inside, ‘What about ME!’” 46 Soon after though, she “felt
bathed by a sense of peace.” 47 She concluded her unborn daughter
had left her womb and would not experience the pain from the
abortion. 48
According to the woman, prior to even discovering she was
45
Ibid. pg. 122
46
Ibid. pg. 124
47
Ibid. pg. 125
48
Ibid.
151
pregnant, she sensed a “strong feminine presence” 49 with her. She
also believed that during her pregnancy Anahid was “within and
around” 50 her. Sadly, based on the evidence, it was a demon that
masqueraded as the spirit of the unborn baby. The poor woman was
deceived into believing her unborn baby left her body because she
had confused her child with an unclean spirit. By communicating
with the spirit of “Anahid,” the woman engaged in, and was
victimized by, spiritism. And instead of the baby being safe from the
physical harm of abortion, which is what the woman wanted to
believe, the demon influenced her to torturously kill her own child.
In one postabortion ritual created by a practicing witch
and posted on her web site, women are told to name their aborted
baby, lovingly explain the reasons for the abortion and give
permission for the baby to be born again. As part of the ritual,
49
Ibid. 121.
50
Ibid.
152
women are instructed to keep a rose quartz to represent the aborted
baby. 51 For people involved with the occult, rose quartz is believed
to aid forgiveness and help with sexual and emotional imbalances.
TorreBueno recommends a similar exercise. To make the
aborted baby easier to grieve, she suggests women make a collage to
represent the baby, 52 “Or endow a beautiful object or a worn stone,
with your sense of the baby.” 53 She also offers that women may need
to apologize to their dead baby and to form a mental picture of the
baby forgiving them. 54
Offering women stones in place of their aborted baby is a
familiar ritual within feminist spirituality, a practice recently
51
Arwen Nightstar, “Ritual For Remorse After An Abortion,” Arwen’s
Grimoire, http://www.anisoptera.com/grimoire/abortion.htm.
52
53
Ibid., 66 (italics in original).
54
Ibid. 150.
153
adopted by abortion clinics. 55 It is important to realize transferring
impressions of an aborted baby onto an object is dangerously similar
to the occult belief of transmigration of souls the belief that souls
can leave a body and reside in another body, human or animal, or in
inanimate objects.
Not surprisingly, feminist spirituality’s practice of
imparting occult meaning to stones can be traced to the story of
Diana and Aradia. According to Charles G. Leland’s, Aradia, or The
Gospel of the Witches, in Diana’s worship a spirit would possess a
stone if properly invoked. 56
Abortion Rituals
55
See Daryl Chen’s article, “Are You Ready to Really Understand
Abortion?” Glamour, September. 2003, 266; also Cynthia L. Cooper’s
article, “Abortion Under Attack,” Ms. Magazine, August/September,
2001, http://www.msmagazine.com/aug01/pas.html.
56
Charles G. Leland, Aradia, or The Gospel of Witches, (1899), chap. 1,
http://www.sacred_texts.com/pagaradia/.
154
Within feminist spirituality, a woman is taught to visualize
her aborted baby, not Jesus, forgiving her. Teaching a woman to
visualize her baby forgiving her, is, in essence, deifying the baby. If a
woman sees her unborn baby as the necessary vehicle for
redemption, she can easily justify her “need” for an abortion as long
as the baby is imagined as offering understanding and forgiveness.
In a case in point, a workbook designed to promote
abortion recommends this very exercise. The workbook suggests
some women may wish to “sense forgiveness” from the unborn baby
prior to the abortion! 57
Such a rational minimizes the guilt over abortion. However,
anything that takes away from Jesus Christ’s finished work on the
cross and places the emphasis for forgiveness, redemption and
57
Peg Johnston, ed., Pregnant? Need Help? Pregnancy Options
Workbook (Vestal, NY: Southern Tier Women’s Services, 1998),
http://www.ferre.org/workbook/, also available in print.
155
healing on someone or something else is a counterfeit spiritual
healing. Forgiveness comes from Jesus Christ. His blood paid for our
sins. When a ritual takes the focus off of Jesus and places it on the
aborted baby, God is robbed of his glory and genuine healing and
redemption is impossible.
Releasing spirit life, and atonement, grief and purification
rituals are regularly practiced within feminist spirituality. Releasing
rituals entail freeing the unborn baby’s soul or “spirit life” to return
to the goddess, the cosmic life force, the web of life, etc. Releasing
rituals may also include giving the unborn baby permission to be
born again at a later date. Essentially, atonement rituals involve
restitution, such as good works. Grief rituals allow for emotional
expression while purification rituals call for a symbolic cleansing of
the aborted woman.
As in “Abortion: A Healing Ritual,” sometimes the ritual
incorporates more then one component of postabortion
156
reconciliation. Created by Minerva Earthschild, a wiccan priestess
and a facilitator of postabortion reconciliation workshops since
1984, and Vibra Willow, a priestess who instructs women on post
abortion healing, “Abortion: A Healing Ritual” is an elaborate
ceremony designed for four sequential evenings or as a weekend long
workshop. In the introduction to the ritual, the creators explained
how by “using Wiccan practices and feminist process” they were
able to create an experience through which women can heal and
“reclaim sacred power in their reproductive choices.” 58
Since the ritual is pure witchcraft, a “grounding
meditation” 59 is performed, a circle is cast, and the four directions
and the four elements are invoked. Towards the end of the ritual,
58
Minerva Earthschild and Vibra Willow, “Abortion: A Healing Ritual,”
in The Pagan Book of Living and Dying: Practicle Rituals, Prayers,
Blessings, and Meditations on Crossing Over, Miriam Simos a.k.a.
Starhawk, Aline O’Brien a.k.a. M. Macha Nightmare and the Reclaiming
Collective, 237244 (New York: HarperCollins, 1997).
59
Ibid.
157
women are given the option of undressing and going “skyclad” 60
[naked] during an intimate and physical blessing of the female body.
As part of the ritual, postaborted women are given an opportunity
to discuss their feelings related to their abortion and are supported
and affirmed in their choice. The practice also involves a purification
of the participating women a branch of rosemary wetted with salt
water is sprinkled on the women and a “trance journey to the Place
of the Mothers, guardians of the cauldron of life.” 61 During their
trance, women are encouraged to “communicate with the spirits of
unborn children” and “ask for help or guidance from the Mothers,
Grandmothers, Goddesses, Crones, Midwives, and other wise
women of this realm.” 62
Rather then the exception, such delves into the occult are
60
Ibid.
61
Ibid.
62
Ibid.
158
common in feminist spirituality’s abortion reconciliation. Post
abortion counselor Terra Wise described the healing techniques she
offers clients on her web site. Among her other methods, her site
listed “trance journeys,” “energy healing,” “dream work,” “healing
meditations,” and “personalized healing rituals/altars.” 63
Spiritual feminists may erect an altar for an unborn baby or
bleed the blood from an abortion onto the earth. Depending on the
circumstances and legality, a sympathetic clergyman may baptize an
aborted baby or the baby may be buried. A woman suffering from
guilt may attempt to establish a psychic connection with the aborted
baby.
After her abortion, a woman may arrange a grief ceremony
in the woods, in a goddess shrine or at her home with supportive
friends. As part of a purification ritual, a woman may bathe in
63
Two Moons Women’s Wisdom, “Healing Support After an Abortion,”
Two Moons Women’s Wisdom, http://www.terrawise.net/.ab.html.
159
scented water or bless herself at an altar to the goddess. Some rituals
call for women to offer a doll to the goddess as part of postabortion
healing. Transferring impressions of the aborted baby to a magical
stone, communion with the aborted baby, planting a tree in honor
of the aborted baby and the sewing of baby garments are just some
of the ways postaborted women are taught to resolve guilt and grief.
Women are taught to practice guided imagery or to fantasize a
terrible future had the aborted baby lived. These rituals are intended
to comfort the postaborted woman and aid emotional healing.
Unfortunately, due to this spiritual legitimacy women are that much
further removed from guilt that fosters true repentance and personal
healing.
To assuage the guilt that accompanies the killing of
innocent unborn babies, spiritual feminists put forward a number of
possibilities regarding abortion.
· An aborted baby will be reincarnated.
160
· A woman’s impression of her aborted baby should
be transferred to something else.
· An aborted baby can offer forgiveness and
understanding. An unborn baby can consent to an
abortion.
Let us compare each argument to the inerrant Word of
God, starting with the belief that an aborted baby will be
reincarnated. In 2 Samuel, we learn from King David’s example
that a deceased child will not return at a later time. After the death
of his child, David said, “But now he is dead, wherefore should I
fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not
return to me.” 64 In the book of the same name, Job states death is a
place “I go whence I shall not return.” 65 An aborted baby’s soul
cannot return to earth at another time because “it is appointed unto
64
2 Sam. 12:23.
65
Job 10:21.
161
men once to die, but after this the judgment.” 66
It is suggested a woman’s impression of her aborted baby
should be transferred to something else, like a stone or another
inanimate object. But just as reincarnation is not a biblical concept,
neither is transmigration. The Bible teaches that once a person dies,
the soul returns to God, “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it
was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” 67 God’s
Word reveals we are “but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and
cometh not again.” 68 For a Christian to be “absent from the body” is
to be “present with the Lord.” 69
Spiritual feminists believe an aborted baby can offer
forgiveness and understanding to the woman who aborted. This
66
Heb. 9:27.
67
Eccles. 12:7.
68
Ps. 78:39.
69
2 Cor. 5:8.
162
belief is quite different then a repentant, postaborted woman
trusting God that her baby is in heaven and, due to his atonement, all
is forgiven. We know from Jesus’ parable of the rich man and
Lazarus, the dead cannot contact the living. 70 The Bible reveals that
when an unborn baby dies, “His breath goeth forth, he returneth to
his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.” 71 An aborted baby has
no consciousness that we can communicate with. Therefore, it is
impossible for us to receive her understanding or forgiveness.
Ecclesiastes teaches, “For the living know that they shall die:
but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a
reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and
their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any
more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.” 72
70
Luke 16:26.
71
Ps. 146:4.
72
Eccles. 9:56.
163
The “dead know not any thing.” Their “love” and “hatred” is gone.
Feminist spirituality’s argument presupposes aborted babies exist as
supernatural entities and can and should be communicated with. It
also ignores the fact that we are told by God not to attempt to
communicate with the dead or with spirits. 73
This brings us to feminist spirituality’s claim that an
unborn baby can consent to an abortion. Why would she? The idea
is too preposterous for words. At the gestational age of only eight
weeks, an unborn baby has the ability to feel pain, perhaps even
excruciating pain. Furthermore, an unborn baby has no authority to
end her own life. 74 God is the Author of Life.
Spiritual feminists like to make abortion a mutual
agreement between a woman and her unborn baby. However, just as
a twoyearold does not possess the mental faculties and emotional
73
Isa. 8:1920 and Deut. 18:1012.
74
Exod. 20:13.
164
maturity to understand and consent to her own murder, a prenatal
child cannot possibly understand “reproductive rights” language,
never mind comprehend the implications of such an “agreement.”
Moreover, when spiritual feminists attempt to contact the “spirit
life” of their child for her consent, they are actually practicing
spiritism. The Bible forbids spiritism and other occult practices “all
that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD.” 75
The connection between abortion and spiritism is not new.
Abortion is a practice inspired by demons. The curse of death was
caused by Satan’s deception in the Garden of Eden; Jesus called him
“a murderer from the beginning.” 76 In the Old Testament book of
Deuteronomy, Moses equates the sacrifice to pagan deities to the
sacrifice to demons, “They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to
gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom
75
Deut. 18:1012.
76
John 8:44.
165
your fathers feared not.” 77 In the book of Psalms we read, “They did
not destroy the nations, concerning whom the LORD commanded
them: But were mingled among the heathen, and learned their
works. And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them.
Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils, And
shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their
daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the
land was polluted with blood.” 78
Demons want to be worshiped. During Jesus’ temptation in
the wilderness, Satan promised Jesus “all the kingdoms of the world”
provided Jesus would “fall down and worship” him. 79 In Leviticus
and Revelation we are admonished not to worship devils. 80 The
77
Deut. 32:17.
78
Ps. 106:3438.
79
Matth. 4:89.
80
Lev. 17:7and Rev. 9:20.
166
Bible exposes the worship of false gods as the worship of devils. In
the New Testament, the apostle Paul wrote “the things which the
Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils and not to God.” 81 There
is nothing new under the sun. 82 Lurking behind the seductive image
of feminist spirituality’s goddess, are hideous, bloodthirsty demons.
Manasseh’s Example
Without a doubt, feminist spirituality is a portentous
danger to unborn babies. But it is also a threat to women. There is
no authentic spiritual reconciliation within feminist spirituality so
women are left to repeat the same sins. Not only are women
deceived into sacrificing their unborn children to demons, once they
have done so they are at risk of aborting again because they are
exhorted in their wrong doing. Spiritual feminists call good evil and
81
1 Cor. 10:20.
82
Eccles. 1:9.
167
the evil of abortion good. 83 They have “strengthened the hands of
the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way.” 84
Despite its emphasis on healing, selfforgiveness, and acts of
redemption, feminist spirituality in no way addresses a postaborted
woman’s need for repentance. Even though postaborted women are
encouraged to express their grief over the abortion, unless they
experiences genuine repentance, their sorrow will only produce more
death. “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be
repented of; but the sorrow of the world worketh death.” 85
Feminist spirituality’s abortion rituals are designed to affirm
a woman’s spirituality, but in reality, they erect a barrier between a
woman and God. Abortion, like any sin, separates us from God’s
83
Isa. 5:20.
84
Ezek. 13:22.
85
2 Cor. 7:10.
168
holy presence. 86
The Bible teaches, “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the
unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD,
and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will
abundantly pardon.” 87 Second Chronicles says, “If my people, which
are called by name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my
face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven,
and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” 88 The order is
important: humility and repentance and then God will hear, forgive
and heal.
For us to receive God’s forgiveness, we must repent. The
Bible gives examples of people grieving after having sinned, people
like king Saul, Esau, and Judas who never experienced true
86
Isa. 59:13.
87
Isa. 55:7.
88
2 Chron. 7:14.
169
repentance. Though they felt the consequence of their behavior,
perhaps even guilt, they never came to a place of repentance.
Repentance follows conviction of sin. 89 It requires a heart change
and a commitment to altering behavior, “But if the wicked will turn
from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statues,
and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall
not die.” 90
Manasseh was a wicked king of the nation of Judah whose
fiftyfive year reign is recorded in the Old Testament. Manasseh
“seduced” his kingdom “to do more evil than did the nations whom
the LORD destroyed.” 91 So wicked was his rule, the Bible relates he
“shed innocent blood ¼ till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to
89
Acts 2:3738.
90
Ezek. 18:21.
91
2 Kings 21:9.
170
another.” 92 Manasseh brought shame to his father’s memory, the
righteous King Hezekiah, when he brazenly reversed his father’s
religious reforms, “For he built again the high places which
Hezekiah his father had broken down, and he reared up altars for
Baalim, and made groves [images of the goddess], and worshipped
all the host of heaven, and served them. Also he built altars in the
house of the LORD, whereof the LORD had said, In Jerusalem shall
be my name for ever. And he built altars for all the host of heaven in
the two courts of the house of the LORD.” 93
Manasseh erected an idol in the temple of the Lord. He
practiced witchcraft, divination and spiritism and used
enchantments. If that were not enough, Manasseh sacrificed his
children to demons, causing them “to pass through the fire in the
92
2 Kings 21:16.
93
2 Chron. 33:35.
171
valley of the son of Hinnom.” 94 The Bible tells us God sent prophets
to King Manasseh and to the people to turn them from evil, but
they would not repent. “Wherefore the LORD brought upon them
the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, which took Manasseh
among the thorns, and bound him with fetters, and carried him into
Babylon. And when he was in affliction, he besought the LORD his
God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.” 95
Manasseh’s heart was pricked as a result of his sufferings. While in
bondage he prayed and sought God. God heard his prayer of
contrition and eventually freed him and returned him to his
kingdom.
The important thing to note is that Manasseh did not make
a show of repentance; his sorrow was backed up with definitive
action. Once he was returned to his throne, he removed the idol
94
2 Chron. 33:6.
95
2 Chron. 33:1112.
172
from the house of God and cast every pagan altar out of the city. He
repaired the Lord’s altar “and sacrificed thereon peace offerings and
thank offerings, and commanded Judah to serve the LORD God of
Israel.” 96 Manasseh was convicted of sin, brought his attitude and
action in line with God’s will, and received God’s forgiveness. 97
It is important to note that God’s forgiveness does not
guarantee freedom from the consequence of our sin. We must often
bear the outcome of our destructive choices, but when we repent
God will meet us and give us the grace to endure.
We know from Manasseh’s example, God will forgive child
sacrifice. The Bible promises, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful
and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all
96
2 Chron. 33:16.
97
This is not to say we are saved by good works. We are saved by grace
through faith (Eph. 2:89).
173
unrighteousness.” 98 No sin, including the sin of child sacrifice, is too
big for God. However, repentance is a necessary component of
forgiveness. 99 An unsaved woman must repent of her sins and receive
Jesus Christ as her personal Lord and Savior. A Christian who
sacrificed her child through abortion must understand her sin was
an affront to God, confess her sin, take responsibility for the sin and
determine not to act in the same way.
Postaborted women have a genuine need for reconciliation
and healing but the methods promoted by feminist spirituality are
detrimental to women. There is no reconciliation with God outside
of Christ’s sacrifice, 100 no remission of sins without his atonement.
The purification many postaborted women know they need, is an
98
1 John 1:9.
99
Acts 3:19, Zech.1:3 and Ps. 34:18.
100
See Eph. 2:1318, Rom. 5:12174174, Col.1:2021, 2 Cor. 5:1819
and Heb. 2:17.
174
inner purification. And that only comes through repentance and
forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Without him, there is no healing.
Points to Remember
1. When a child is aborted in honor of the goddess, in reality she is
sacrificed to demons (Ps. 106:3638).
2. God will forgive abortion (2 Chron. 33:1113, 1 John 1:9).
3. Repentance is a necessary component of forgiveness (Acts 3:19,
Zech. 1:3, Ps. 34:18).
4. There is no reconciliation with God outside of Christ’s sacrifice
(Eph. 2:1318, Rom. 5:1, Col. 1:2021 2 Cor. 5:1819).
175
CHAPTER 6
THE NEW MORALITY
This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with
their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching
for doctrines the commandments of men.
Matthew 15:89
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye are like unto whited
sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead
men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous
unto men, but within yea are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
Matthew 23:2728
If feminist spirituality’s influence was confined to a small
radical group within feminism, its beliefs could well be ignored.
Because a few women who would have aborted anyway did so in
honor of a goddess, does not necessarily demand a reexamination of
178
the abortion debate.
Unfortunately, feminist spirituality is not limited to
extremists. It is affecting the mainstream abortion rights movement.
Arguments in favor of abortion have evolved to incorporate feminist
spirituality’s cyclical life view. Abortion clinics, criticized by some
feminists as too impersonal and sterile, incapable of addressing
women’s emotional and spiritual needs, are now adopting many of
feminist spirituality’s abortion rituals. More important, women
contemplating abortion are finding religious justification to do so.
In the end, feminist spirituality means more dead babies. The more
women deceived by feminist spirituality, the more children
prenatally murdered. 1
1
Sin is incremental and it increases. See Jer. 7:26, Ezra 9:6, 2 Tim. 3:13.
179
Filling the Moral Void
Cynthia is the beautiful mother of three living children and
one aborted baby whom she still grieves. It is her willingness to
disclose the painful parts of her life and her unwavering
commitment to truth that impresses people the most. Soft spoken
by nature, Cynthia’s has learned to make her voice heard. As a
spokeswoman for postaborted women, a former chapter
chairwoman of her local right to life organization, and a mother of
three active sons, Cynthia appreciates the need for loving
confrontation. She explained to me the circumstances that
surrounded her own abortion.
When I was a small child, I learned to succumb to pressure.
Early trauma from family dysfunction and sexual molestation left me a
people pleaser. I yearned for love, but learned to please and appease to
relieve pressure. I ‘looked for love in all the wrong places’ and became
pregnant at the young age of seventeen. I was unmarried, a senior in
180
high school. My boyfriend was getting ready to move away to go to
college. I secretly wished he wanted our baby. He didn’t and I felt I
would lose him if I stayed pregnant.
The counseling I received consisted of what types of birth
control were available after I had the abortion. I was told I would be in
control of my body after I got over this little “inconvenience.” I wasn’t
told of fetal development or given any information on the risks involved.
At the very beginning of the procedure, I changed my mind and tried to
leave. I was literally held down unto the table and soothed back into
submission. I bled heavily at home after the abortion. There was no
followup visit.
Three months after my abortion while writing a report on the
first anniversary of Roe vs. Wade for my social studies class, I discovered
the truth about fetal development. My twelveweek fetus was human
and was my child. I ran from the trauma that I had been coerced and
pressured into having an unwanted abortion. My life began to turn even
181
farther from the light, into alcohol, marijuana and promiscuity. 2
According to Cynthia, women “do not realize the cost of
abortion to their soul.” 3 Her story does have a happy ending. Later
in life, she found forgiveness through a personal relationship with
Jesus Christ and married a loving Christian man. She has come to
terms with her painful past. Cynthia cautions women not to be
misled by feminist spirituality’s abortion rites, “This deception
recognizes the reality that children are being sacrificed and women
are being hurt and need reconciliation, but offers a deceptive
reconciliation ... In reality, the pain of true repentance is temporary
and leads to reconciliation with God.” 4
Cynthia is right, there is a cost attached to abortion. The
2
Cynthia A. Klopfer, conversation with the author, January 22, 1998;
Cynthia A. Klopfer, The Face of Abortion and Reconciliation (Hyannis,
MA: Face of Abortion Campaign, 1998).
3
Cynthia A. Klopfer, ProLife, ProChoice, ProWoman? (Hyannis, MA:
Face of Abortion Campaign, 1998).
4
Ibid.
182
Bible explains that a woman who sins against the Lord hurts her
own soul. 5 It also warns us that as a woman thinks, so she is. 6 A
woman’s heart contains the “issues of life.” 7 It affects everything she
does. It is her heart which determines her character therefore a
woman is to guard her heart. 8 Whatever wickedness her heart is
tainted with, results in a corresponding sin. 9 We see this in the lives
of women seduced by feminist spirituality
Reframing the Debate
To the chagrin of abortion supporters, there are countless
women just like Cynthia and these women are not going away. As
5
Prov. 8:36.
6
Prov. 23:7.
7
Prov. 4:23.
8
Prov. 4:23.
9
Mark 7:2123.
183
more women come forward with Post Abortion Stress Syndrome 10
and as advances in fetal medicine and 3D and 4D sonograms
create a “window into the womb,” the abortion rights movement is
compelled to address the spiritual and moral complexities
surrounding abortion. But how do you spiritually justify abortion
without alienating secularists? How do you admit to the humanity
of the unborn baby without compromising on abortionondemand?
How do you aid a woman’s emotional and spiritual healing without
conceding she sacrificed someone for something else? Abortion
proponents faced a difficult challenge.
Before feminist spirituality’s entrance into the abortion
debate, the prolife movement was in firm possession of the moral
high ground. There was no intrinsic virtue to abortion, no real
religious basis for claiming a right to an abortion. What was the best
10
PASS is believed to be a type of Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome
(PTSD).
184
spin its supporters could come up with? Abortion was a necessary
evil.
Then there was the privacy issue. The ambiguous “right to
choose” slogan always begged the question “Choose what?” But what
happened to an unborn baby while a woman’s legs were in the
abortionist’s stirrups was not up for debate. Abortion was sold as “a
private matter between a woman and her doctor.” Yet, unlike other
surgical “procedures” there was a black mark on abortion. Though
legal, abortion was on par with “dirty little secrets” and “skeletons in
the closet.” The veil of secrecy surrounding abortion left a post
aborted woman alone in her grief and guilt. For the most part,
abortion supporters ignored hurting postaborted women and post
abortion reconciliation became the ministry of Christians. 11
The silence that accompanied a woman’s abortion and the
11
Appropriately so since Christians have been given the ministry of
reconciliation. See 2 Corinthians 5:18.
185
lack of moral or spiritual justification for the procedure seemed to
guarantee an eventual prolife victory. Because abortion was nothing
more than an allowable evil, as science continued to prove the
humanity of unborn babies and social conscience grew, it was
destined to go the way of Hitler’s death camps. Abortion would end,
just as Auschwitz ended. The culture of death would come crashing
down, just as the Berlin wall did. With the arrival of feminist
spirituality, however, abortion supporters found the spiritual
justification their movement lacked. By addressing what spiritual
feminists call the inherent “spiritual crisis” 12 in abortion and offering
pseudo atonement, feminist spirituality filled abortion’s moral void
and reframed the abortion debate.
The prolife movement bases its arguments on a linear view
of life. This view rightly recognizes life as having a beginning and an
12
186
end. Life is moving forward from a fixed point into the future.
Before feminist spirituality’s intrusion into the abortion controversy,
the question was always where on this linear plane do unborn babies
fall. Does life begin at conception or does life begin somewhere
farther down the line, say at birth? But what happens when a cyclical
view of life is transferred over the standard linear arguments?
187
A Cyclical View: Life is a Continuum
Rebirth/Birth
Cosmic Life Force Life
Death
A Linear View: Life Begins and Ends
First, Second, Third-Trimester Abortion,

Partial-Birth Abortion,
Infanticide Euthanasia
Life Heaven or Hell
Conception Death
188
As the prolife movement argues life begins at conception,
feminist spirituality teaches, “Life does not begin. It is always here.” 1
While the prolife movement warns abortion is murder, spiritual
feminists maintain, “Death is a transition.” 2 When the prolife
movement says unborn babies feel pain, feminist spirituality tells
women unborn babies caused their own karmic destiny. As the pro
life movement pushes back challenges to life on their linear line,
feminist spirituality reframes the abortion debate by insisting life is
in a constant cycle of death and rebirth. Spiritual feminists admit
the question of abortion changes, “with a change of the sex of God,
or the change of a straight line into a spiral.” 3 Standard prolife
1
2
Womb (Great Barrington, MA: Mother Spirit Publishing, 1989), 24.
3
189
arguments become irrelevant when applied against a cyclical or
spiraling view of life.
One reason for the growing popularity of feminist
spirituality and its cyclical view of life is the way it addresses a post
aborted woman’s need for reconciliation. Imagining an aborted
baby is released into the cosmic life force, to be reborn again later, is
infinitely more pleasant then acknowledging the reality. By
disembodying unborn babies, feminist spirituality has lessened
women’s internal conflict over abortion. An unborn baby has
become “the soul of the pregnancy” 4 or “the spirit of the
pregnancy” 5 and abortion is simply “releasing spirit life.”
Cynthia’s abortion experience is not unique and
16
Head and the Heart ([Dallas: Routh Street Women’s Clinic, 1991?]),
http://www.womensservices.com.
5
http://www.ferre.org/workbook/, also in print.
190
abortion supporters have finally come to recognize women do suffer
emotional and spiritual ramifications after an abortion. They have
also concluded that to safeguard the availability of abortionon
demand, abortion must be seen as a conscientious, if not spiritual,
act.
Whereas in the past abortion was compared to having a
tooth pulled or a wart removed, abortion clinics are now
acknowledging profound aftereffects. Abortion counselors admit
“abortion is not a simple physical process that is over and done with
when the machine is turned off.” 6 A workbook employed by clinics
categorized abortion as “a major loss” which “deserves its own grief
process.” 7 Finally admitting the obvious, they are still unwilling to
18
Tami Slayton Glenn and Jeannine O’Brien Medvin, “Some Thoughts
and Feelings on Abortion (or You’ve Come Along Way, Baby),”
appendix to Hygieia: A Woman’s Herbal, by Jeannine Parvati ( A
Freestone Collective Book, 1978), 201.
19
http://www.ferre.org/workbook/, also available in print.
191
retreat from abortionondemand. According to spiritual feminists,
“we can still allow ourselves to mourn and grieve [abortion] while
upholding absolutely our right to make the choice.” 8
Abortion supporters have also been confronted with a
deficit in abortion rights language , i.e., whereas the words are
tissue, embryo or product of conception, a woman thinks baby and are
attempting to communicate in language women can relate to. In her
article, “Pregnancy: Lose the Adjective! Notes on Language,”
abortion provider Margaret (Peg) Johnston admitted, “I find I am
battling language these days in an attempt to talk about pregnancy
in a real way.” 9
20
Miriam Simos a.k.a. Starhawk, Aline O’Brien a.k.a. M. Macha
Nightmare and the Reclaiming Collective, The Pagan Book of Living and
Dying: Practical Rituals, Prayers, Blessings, and Meditations on
Crossing Over (NY: HarperCollins Publishers, 1997), 234.
21
Margaret R. Johnston, “Pregnancy: Lose the Adjective! Notes on
Language,” Sexing the Political: A Journal of Third Wave Feminists on
Sexuality 3, no. 1 (2003),
http://www.sexingthepolitical.com/2003/one/pregnancy.htm (accessed
August 23, 2004).
192
The need for spiritual justification for abortion, for post
abortion healing, and for new abortion rhetoric has forced the
feminist movement to acknowledge the humanity of unborn babies
while couching abortion in religious or spiritual terms. Peggy
Loonan, executive director of Life and Liberty for Women, an
abortion rights group, admits she wants to “change the language,
strategy, and landscape of the abortion debate.” 10 While Loonan
acknowledges the “fetus is a human being,” 11 she maintains,
“Intentionally killing an innocent human being is not always a
moral wrong.” 12
In a letter dated November 18, 2002, Loonan requested a
10
Peggy Loonan, “The Case for the Morality of Legal Abortion and
Against Biblical Condemnation” (debate, Colorado State University, Fort
Collins, CO, November 15, 2000), Life and Liberty for Women,
http://www.lifeandlibertyforwomen.org/issues/issues_morality_of_legal_a
bortion.html.
11
Ibid.
12
Ibid.
193
meeting with the presidents of NARAL, 13 Planned Parenthood and
the Feminist Majority Foundation, to articulate a new abortion
rights strategy.
Although it is unlikely the requested meeting ever took
place, the letter demonstrates the changes in the mainstream
abortion rights movement; abortion supporters are altering their
message to appeal to the spiritual and emotional needs of women.
Marked “urgent,” Loonan’s letter was addressed to Kate
Michelman, Gloria Feldt and Eleanor Smeal. In it, she
recommended that abortion supporters “take back the higher moral
ground.” 14 Abortion “isn’t wrong, immoral, a criminal act or
13
NARAL ProChoice America, formerly known as the National Abortion
and Reproduction Rights Action League.
26
Peggy Loonan to Kate Michelman; Gloria Feldt; Eleanor Smeal;
November 18, 2002, Life and Liberty for Women, “Life and Liberty for
Women’s Abortion Rights Message At Odds With Mainstream Abortion
Rights Organizations and Their Weak ‘Choice’ Message,”
http://www.lifeandlibertyforwomen.org/mainstream.html.
194
murder, and ¼ the Christian God doesn’t disagree.” 15
Loonan argued “the ‘choice’ language has allowed the anti
abortion movement” to make women “feel guilty and ashamed for
ever daring to think that ‘killing a baby’ is an acceptable ‘choice’ and
has forced us into defending the reasons to ‘choose’ abortion.” 16
According to Loonan, there is an “urgent need for a new strategy
and message.” 17
A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing: Naomi’s “Acts of Redemption”
Loonan’s demand for a “new strategy” comes after feminist
author Naomi Wolf’s impassioned appeal for new “consciousness”
regarding abortion. In her 1995 article, “Our Bodies, Our Souls” in
The New Republic, Wolf called “for a radical shift in the prochoice
27
Ibid.
28
Ibid.
17
Ibid.
195
movement’s rhetoric and consciousness about abortion.” 18 In her
article, Wolf admitted, “There is a hunger for a moral framework
that we prochoicers must reckon with.” 19
She also recommended the abortion rights movement
“contextualize the fight to defend abortion rights within a moral
framework that admits that the death of a fetus is a real death.” 20
Wolf wrote “to its own ethical and political detriment, the
prochoice movement has relinquished the moral frame around the
issue of abortion.” 21 According to Wolf, this has caused the
abortion rights movement to “lose the millions of Americans who
want to condemn it as a moral iniquity.” 22
18
Naomi Wolf, “Our Bodies, Our Souls,” The New Republic, October 16,
1995, 26.
19
Ibid. 34.
20
Ibid., 26.
33
Ibid.
22
Ibid.
196
Wolf maintained that if abortion supporters “uphold
abortion rights within a matrix of individual conscience, atonement
and responsibility ¼ we both correct the logical and ethical
absurdity in our position and consolidate the support of the
center.” 23
Later in the article, she asked the telling question, “But
how, one might ask, can I square a recognition of the humanity of
the fetus, and the moral gravity of destroying it, with a prochoice
position? The answer can only be found in ¼ the paradigm of sin
and redemption.” 24
One of the first feminist leaders to make the case for post
abortion acts of redemption, Wolf wrote, “If one believes that
abortion is killing and yet is still prochoice, one could try to use
23
Ibid., 33.
24
Ibid.
197
contraception for every single sex act; if one had to undergo an
abortion, one could then work to provide contraception, or jobs, or
other choices to young girls; one could give money to programs that
provide prenatal care to poor women; if one is a mother or father,
one can remember the aborted child every time one is tempted to be
less than loving and give renewed love to the living child.” 25
Feminist author Ginette Paris argued the guilt over
abortion is best relieved through ritual. In her book, The Sacrament
of Abortion, Paris complained the current abortion experience is
often a mechanical process, comparing it to a car’s oil change. Paris
wrote abortion supporters must “invent rituals, think up symbols,
propose new ideas, and create a network of support for women.” 26
Similar to Wolf’s acts of redemption, Paris suggested specific post
25
Ibid., 35.
26
198
abortion rituals to help a woman come to terms with her abortion
decision. Some of her suggestions include communicating with the
unborn child, writing a farewell letter to the unborn baby, creating a
personalized ritual to mark the occasion, or holding the dead baby
after the abortion. According to Paris, “Our culture needs new
rituals as well as laws to restore to abortion its sacred dimension.” 27
Krista Jacob, founder and editorinchief of the feminist
online journal, Sexing the Political, called for a validation of women’s
emotional and spiritual needs and for the creation of “a radical
language of choice” to preserve abortion rights. In an article
originally published in the Minnesota Women’s Press, Jacob admitted
prolife inroads have forced a change in tactics.
Referring to the abortion rights slogan, “It’s her body, her
choice,” Jacob wrote, “For many women there are emotional,
39
Ibid., 92.
199
physical, spiritual aspects of their experience, which are rarely
acknowledged in mainstream discussions of abortion. When public
support for abortion rights is limited to simply reciting a bumper
sticker, our very cause is undermined.” 28 Jacob advised the abortion
rights movement to “cultivate a radical language of choice that
reflects the continuum of the abortion experience.” 29
Feminist and author Diana Alstad believes, “The time is
ripe to offer a powerfully articulated alternative moral view of
abortion.” 30 Shortly after Wolf’s article was published, Alstad co
authored a position paper entitled “Abortion and the Morality
Wars: Taking the Moral Offensive.” Alstad was part of the
40
Krista Jacob, “A Radical Language of Choice,” The Abortion
Conversation Project,
http://www.abortionconversation.com/lang_of_choice.pdf.
41
Ibid.
30
Diana Alstad and Joel Kramer, “Abortion and the Morality Wars:
Taking the Moral Offensive,” Resources for Independent Living,
http://www.rit.org/editorials/abortion/moralwar.html (accessed
December, 16, 2004).
200
movement to legalize abortion. She shared her new strategy during a
1997 NARAL event in San Francisco. Alstad opinion is that “the
real battleground for abortion is morality.” 31
In “Abortion as a Moral Act,” Alstad warned, “The
American prochoice movement has focused on rights. But how can
choice compete with life as an ultimate value? How can legal rights
compete with morality, which is more basic? Rights exist only if
society grants them, and thus can be eroded whenever the climate of
moral opinion changes.” 32
Author and bioethicist Leslie Cannold agrees the abortion
rights movement needs a moral frame. According to Cannold, “The
job of the prochoice movement is to provide a moral defense of a
31
Ibid.
32
Diana Alstad and Joel Kramer, “Abortion as a Moral Act,” Resources
for Independent Living,
http://www.rit.org/editorials/abortion/morality.html (accessed December
7, 2004).
201
woman’s freedom to choose abortion.” 33 In her book, The Abortion
Myth, Cannold criticized the movement for its “attempts to quash
the moral ambiguity around abortion with deceptive language or by
ignoring the fetus.” 34 She argued the abortion rights movement must
embrace “a new feminist perspective on abortion that includes a
thorough feminist discussion of the moral aspects of abortion.” 35
In an interview about her new book, Cannold maintained
the viability of the unborn will become an increasing problem for
abortion supporters. She stressed, “I don’t think the current way we
address abortion rights is going to stand up to that.” 36 When asked
by the interviewer if she felt abortion supporters were reframing the
33
Leslie Cannold, The Abortion Myth: Feminism, Morality, and the
Hard Choices Women Make (Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University
Press, 2000), 127.
34
Ibid., 131.
35
Ibid., 133.
36
Leslie Cannold, interview by Jessa Crispin, “An Interview with Leslie
Cannold,” Bookslut, August, 2004,
202
debate to include morality, Cannold responded, “My argument is
that we really don’t have a choice … They’ve [prolifers] made it a
moral issue.” 37
Frances Kissling is a former executive director of an
abortion clinic and a founder of the National Abortion Federation.
She currently serves as president of Catholics for a Free Choice. In
Choices, a publication of International Planned Parenthood, Kissling
wrote, “The challenge for the future ... is for us to develop an
increasingly richer discourse about abortion and abortion rights.
The challenge also is to train and educate ourselves to be able to
conduct this discourse.” 38 She argued for room within the movement
to explore the morality and ethics of abortion and suggested those
who have reservations regarding the movement’s more extreme
http://www.bookslut.com/features/2004_08_002977.php.
37
Ibid.
38
Frances Kissling, “The Ethics of Prochoice Advocacy,” Choices, 28,
203
positions be allowed to express their convictions in the context of
abortion rights, so as not to alienate the base. According to Kissling,
the movement must “find ways to help people come to terms with
their own feelings about abortion.” 39 Kissling believes “it is critical”
for abortion supporters to expand their “ethical framework and
conceptualization of reproductive health.” 40
In a more recent article, “Is There Life After Roe? How to
Think About the Fetus,” Kissling emphasized the importance of
addressing the notion of fetal value, even going so far as to suggest
the use of fetal anesthesia during late term abortions. Kissling
conceded the need to “combine rights and morality, to consider
both women and developing human life.” 41 In her article she
no. 2 (2000): 10.
39
Ibid.
40
Ibid., 8.
41
Frances Kissling, “Is There Life After Roe? How to Think of the Fetus,”
Conscience, Winter 2004/2005,
204
explained, “Those committed to the right to choose have felt forced
to defend what appears to be an absolute right to abortion that
brooks no consideration of other values … As the fetus has become
more visible … this stance has become less satisfying as either a
moral framework or a message strategy.” 42
There it is. For the abortion rights movement to preserve its
power, it must change its message. For it to gain the moral high
ground, it must address women’s emotional and spiritual needs. And
to resolve the disconnect between what it is (the killing of a
woman’s baby) and what supporters pretend it to be (the removal of
a pregnancy) the movement must promote abortion rituals to
manage women’s guilt.
The November Gang
http://www.cath4choice.org/conscience/current/LifeAfterRoe.htm
(accessed December 16, 2004).
205
Feminist leaders have called for a change in abortion rights
rhetoric and for “new consciousness” regarding abortion. Some are
even calling for the creation of abortion rituals. But are abortion
industry insiders taking their advice? Are they creating a “moral
framework” for abortion?
The November Gang is a support group and think tank for
the abortion industry. Known for developing pioneering abortion
counseling techniques techniques that often involve paganism and
ritual it was established in November 1989 in response to the pro
life rescue movement and the Supreme Court’s Webster decision
allowing states to put limits on abortion.
At the invitation of Charlotte Taft, then director of the
Routh Street Women’s Clinic in Dallas, twentyfive industry
insiders from across the country attended the initial meeting. In
1995, the Dallas Observer identified roughly twenty clinics as
42
Ibid.
206
November Gang; according to a 2003 article in Glamour magazine,
there are twelve principal members who meet twice a year.
Due to its introduction of spirituality in clinics, the
November Gang never really received wide support within the
abortion industry but with feminism’s growing demand for a new
abortion rights frame that has begun to change. The November
Gang is becoming a powerful voice for alternative abortion practices.
Its influence now reaches to the National Coalition of Abortion
Providers (NCAP), the Abortion Conversation Project, Inc., the
online magazine Our Truth/ Nuestras Verdadesan, and the new
feminist postabortion talkline, Exhale.
According to Ron Fitzimmons, president of the NCAP, the
November Gang speaks about “abortion in terms of the good and
the bad, talking about bad abortion providers or about the fact that
some women do regret their abortions.” 43 Fitzimmons maintains,
43
207
“They’ve been way upfront about promoting conversation about
abortion.” 44
In a case in point, in a recent article addressed mainly to
abortion providers November Gang founder Charlotte Taft and
abortion industry insider Shelley Oram argued for a reconstruction
of abortion rights language to incorporate women’s experiences. Taft
and Oram believe “it appears that most abortion clinic patients leave
our facilities with secrets and shame powerful enough to keep them
silent and prevent them from being Advocates for Choice . . . They
do not currently have language that makes it easy and comfortable
for them to talk about their experiences, and it seems that many do
(includes an interview with Ron Fitzsimmons), in Glamour, September

2003, 295.
208
not have positive experiences to share.” 45
In “A Challenge to the ProChoice Movement,” Taft and
Oram listed the reasons which necessitated a change in language.
They admitted women suffer emotionally after an abortion and
women’s lives could be adversely affected due to postabortion
trauma. They concluded that it is as a result of these complications
that many women do not defend abortion rights.
These admissions are nothing short of shocking when you
consider the source. Taft functioned as the clinic director for Routh
Street Women’s Clinic for seventeen years and is the author of the
Abortion Resolution Workbook: Ways to Connect the Head and the
44
Ibid.
57
Charlotte Taft and Shelley Oram, “A Challenge for the ProChoice
Movement,” Sexing the Political: A Journal of Third Wave Feminists on
Sexuality 3, no. 1 (2003),
http://www.sexingthepolitical.com/2003/one/challenge.htm (accessed
August 20, 2004).
209
Heart. She is currently with Imagine! a proabortion, consulting,
training and counseling service.
Shelley Oram is a certified hypnotherapist and has
facilitated abortion counseling workshops. She is the cofounder of
Imagine! Imagine! provides individual abortion related counseling
and consultation to clinics nationwide. Its counseling methods
include guided imagery and exploration of spiritual issues.
November Gang member and clinic director, Debi Jackson,
of Cincinnati Women’s Services, admitted she wants to change the
nature of the abortion debate. In “Abortion Rhetoric Doesn’t Help:
Caring Does,” Jackson wrote, “Women need to find their own
personal truths about abortion, and the rhetorical arguments of the
prochoice and antichoice advocates do nothing to further those
personal truths.” 46 To assist women in discovering their own truth,
58
Debi Jackson, “Abortion Rhetoric Doesn’t Help: Caring Does,”
Cincinnati Women’s Services,
http://www.womensservices.com/pages/01.html (accessed August 21,
210
Jackson’s clinic employs “patient advocates” 47 and counselors lead
women in guided imagery. It has replaced impersonal clinical
language with softer terms like baby and staff “discuss God, prayer,
and saying goodbye to the child.” 48
At the Southern Tier Women’s Services in New York, a
woman receives a “polished stone” 49 before undergoing her abortion.
To facilitate postabortion healing, the clinic’s director, Peg
Johnston, explains Buddhist and Native American rituals to
zatients. 50
Johnston is a member of the November Gang, former
president of NCAP and the editor of Pregnant? Need Help?
2004).
59
Ibid.
60
Ibid.
49
Cynthia L. Cooper, “Abortion Under Attack,” Ms. Magazine,
August/September, 2001, http://www.msmagazine.com/aug.01/pas.html.
50
Ibid.
211
Pregnancy Options Workbook. Her workbook contains an
acknowledgment of gratitude to the November Gang and makes
mention of the financial support of individual members.
Demonstrating the growing ties between the November Gang and
the broader abortion rights movement, one of the organizations to
financial contribute to Johnston’s workbook is the NCAP and one
of the individuals is NCAP’s current president, Ron Fitzsimmons!
Johnston’s workbook contains a ritual to invoke the
goddess of wisdom. This ritual is supposedly to help a woman
decide whether or not to abort. At the beginning of the ritual, the
woman is instructed to “light a candle, absorb its power, and pray”
to wisdom. Within the ritual, wisdom is referred to as spirit and as
“the Holy One.” The ritual involves guided imagery and concludes
with the admonition, “Wisdom lives within us. Listen to her! Trust
her.” 51
63
Diann L. Neu and Jennifer Benson, “Seeking Wisdom to Decide,” in
212
According to the workbook, “Many women find that they
are talking to the spirit of the child inside them, sometimes out loud
and sometimes in their heads.” 52 The workbook suggests women
may want to write a letter to their aborted baby, and when
completed, keep the letter as a memorial or “bury the letter or burn
it, thus ‘releasing’ it back to the earth.” It also advised the occult
practice of automatic writing a type of spiritism. The workbook
explained, “Some women ‘listen’ to what the spirit child is saying
and write that down. One woman who chose an abortion reported
that it said, ‘Don’t worry, I’m a spirit, I can come back in any
form’.” 53
Pregnant? Need Help? Pregnancy Options Workbook, ed. Peg Johnston
(Vestal, NY: Southern Tier Women’s Services, 1998),
64
53
Ibid.
213
In another form of spiritism intended to help a woman
release the spirit of her unborn baby, a woman is led in meditation
and visualization. After a woman imagines a beautiful place, the
workbook instructs her to “allow yourself to sense the child you will
not have.” After more visualization she is told, “Feel the child
communicate its feelings to you, heart to heart.” After this period of
communion, the woman is instructed, “Open your arms and allow
the child to stand, and to begin to walk away from you.” The
visualization ends when the child “walks down the path and slowly
disappears into a bright white light.” The woman is told, ‘Feel
yourself releasing the spirit of the child’.” 54
In a companion volume to Pregnant? Need Help? Pregnancy
Options Workbook, Johnston’s Abortion: Which Method is Right for
Me? workbook refers to a woman’s unborn child as “spirit/baby”
54
Ibid. (italics mine).
214
and “spirit within you.” 55 It also provides a sample ritual to be
performed during an abortion! The ritual is designed for a chemical
abortion, a process that can take two to three days. Before the
woman takes her first prescription, she is to draw a soothing bath
and add rose petals or herbs to the water. As she soaks, she is
instructed to, “Let your heart fill with love and wish for a peaceful
separation of the spirit within you from your own.” 56 At the
conclusion of her bath, she is to collect the rose petals.
On day two of the procedure, when the woman takes the
second drug she is instructed to light a memorial candle. “As the
candle burns, the process of passing the pregnancy will continue …
See the path you are on continuing, but the path of the pregnancy
55
Margaret R. Johnston, ed., Abortion: Which Method is Right for Me?
(n.p.: Margaret R. Johnston, 2002), 54.
56
Ibid.
215
(spirit/baby) going in another direction.” 57
After the candle has finished burning, the woman is told to
explore her feelings and then gather her rose petals and release the
petals to the earth by burning them, burying them, or casting them
on water. Johnston’s ritual mirrors the witchcraft ritual of releasing
spirit life described in chapter four.
Not only was Johnston’s Abortion: Which Method is Right
for Me? funded, in part, through donations by November Gang
members and the NCAP like the first workbook, but Ann Gerhardt,
Medical Abortion Education Director with the National Abortion
Federation, also provided financing.
Johnston is instructing women in feminist spirituality
under the guise of abortion counseling. Her workbooks teach a
woman to invoke the goddess, to ritually abort, and to release the
spirit life of her unborn child. By continually referring to a woman’s
57
Ibid.
216
unborn baby as “spirit child,” “spirit/baby,” “spirit life,” or the
“spirit within you” the workbooks disembody unborn babies.
Johnston is not limiting her influence to abortion patients.
She admits to wanting to reframe the debate and to teach others to
do the same. Johnston believes, “Providers are in a unique position
… to respond to women and their families in a new way. They can
listen to women and men about what this decision means to them,
and reflect back to them the responsibility and the morality of their
position. They can acknowledge the harder emotions of loss and
shame and guilt while empowering women to embrace the future …
My colleagues and I are also trying to influence the training of abortion
counselors and other staff so more women can find a dreaded abortion
experience to be transformational and validating.” 58
58
Margaret R. Johnston, “Opting Out of the Abortion War: From the
Birmingham Bombing to September 11th,” in Our Choices, Our Lives:
Unapologetic Writings on Abortion, ed. Kirsta Jacob, 165 (Lincoln, NE:
iUniversity, Inc., Writers Advantage, 2002), italics mine.
217
In another example of feminist spirituality, according to an
article in Glamour, at the Allegheny Reproductive Health Center in
Pittsburgh a basket of colored stones is offered to aborted women.
According to an article in Glamour, women choose a stone and “can
imbue it with whatever meaning they choose.” 59
At this same November Gang clinic, a woman is
encouraged to write out a valentine to the baby she is aborting. 60
The article stated “women are encouraged to think of abortion as a
loving act.” 61 Women at November Gang clinics “are invited to
share their religious beliefs and permitted to pray over their fetuses,
even to sprinkle them with holy water in impromptu baptismal
rites.” 62 The clinic’s executive director, Clair Keyes, has even
59
60
Ibid., 264.
61
Ibid., 266.
74
Ibid., 265.
218
performed baptisms of the aborted babies. According to an article in
the Pittsburg PostGazette, Keyes said, “Who am I to say no to these
women” when they request help in baptizing their aborted baby. 63
The Allentown Women’s Center in Pennsylvania is a sister
clinic to the Allegheny Reproductive Health Center and the
Southern Tier Women’s Services. According to the executive
director of the Allentown clinic, Jen Boulanger, “Any woman who
loses a pregnancy…will need to deal with the loss and the emotions
that accompany it. It is up to her to decide what she will need in
order to successfully cope with her abortion, which may or may not
include grieving.” 64
75
Mackenzie Carpenter, “Hearts Full of Hurt: Abortion Clinic Messages
Reflect New Counseling Philosophy” (includes an interview with Claire
Keyes), in Health, Pittsburg PostGazette, January 20, 2004,
http://www.postgazette.com/pg/04020/263254.stm (accessed August 21,
2004).
76
Jen Boulanger, “Memorials to the Unborn,” Abortion Conversation
Project, Inc., http://abortionconversation.com/conpiece.php (accessed
December 6, 2004).
219
In her opinion piece posted on the ACP’s website, Boulanger
wrote, “Some women choose to mourn the loss of their pregnancies
… A woman may decide to hold a private memorial; write a letter to
the unborn child; write poetry; plant flowers or a tree; or pray.” 65
Allentown Women’s Center is a member of the NCAP. In
keeping with the NCAP’s “new conversation,” Boulanger
characterized abortion as “a compassionate and moral decision” and
compared it to “a painful and loving sacrifice.” 66
Affiliated with the November Gang, Northland Family
Planning Centers in Michigan has a web page entitled, “Religious
and Spiritual Concerns,” adapted from Johnston’s Pregnant? Need
Help? Pregnancy Options Workbook. The page advises women
contemplating abortion to “discover your own truth and honor it.” 67
65
Ibid.
66
Ibid., italics mine.
67
Northland Family Planning Centers, “Religious and Spiritual
220
In keeping with the new consciousness regarding abortion,
Northland clinics, claim to “honor each patient’s spirituality” and to
perform abortions in an “inspiring atmosphere.” 68 The clinics have
taken on what they call a “holistic approach” to abortion services by
providing “lowlight, relaxing music, aromatherapy and guided
imagery.” 69
According to Jackson, when a woman decides whether or not
to abort, she is taking part in a “sacred choice.” 70 A woman knows
Concerns” (adapted from: Pregnant? Need Help? Pregnancy Options
Workbook, Peg Johnston, ed., Vestal, NY: Southern Tier Women’s
Services, 1998), Northland Family Planning Centers,
http://northlandcenters.com/content/index.asp?id=65 (accessed
80
Northland Family Planning Centers, “About Northland Family Planning
Centers,” Northland Family Planning Centers,
http://northlandcenters.com/content/index.asp?id=59 (accessed
81
Ibid.
70
http://www.ncap.com/promoting_providers.html (accessed September 25,
2004).
221
“if she is truly ready to bring new life through her body into the
world.” 71 Cincinnati Women’s Services posted Taft’s Abortion
Resolution Workbook: Ways to Connect the Head and Heart online for
patients. In the workbook women are asked, “If prayer is a part of
your life have you prayed about this decision? How would you know
if your god answered your prayers?” 72
The workbook posed leading questions such as, if you
believe a fetus has a soul, “what do you think happens to the soul
when the physical body dies?” 73 It continued by suggesting that “some
women believe the soul will return to where it came from.” 74 The
workbook also related a story of how one client believed “the soul of
71
Ibid.
72
Head and the Heart ([Dallas: Routh Street Women’s Clinic, 1991?]),
http://www.womenservices.com (accessed August 20, 2004).
85
Ibid. (italics mine).
86
Ibid.
222
her pregnancy was meant to be with her and would return to her
when she could accept it, as a baby, into her life.” 75
Carla Vogel, an abortion clinic counselor for the Midwest
Women’s Health Center, described her role at the clinic as assisting
women “through one of the most powerful and painful” times of
their life. 76 According to Vogel, “For me that five minutes [during
an abortion] is holy. I believe that within that short time, the
mysteries of birth and death come full circle, and that the potential
of life is transformed.” 77 Jenny Higgins, another abortion clinic
counselor, maintains that women who abort “all share something
incredibly private and sacred.” 78
75
Ibid.
76
Carla Vogel, “Clinic Testimony,” in Our Choices, Our Lives:
Unapologetic Writings on Abortion, ed. Krista Jacob, 131132 (Lincoln,
NE: Writer’s Advantage, 2002).
77
Ibid.
78
Jenny Higgins, “The Breeze in the Waiting Room,” in Our Choices,
Our Lives: Unapologetic Writings on Abortion, ed. Krista Jacob, 133
223
Abortion providers are developing new “consciousness”
regarding abortion just as Wolf recommended. They believe a time
is coming when a woman will know “she is the gatekeeper of life.” 79
They envision a future in which “abortion is a nonissue; pregnancy
is seen as a profound and lifealtering event and everything about it
is treated as sacred even, or perhaps, especially its ending.” 80
This concept of women as “gatekeeper,” can be traced
directly to feminist spirituality. Witches maintain “women are
literally a gateway between the worlds and that abortion is a
responsible exercise of the sacred power of choice.” 81
134 (Lincoln, NE: Writer’s Advantage, 2002).
79
Margaret R. Johnston and Clair Keyes, “How Do You Want Your
Abortion?” in Viable Utopian Ideas: Shaping a Better World, ed. Arthur
B. Shostak, 141147 (Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 2003).
80
Ibid.(italics mine).
93
Minerva Earthschild and Vibra Willow, “Abortion: A Healing Ritual,”
in the Pagan Book of Living and Dying: Practical Rituals, Prayers,
Blessings, and Meditations on Crossing Over, Miriam Simos a.k.a.
Starhawk, Aline O’Brien a.k.a M. Macha Nightmare and the Reclaiming
224
According to Johnston and Keyes, in the future women will
have limitless abortion options and abortion will be “carried out
lovingly.” 82 Johnston and Keyes abortion utopia includes “guides” to
assist women in navigating the abortion experience. In “How Do
You Want Your Abortion?” from the book Viable Utopian Ideas:
Shaping a Better World, they envision a time when women will
choose from a menu of personalized abortion experiences ranging
from “The Lunch Hour Special” abortion to the “Deluxe Spa
Treatment” abortion, where a woman recovers from her abortion in
a “special suite” with room service and may “choose from 3 relaxing
options a foot massage, a mud pack facial, or a rebalancing of your
shakras by . . . [an] expert Reiki master.” 83
Collective, 237244 (NY: HarperCollins Publishers, 1997).
94
Margaret R. Johnston and Clair Keyes, “How Do You Want Your
Abortion?” in Viable Utopian Ideas: Shaping a Better World, ed. Arthur
B. Shostak, 141147 (Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 2003).
83
Ibid.
225
In Johnston and Keys “Spiritual Journey” abortion, a woman
goes on a “spirit quest” as part of her abortion. In this abortion
experience, women can create their own ritual or may choose a
ceremony from a pagan, Eastern or Native American tradition. A
woman checks into a “mountain retreat Friday night for a ritual
cleansing and spiritual preparation” and undergoes the abortion
when she is “ready for a separation of paths with the spirit child.” 84
In the “Full Emotional Support” abortion, a woman receives
two hours of preabortion counseling to discuss, among other topics,
“religious and spiritual concerns,” two counseling appointments
following the procedure and “consultation by phone with the clergy
or spiritual leader” that represents the woman’s spiritual beliefs. 85
In “The World As I Would Create It,” Jackson described a
future when a patient’s “spiritual preferences are . . . honored, with
96
Ibid.
97
Ibid.
226
specially designed rooms where a woman might receive spiritual
guidance by clergy or a spiritual guide of the woman’s choosing.” 86
Jackson wants women to be able to create a sacred space for their
abortion. She imagines a world where, “Patient advocates interview
each woman about her physical and spiritual preferences. From
choosing the kind of lighting (softer or brighter) to arranging for
specific music that she would like to hear, the woman creates the
space in which she will experience her abortion.” 87
Jackson’s foresees a time when a woman may choose to have
her friends participate in the actual abortion procedure, the patient
“may have a circle of women friends take part in the procedure itself
an ancient ritual of fertility, life, death and rebirth.” 88 Following the
98
http://www.ncap.com/promoting_providers.html (accessed September 25,
2004).
99
Ibid.
88
Ibid.
227
abortion, Jackson’s suggests “a period of reverence for the timeless
and sacred ritual that is abortion.” 89
National Coalition of Abortion Pagans (Oops, I meant Providers)
The NCAP believes in order for people to be “more tolerant
and comfortable with abortion” abortion supporters “need to
challenge the notion that abortion is immoral.” 90 NCAP maintains,
“It is time to lift the veil of secrecy and candidly address the ethical
core of the abortion experience.” 91
NCAP’s support for the November Gang runs deep. The
organization’s board of directors for 2005 include November Gang
member Johnston and Amy Hagstrom Miller. In addition, Everett
89
Ibid.
90
National Coalition of Abortion Providers, “The Need for a New
Conversation on Abortion,” National Coalition of Abortion
Providers, http://www.ncap.com/promoting_conversation.html.
103
Ibid.
228
Sobieski is on the board. Sobieski is vicepresident of WomanCare
Centers in Florida, a clinic owned by November Gang member,
Tammy Sobieski.
When asked about the November Gang, Ron Fitzsimmons
implied he approves of attempts to introduce spirituality into a
woman’s abortion experience. According to the Pittsburg Post
Gazette, he “thinks highly” 92 of attempts by abortion providers to
incorporate alternative spiritual and emotional counseling
techniques. In the article, “Hearts Full of Hurt: Abortion Clinic
Messages Reflect New Counseling Philosophy,” Fitzsimmons called
for a “national conversation on abortion.” 93 He listed the changing
abortion landscape multidimensional sonograms, partial birth
abortion and the effective strategy of prolifers as reason for fresh
104
Mackenzie Carpenter, “Hearts Full of Hurt: Abortion Clinic Messages
Reflect New Counseling Philosophy” (includes an interview with Ron
Fitzsimmons), Health, Pittsburg PostGazette, January 20, 2004,
http://www.postgazette.com/pg/04020/263254.stm.
229
abortion rhetoric. Calling “right to choose” slogans “a hollow
response,” Fitzsimmons maintained, “We need to recapture the
notion that abortion is a difficult moral choice for women, but one
that is, in fact, a moral choice.” 94
One independent clinic affiliated with NCAP has dealt
with the need for morality and spirituality by hiring a proabortion
clergy member to “counsel” patients and to provide baptisms as part
of its abortion service. At Women’s Health Care Services in Kansas,
a chaplaincy program provides “individual counseling, group
counseling and the celebration of spiritual sacraments such as
baptism of the still born fetus and blessings for the aborted fetus.” 95
Women’s Health Care Services specializes in second and
105
Ibid.
106
Ibid.
95
Women’s Health Care Services, P.A., “Meet Our Chaplain,” Women’s
Health Care Services, P.A., http:/www.drtiller.com/chap.html.
230
thirdtrimester abortions. According to the clinic’s website, more
lateterm abortions are performed at its clinic then anywhere else in
the Western Hemisphere.
The website explains “many patients request a
remembrance of their baby to take home with them.” 96 Because a
woman may desire “a token of the precious time” she and her “baby
had together” prior to the abortion, 97 the clinic offers hand prints
and footprints of the dead baby, photographs of the dead baby and
allows the woman to embrace her dead baby. 98
An anonymous letter posted on the clinic’s website states,
“We are grateful to allow her [the aborted baby] to pass from our
lives without pain and with dignity. We are grateful that we were
able to see her, hold her, baptize her and tell her goodbye. We are
108
Women’s Health Care Services, P.A., “Remembrances and Special
Requests,” http://www.drtiller.com/remembrance.html.
109
Ibid.
231
grateful for her tiny footprints as a visual reminder of her short
existence. We are grateful for her ashes and urn that will remain a
tangible part of our lives and will serve . . . as a living memorial to
her.” 99
This same NCAP member clinic has an adult sized
crematorium on site, to burn the aborted babies. A serene poster of a
leaping dolphin decorates the ceiling of the room where the
abortions are performed. In twisted fashion, while the crematorium
fires up and ashes begin to fall patients can lean back and meditate
on the words written below the poster “set them free.” 100
Independent clinics reportedly perform 90 percent of all
abortions in America, and NCAP represents one hundred and fifty
of these clinics. In keeping with the clinics new strategy, NCAP’s
110
Ibid.
111
Ibid.
100
Stephanie Simon, “A Late Decision, a Lasting Anguish,” Los Angeles
232
website includes a page entitled, “The Women Speak.” Posted on
the page are twelve letters from aborted women or their supporters.
The sampling of letters seems more then coincidental; it is an effort
to frame the debate. Of the twelve letters, eleven included mention
of God or spiritual themes such as forgiveness and prayer, three dealt
with reincarnation and seven were addressed to the unborn or
aborted babies. One such letter read, “God will save you for a time
that’s better in our lives.” 101 Another read, “You will always be my
baby. I will see you in heaven, sweetheart.” 102 The most startling
letter was written to an unborn baby prior to the abortion. It was
addressed to “the embryo inside me” and read, “I take some comfort
that this will not be painful for you and I also take comfort in the
Times, May 31, 2005.
113
National Coalition of Abortion Providers, “The Women Speak,”
National Coalition of Abortion Providers,
http://www.ncap.com/promoting_women.html.
114
1Ibid.
233
fact that God exists, heaven exists, and life begins at conception. You
are headed for more beautiful things than I could have given you
here on earth.” 103
To facilitate its new rhetoric, NCAP relies on its
educational arm, the Abortion Conversation Project, Inc. According
to its website, the ACP derives its resources directly from NCAP
members.
The website contains pointbypoint instruction on how to
guide NCAP’s new conversation into the mainstream debate. The
ACP lists three immediate goals to promote conversations between
abortion providers and supporters, to research PASS, and to
encourage relationships between clinics and clergy while creating an
environment of spirituality for patients. 104
Of the ten directors on the board of ACP, four are
115
Ibid.
116
See, http://www.abortionconversation.com.
234
November Gang members. The offices of president and vice
president are held by November Gang members, Johnston and
Renee Chelian respectively, and Taft serves as a national
"conversationalist" for the project.
As part of its goal to address postabortion health, ACP co
sponsored an exploratory meeting on postabortion emotional
health in November 2003 with Exhale, a direct service postabortion
counseling organization. The closed meeting lasted a day and a half.
Participants included Johnston and Taft.
The report listed “incomplete philosophical
conceptualization within institutionalized religion … regarding
abortion and spirituality” 105 as an obstacle to women’s emotional
health. In the segment of the meeting, “What Do We Need to
Know?” participants explored reclaiming abortion as a moral
105
The Abortion Conversation Project, Inc., and Exhale, “Report from an
Exploratory Meeting on Post Abortion Emotional Health,” November,
2003.
235
decision. During discussion of, “What Needs to Shift,” certain
words in common usage were criticized for not adequately
communicating the proabortion message. To address this difficulty,
participants were encouraged to “offer new slogans and language at
prochoice events” and to “expand the number of safe places for
women to talk about their abortion experience.” 106
Abortion Leaders: Waiting to Exhale
Exhale’s executive director, Aspen Baker, serves on the
advisory board of Our Truths/Nuestras Verdadesan, an online and
print magazine created in collaboration with the ACP. In an obvious
attempt to normalize the abortion experience, Our Truths/Nuestras
Verdadesan offers feminist testimonies from postaborted women.
The magazine is slated for publication in June, 2005. In addition to
106
Ibid.
236
Aspen, five November Gang members serve on the twelve member
board.
Exhale is the first feminist “afterabortion” talkline in the
country. It began in June 2000 in the San Francisco Bay Area of
California. Five years later the counseling service launched multi
lingual, national coverage. With the new coverage, Exhale expects
3,000 callers a year.
In addition to its toll free talkline, Exhale provides training
in postabortion counseling and conducts public education to
increase approval for abortion. According to a recent ad, Exhale’s
peer counselors are expected to “increase awareness that abortion is
normal in the reproductive lives of women.” 107
According to Aspen and Carolina De Robertis, program
director for the organization, “For women who have abortions, the
107
The Volunteer Center, “Peer Counselor,” The Volunteer Center,
http://www.thevolunteercenter2.net/org/opp/1311988printer.html
(accessed January 5, 2005).
237
call to reframe the debate is long overdue.” 108 Exhale created a
counseling framework which echoes a client’s language, validates her
experience and feelings, and incorporates cultural sensitivity. This
new frame is labeled “provoice.” The “ProVoice frame recognizes
that whatever a person is feeling is normal and thereby breaks down
stigma.” 109
Exhale claims its counseling model “respects each woman’s
individual belief system” 110 yet one of its volunteer counselors is
employed at a local abortion clinic. Cristina Correa, center manager
of Choice Medical Group in Sacrament, has been a counselor with
Exhale for two years.
108
Aspen Baker and Carolina De Roberts, “ProVoice: A Framework for
Communicating Personal Experiences with Abortion” (PDF file), Exhale,
http://www.4exhale.org/publications.htm (accessed June 5, 2005).
109
Ibid.
110
Exhale, “Programs,” http://www.4Exhale.org/Pages/program.html
(accessed December, 27, 2004).
238
Exhale has ties to the ACP, the November Gang, Catholics
for a Free Choice, and the Religious Coalition for Reproductive
Choice. It has received grants from, among others, the feminist
Third Wave Foundation, the Mary Wohlford Foundation and the
Women’s Foundation of California. The president of the Women’s
Foundation, Patti Chang, believes, “Exhale’s work goes beyond
providing important services to individual women. Collectively,
Exhale is reducing the stigma associated with abortions and moving
the dialogue to the often neglected place of postabortion.” 111
Johnston is a former national advisor to Exhale and its
website provides a link to Johnston’s Pregnant? Need Help?
Pregnancy Options Workbook. November Gang member, Jennifer
Baumgardner, serves on the current advisory council.
111
The Women’s Foundation of California, “News,” The Women’s
Foundation of California, http://www.womensfoundca.org/news_ts.html
(accessed June 5, 2005).
239
Planned Parenthood’s Religious Right
A link on ACP’s site is to the Religious Consultation on
Population, Reproductive Health and Ethics (TRC). Daniel C.
Maguire serves as TRC’s
president. Maguire is a Professor of Moral Theological Ethics at
Marquette University and the author of the controversial book
Sacred Choices: The Right to Contraception and Abortion in Ten World
Religions, a book that spiritually justifies abortion.
Not to be outdone by NCAP, Planned Parenthood
Federation of America, Inc., is “encouraging their staff members,
volunteers, clients, donors, supporters, and other friends to read and
study Sacred Choices.” 112 PPFA even created its own interactive
workbook, Planned Parenthood Discusses “Sacred Choices,” based on
124
Daniel C. Maguire, foreword, Planned Parenthood Discusses “Sacred
Choices”: The Right to Contraception and Abortion in Major World
Religions,” (n.p.: Planned Parenthood Federation of America, 2002), 8.
240
Maguire’s book. It was designed to be used in conjunction with
Sacred Choices.
Maguire is a longtime PPFA insider, a member of the
PPFA’s Clergy Advisory Board and a popular speaker at PPFA
events. In January 2004, Maguire spoke at a PPFA event in New
York. During his speech he referred to abortion services as “not just
good work but holy work.” 113 In an article titled, “Sex, Ethics, and
One Billion Adolescents,” Maguire argued “the right to a safe
abortion, is an issue of religious freedom.” 114 This concept
permeates Maguire’s Sacred Choices. The book repeatedly
conceptualized abortion as a religious right, “the right to choose an
125
Emma Pearse, “ProChoice Clergy Raising Moral, Religious Voice,”
Women’s ENews, March 18, 2004,
http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/1753/context/archive
(accessed Septmeber 24, 2004).
126
Daniel C. Maguire, “Sex, Ethics, and One Billion Adolescents,” The
Religious Consultation on Population, Reproductive Health and Ethics,
http://www.religiousconsultation.org/sex,_ethics_&_one_billion_adolesc
ents.htm (accessed September 24, 2004).
241
abortion has deep religious roots. Laws that deny women this right
are unjust and violate religious freedoms.” 115
In PPFA’s workbook, abortion is called a “sacred choice.” 116
Maguire, one of seven contributors, also wrote the foreword. In it,
he maintained that for a woman unprepared to give birth “it is an
equally sacred choice to abort a holy choice a choice, in Christian
terms that is full of grace.” 117
The workbook reveals that the nation’s leading abortion
provider is studying abortion in a religious context and is asking
Maguire to educate abortion industry insiders. 118 According to
127
Daniel C. Maguire, Sacred Choices: The Right to Contraception and
Abortion in Ten World Religions (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress,
2001), 105.
128
Daniel C. Maguire, Foreword, Planned Parenthood Discusses
“Sacred Choices”: The Right to Contraception and Abortion in Major
World Religions,” (n.p.: Planned Parenthood Federation of America,
2002), 8.
129
Ibid.
130
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, introduction to Planned
242
PPFA, Maguire’s book is only the starting point for a spiritual
conceptualization of abortion rights. “The next steps,” according to
the workbook, “are to understand the implications of Sacred Choices
for the future of reproductive rights . . . and to disseminate what
we learn as widely as possible.” 119
In keeping with the goal to distribute religious justification
for abortion, PPFA promoted a documentary film based on
Maguire’s book. The film, “Sacred Choices and Abortion,” was
advertised on PPFA’s home page and a link was provided to TRC’s
website. According to PPFA, the film “explores ‘the big lie’ that
religion is opposed to a woman’s right to choose.” 120
Parenthood Discusses “Sacred Choices”: The Right to Contraception
and Abortion in Major World Religions,” (n.p.: Planned Parenthood
Federation of America, 2002), 12.
131
Ibid.
120
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., “The Latest,”
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc.,
http://plannedparenthood.org (accessed December 17, 2004).
243
The Religious Institute on Sexual Morality, Justice, and
Healing received recognition for its “Open Letter to Religious
Leaders” in an article in PPFA’s online publication, Choice!
Magazine. PPFA provided a link to the Religious Institute and made
mention of PPFA insider, Ignacio Castuera’s participation in
developing the letter. 121
At the Religious Institute’s colloquium, proabortion
theologians from various religious traditions composed a religious
justification for abortion. The letter asserted the Bible is silent on
abortion. It encouraged religious leaders to offer postaborted
women and their family members special “worship opportunities” to
grieve abortion. 122 But the most telling assertion was in the section
121
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., “Religious Institute
Honors Roe,” Choice! Magazine, January 18, 2005,
http://www.plannedparenthood.org (accessed April, 16, 2005).
122
Debra W. Hafner and Rev. Larry L. Greenfield, “An Open Letter to
Religious Leaders on Abortion as a Moral Decision” (Religious Institute
on Sexual Morality, Justice, and Healing, presented January 22, 2005),
http://www.religiousinstitute.org/Abortion_OpenLetter.pdf (accessed
June 5, 2005).
244
on “Religious Pluralism.” The open letter stated, “No government
committed to human rights and democracy can privilege the
teachings of one religion over another. No single religious voice can
speak for all faith traditions on abortion, nor should government
take sides on religious differences … We oppose any attempt to
make specific religious doctrine concerning abortion the law for all
Americans.” 123
According to PPFA, “Once it is understood that
reproductive rights are solidly grounded in the world’s major
religions, then it must follow . . . a government that restricts those
rights abuses the religious freedoms of its citizens.” 124
PPFA is now claiming to be “engaged in a prophetic and
123
Ibid.
136
Federation of America, 2002), 13, (italics mine).
245
social action ministry,” 125 which represents “the faith traditions of
people in every corner of the world.” 126 The stage is being set to
promote abortion as an exercise in religious freedom. Imbedded in a
2003 political action speech by PPFA president, Gloria Feldt, was
the assertion, “forced motherhood is a violation of women’s human
rights and a violation of the ethical and religious beliefs of most
Americans,” 127 repeating the argument from Sacred Choices. PPFA is
putting abortion rights in a religious frame so that to disallow or
limit a woman’s access to abortion is to prohibit her free exercise of
religion. In other words, to deny abortion rights, is to deny religious
137
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, afterword to Planned
Federation of America, 2002), 59 (italics mine).
138
Ibid., 60.
139
Gloria Feldt, “Hypocrisy, Theocracy, and Reclaiming our Birthright of
Freedom,” (speech, City Club of Portland, Portland, OR, May 16, 2003),
http://www.behindeverychoice.com/030527_portland_speech.asp
(accessed September 24, 2004).
246
rights. By promoting abortion this way, PPFA moves the debate
outside the reach of secular arguments and restrictions and shores up
its political base.
According to the prolife organization, Life Decisions
International, PPFA is a notforprofit entity that still manages to
end each fiscal year with an average 20 million dollar surplus. Its
fiscal year income for 20022003 was reportedly more than seven
hundred million dollars. 128 Unlike feminists who possess an actual
affinity for feminist spirituality, PPFA is an industry. In other
words, if PPFA is adopting a spiritual justification for abortion, it is
because it is good business.
In order to market abortion as a religious right, PPFA is
building relationships within the community of faith. The PPFA
140
Life Decisions International, “Basic Facts About Planned Parenthood,”
Life Decisions International,
http://www.fightpp.org/show.cfm?page=basic, also available in brochure
form.
247
Clergy Advisory Board began in 1994 and the formation of PPFA
ProChoice Religious Network soon followed. Currently, PPFA has
a countrywide network of nearly 2,000 clergy and lay people, 150 of
which fill leadership roles within the entity. 129 It has a Clergy
Advisory Board and clergy are employed “as counselors and public
affairs officers.” 130 According to the workbook, “clergy volunteers
counsel clinic patients and staff, support and use Planned
Parenthood educational programs in their congregations and
communities, and advocate on behalf of Planned Parenthood in the
public arena.” 131
In July 2001, Maguire was the featured speaker at the
annual PPFA Political Academy where he received standing
141
Federation of America, 2002), 11.
142
Ibid.
143
Ibid., (italics mine).
248
ovations; the same event sponsored a successful workshop on
“winning clergy support for Planned Parenthood.” 132 A 2001 issue
of Clergy Voices described how Maguire was scheduled to speak at
PPFA events in Los Angeles, Rhode Island and Denver during the
same year. 133
In March of next year, Maguire is to be the feature speaker
at an annual event by Planned Parenthood Centers of West
Michigan. The event is being used as an outreach to the religious
community. Information regarding the event has been disseminated
to local churches and a discussion forum is scheduled for after the
speech. According to the Communications Coordinator of the
144
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., “PPFA Political
Academy Gets a Theology Lesson,” Clergy Voices, 6, no. 2, (2001),
http://www.plannedparenthood.org/clergy/clergy20011116.html
145
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., “PPFA Clergy
Advisory Board Members Hit the Road,” Clergy Voices, 6, no. 2, (2001),
http://www.plannedparenthood.org/clergy/clergy20011116.html
(accessed September 24, 2004)
249
Planned Parenthood Centers of West Michigan, “I hope . . . [the
churches] consider it with an open mind. With Dr. Maguire’s
presentation, we’d like people to look at issues in a new light.” 134
Just recently, PPFA selected a national chaplain “to
articulate the spiritual dimensions of sexuality and reproduction,” 135
euphemisms for abortion. In a press release dated March 8, 2004,
PPFA announced the appointment of longtime abortion proponent
and activist, Reverend Ignacio Castuera to the new position.
According to PPFA, Castuera is expected to “play a pivotal role in
communicating the theological justification for choice.” 136
146
Rachel Mavis, “Marquette Professor to Address Planned Parenthood
Event,” Grand Valley Lanthorn, September 21, 2004,
http://www.lanthorn.com/archives.asp?aid=2022 (Accessed September
22, 2004).
147
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, “Press Releases,” Planned
Parenthood Federation of America,
http://www.plannedparenthood.org/about/pr/040308_chaplain.html
148
Ibid.
250
As indicated by PPFA’s “Employment Opportunity”
posting on its web site, the purpose of this position is to articulate
“the moral, ethical, and religious basis for our work.” 137 The national
chaplain will be required to partner with “affiliates to expand and
enhance their relationships with religious organizations in their
communities, particularly those affiliates that already have faith
based partnerships or are under attack by religious organizations”
and will report to PPFA’s senior vice president. 138
Local PPFA clinics are adopting a similar approach.
Planned Parenthood of East Central Illinois provided a link on their
website to “After Your Abortion . . . A Natural Response,” from the
Hope Medical Group for Women. 139 “After Your Abortion . . . A
149
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, “Employment
Opportunities,” Planned Parenthood Federation of America,
http://www.plannedparenthood.org/... JOBS/nat_030826chap.html
(posted August 26, 2003; site discontinued).
150
Ibid.
151
Hope Medical Group for Women, “After Your Abortion...A Natural
251
Natural Response,” offers various coping techniques to postaborted
women. To help women overcome their postabortion grief, the
clinics suggest prayer, Yoga, Tai Chi, meditation and creating a
memorial service for the aborted baby. The clinics even advocated
spiritism; women are instructed to imagine a wise guide and to listen
to the guides counsel. 140
Ava TorreBueno, former director of counseling at Planned
Parenthood of San Diego and Riverside Counties, teaches post
aborted women to visualize a being, “Whatever form this being
takes, it is there to protect you, care about you, and help you
understand yourself.” 141
Response,” Hope Medical Group for Women,
http://www.hopemedical.com/5.htm (accessed September 25, 2004).
140
See Planned Parenthood of Eastern Central Illinois,
https://www.ppeci.org/2002/medfpg.html (accessed September 25,
2004).
141
252
Anna Runkle is a former research analyst for PPFA. She
served as a volunteer abortion counselor and is the author of In Good
Conscience: A Practical, Emotional, and Spiritual Guide to Deciding
Whether to Have an Abortion. The book is recommended by Gloria
Feldt, PPFA’s president, and contains questions, checklists and
writein sections designed to help a woman determine if abortion is
an appropriate decision.
In her book, Runkle explained people can worship God,
“Higher Power, Goddess, Life Force, the Universe, Great Spirit, or
Creator,” or even “nature itself.” 142 In the writein section of the
book dealing with spiritual beliefs, Runkle suggested seven spiritual
practices. Of the seven, two were relating to the occult. One was
New Age meditation, and the other was occult writing. After writing
a prayer to her deity, a woman is told to “Turn the piece of paper
154
Anna Runkle, In Good Conscience: A Practical, Emotional, and
Spiritual Guide to Deciding Whether to Have an Abortion (San
Francisco: JosseyBass, 1998), 4.
253
over, empty your mind, and write a letter back from your Higher
Power.” 143
As to be expected, the questions and the personal
testimonies she chose to publish steer readers to the abortion rights
position. In Claudia’s story, the spirit of her unborn baby is said to
have visited her, giving her permission to abort. 144 Although she
admitted life begins at conception, Claudia believed “souls choose to
be born or to live a certain amount of time in the womb and then
depart, or they choose to be aborted, because they are on a path to
give them certain experiences.” 145 Claudia was convinced her unborn
baby would come back when she was ready to receive her, “Given
my agreement with my child, I did nothing other than delay her
155
Ibid., 98.
156
Claudia, interview by Anna Runkle, In Good Conscience: A Practical,
Emotional, and Spiritual Guide to Whether to Have an Abortion (San
Francisco: JosseyBass, 1998), 4546.
157
Ibid., 47.
254
return to the earth.” 146
One question prompts, “Trust for a moment that you
have a loving Higher Power who always wants what is best for you.
In what ways do you ‘hear’ your Higher Power’s wish for you?” 147
The author does not recommend studying the infallible Word of
God to know his will. Instead, she leads women into a sort of
spiritual selfdiscovery through distorted teachings. Since the
workbook does not acknowledge the God of the Bible and a
transcendent absolute truth, it cannot help but reinforce a woman’s
own selfcenteredness.
The National Abortion Federation, the abortion industry’s
professional association, represents over four hundred abortion
clinics. NAF provides ongoing training and education for members
members who include Planned Parenthood facilities, hospitals,
158
Ibid.
159
Ibid. 97.
255
educators, and private physicians.
On April 4, 2001, NAF sponsored a national consortium
entitled, “Increasing Access to Abortion for Women in Diverse
Communities” in Washington, D.C. Both cochairs of the
consortium were affiliated with PPFA as were many of the
participants.
The gathering explored the barriers to abortion for
marginalized members of society and came up with five key
recommendations to increase access. Of note was the third
recommendation “Acknowledge the Moral Agency and Spirituality
of Women who Choose Abortion.” According to the report, “In
attempting to connect the decision to have an abortion with the
overtly secular rhetoric of choice and constitutional rights, the
abortion rights movement has ceded ground to rightwing, religious
groups who use spiritual language to denounce women’s ability to
256
make moral decisions.” 148
Those who participated in the consortium “felt that using
‘choice’ as a defining framework for the abortion rights movement
has prevented mainstream organizations from highlighting the moral
agency of women who choose abortion.” 149 The report
recommended incorporating spiritual speech into the abortion
conversation, framing the issue to include the fullness of women’s
experiences, and reaching out to religious and spiritual leaders who
support abortion rights.
In conclusion, the report advised, “Leaders in the
mainstream movement must not be afraid to speak about morality
and spirituality when discussing why women choose abortion. There
is much to learn from activists … who have begun to make
148
National Abortion Federation, Increasing Access to Abortion for
Women in Diverse Communities: Recommendations from a National
Consortium (n.p.: National Abortion Federation, 2002).
149
Ibid.
257
connections with religious leaders, and who recognize the
importance of religion and spirituality as sources of healing,
community bonding, and political change.” 150
False Prophetesses
The increasing viability of unborn babies, medical and
scientific advancements, the prolife movement’s ability to
contextualize abortion as immoral, and their own disingenuous
language and unwillingness to address the emotional and spiritual
implications of abortionondemand, have caused a serious backlash
for the abortion rights movement.
As a result, abortion providers are adopting a new
communication style reflecting the language of patients, admitting
to the humanity of the unborn baby, and honoring women’s
emotional and spiritual needs. They are creating personalized
150
Ibid.
258
abortion experiences making available low lighting, music,
aromatherapy, and patient advocates. They are adapting their
counseling techniques to include spirituality inquiring as to
patients’ religious beliefs, hiring religious leaders as counselors,
imparting religious justification for abortion, and reaching out to
the religious community. In addition, many clinics are incorporating
feminist spirituality into the abortion experience itself teaching
women pagan rituals to deal with grief and providing workbooks
and counseling that encourage spiritism and witchcraft.
Because of NCAP’s association with November Gang
members, it is influenced by feminist spirituality. For PPFA on the
other hand, abortion is not about rituals or goddess worship. It is
about exploiting or twisting traditional religions to bring about
feminism’s goal of unrestricted abortion. The first example involves
witchcraft and spiritism, the other involves reaching out to the
religious community and creating a “religious rights” frame for
259
abortion. In both cases, feminists are using a spirituality of their
own creation to reframe the abortion debate.
As PPFA demonstrates, feminist spirituality is not the only
way abortion is being repackaged. Although a growing number of
abortion supporters are adopting feminist spirituality’s cyclical view
of life, others still hold to the traditional perspective that denies an
unborn baby personhood before a certain stage of biological
development or before birth. Ironically, this group often points to
the Bible as justification for abortion.
In an apparent effort to “take back the higher moral
ground,” as Loonan advised, abortion supporters are formulating
abortion in religious, even Christian,
terms. They claim their perspective on abortion is “another valid,
Bible based alternative.” 151
151
Anne Eggebroten, ed., Abortion My Choice, God’s Grace (Pasadena:
New Paradigm Books, 1994), 18.
260
They assert a woman “can’t be separated from God.” 152 The
founding director of the Religious Coalition for Abortion Rights in
Southern California goes even further claiming that deciding
whether or not to abort actually brings a woman closer to God,
“Knowing that God is with her in the abortion decision ¼ brings a
woman into deeper communion with the One from whom all life
springs.” 153
Both beliefs demonstrate an arrogant contempt for the Word
of God. Sin separates us from God’s holy presence, 154 and the
“deeper communion” with God promised to women who
contemplate abortion is deception. The Bible warns, “If I regard
152
Pimpernel Press, 1997), 110 (italics in the original).
153
Bunnie Riedel, foreword to Abortion : My Choice, God’s Grace, ed.,
Anne Eggebroten (Pasadena: New Paradigm Books, 1994).
154
Isa. 59:13.
261
iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” 155
One of the more popular excuses for abortion asserts that
since the Bible says God is a God of love and nothing can separate
us from his love, God condones abortion. Another argument claims
because God designed us with free will abortion is a woman’s
prerogative.
The common biblical arguments for abortion are:
· The Bible is not specific on when “potential life” becomes a
person.
· God is silent on the issue of abortion.
· God’s grace will make allowance for abortion.
· Since God created women with free will, women have an
innate right to choose abortion.
155
Ps. 66:18.
262
· Women must have the ability to choose to bring new life
into the world because Jesus Christ willing chose to die on
the cross to bring us eternal life.
· Because God has revealed himself as a Covenant Maker and
we are made in his image, women should only bring to
birth children with whom they are willing to enter into a
covenant relationship.
· The intentional destruction of human life is not always a
moral wrong.
God’s perspective on abortion and the argument that the
Bible is not specific on when “potential life” becomes a person is
addressed fully in chapter four. In brief, it is evil to murder an
unborn baby 156 because personhood begins at conception. 157
The rationale that birth is the beginning of human life
156
See 2 Kings 8:12.
263
comes from Genesis chapter two, “And the LORD God formed man
of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath
of life; and man became a living soul.” 158 Abortion supporters claim
this verse demonstrates human life begins when an infant takes her
first breath, ensoulment occurs at birth.
This argument is rather like comparing apples with oranges.
Adam was formed of the dust of the ground and Eve was created
from Adam’s rib. Adam and Eve never experienced birth. Theirs was
a unique beginning. In contrast, Adam and Eve’s descendants begin
life at conception and go through a period of growth and maturity
in the womb. Within the womb, the placenta allows for the
exchange of oxygen. An unborn baby receives oxygen through the
umbilical cord and “breathes” amniotic fluid into her lungs. The
157
See Matt. 22:32, Ps. 22:10, 51:5, and 139:1316.
158
Gen. 2:7.
264
Bible teaches ensoulment happens before a child is born. 159 In way
of an example, the Bible describes unborn “infants which never saw
light” as “at rest.” 160 Unborn babies who die before birth will never
know an independent breath, yet according to this passage they
possess eternal souls and are at rest. More to the point, a verse taken
out of context or interpreted in such a way to contradict other
scripture is not a valid reading of the Word. The Bible is a complete
work and must be studied in its entirety.
The argument that God is silent on the issue of abortion
flies in the face of reason. Although it is true that abortion is never
mentioned by name in the Bible, God is far from silent on the issue.
The fact the Bible does not refer to surgical or chemical abortion
specifically is not a religious justification for murdering unborn
159
Ps. 22:10, Ps. 51:5.
160
Job 3:16 17.
265
children. A similar argument could be used to rationalize any
number of modern evils. The Bible never explicitly condemns
releasing mustard gas on children, exposing children to small pox or
anthrax, dropping nuclear bombs on children or using hydrogen
cyanide gas in gas chambers to murder children but defending such
practices based on the Bible’s “silence” would be unimaginably
wicked.
It is asserted God’s grace will make allowance for abortion.
However, grace is not a license to sin. We are warned not to “sin
willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth.” 161
In the book of Romans, Paul reminds us, “What shall we say then?
Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How
shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” 162 For a
woman to abort her unborn baby because God will forgive her is
161
Heb. 10:26.
162
Rom. 6:12.
266
equivalent to a woman murdering her child and claiming it was an
appropriate action because of God’s goodness. This view of abortion
distorts God’s character and it calls into question a woman’s
salvation experience.
Jesus said, "If you love me, keep my commandments." 163
When a person is saved, we see evidence of the new birth. There is
conviction of sin, repentance, faith in Jesus Christ and obedience.
Charles Spurgeon said, “It is a shameful thing for a man to profess
discipleship and yet refuse to learn his Lord’s will upon certain
points, or even dare to decline obedience when that will is known.
How can a man be a disciple of Christ when he lives in open
disobedience to Him?” 164
The assumption that since God created women with free
163
John 14:15.
164
Charles Spurgeon, The Best of C. H. Spurgeon (Grand Rapids: Baker
Book House, 1977), 113.
267
will, women have an innate right to choose abortion is another
dangerous pretext. A woman does not have a “right” to an abortion
because God created her with free will. Can you imagine a
defendant in a murder trial declaring to the judge, “I did nothing
wrong when I killed my baby. I have free will and I choose to
exercise it.” We will all stand before the Supreme Judge one day and
I can guarantee you that defense will not be acceptable in his court
room. Yes, a woman can choose to murder her unborn baby but the
law God’s law prohibits it. God grants us freedom within his
established parameters; anything outside of his boundaries is sin. 165
The fact that Jesus Christ willingly chose to die on the cross
to bring us eternal life, does not grant women the right to choose
between life and abortion. When Jesus ascended Golgotha and
positioned himself on the cross, he chose to sacrifice his own life. A
woman who chooses abortion is choosing to sacrifice someone else’s.
165
Gen. 2:1617.
268
The Bible tells us to put “on the Lord Jesus Christ.” 166 Jesus
demonstrated for us the right response to an unplanned pregnancy
while praying to his Father in the Garden of Gethsemane the night
before his crucifixion. He said, “not my will, but thine, be done.”
For the Christian, God is more then Savior; He is Lord. When we
chose Christ, we chose death to our selfish desires and ambitions
and yes to a surrendered life. 167 We have fellowship with Christ’s
sacrifice by mortifying “the deeds of the body.” 168 Our body is to be
a living sacrifice 169 and we are instructed to lay down our life for
others, “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down
his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the
166
Rom. 13:14.
167
2 Cor. 5:15.
168
Rom. 8:13.
169
Rom. 12:1.
269
brethren.” 170 This sacrificial love is central to the Christian faith.
The Bible warns in the last days people shall be without
natural affection, “having a form of godliness, but denying the
power thereof: from such turn away.” 171 This lack of natural
affection is evident in the justification for abortion that maintains
women should only bring to birth children with whom they are
willing to enter into a covenant relationship. According to the
Bible, children belong to God and unborn babies are children. To
argue for abortions based on the belief that unwanted children
deserve death is unbiblical and unmerciful.
In the book of Ezekiel, God compares Jerusalem to an
unwanted baby left to die. In the New Living Translation the
passage reads, “When you were born, no one cared about you. Your
umbilical cord was left uncut, and you were never washed, rubbed
170
1 John 3:16.
171
2 Tim. 3:15.
270
with salt, and dressed in warm clothing. No one had the slightest
interest in you; no one pitied you or cared for you. On the day you
were born, you were dumped in a field and left to die, unwanted.
But I came by and saw you there, helplessly kicking about in your
own blood. As you lay there, I said, `Live!'” 172 In this moving
allegory God commanded the baby to live. A few verses down we
read he adopted the baby and entered into a covenant relationship
with her.
God’s love and mercy should be our example. Jesus
instructed to be “merciful, as your Father also is merciful.” 173 This
argument also ignores the fact God has entered into a covenant with
us and his covenant precludes abortion. The divine institution of
marriage was part of God’s initial covenant with mankind. The
covenant of creation, given before the Fall, outlined man’s
184
Ezek. 16:46.
185
Luke 6:36.
271
responsibility to subdue and exercise dominion over the earth. I also
established God’s prohibition about the Tree of Knowledge of Good
and Evil. This creation covenant includes a procreation clause, if you
will, to allow for other people to experience God’s covenantal grace.
Part of man’s covenant responsibility is to “be fruitful, and multiply,
and replenish the earth.” 174 God always provides for the future
succession of a covenant. Reproduction is intrinsic to the holy and
permanent institution of marriage. Since conception marks the
beginning of personhood and God is the author of life, abortion
disannuls a specific part of God’s creation covenant, the succession
of the covenant. We are not upholding our part of God’s covenant
with us when we kill our unborn children.
186
Gen. 1:28; see also Gen. 9:1.
272
Lastly, it is true the destruction of human life is not always
a moral wrong. The sixth commandment reads, “You shall not
commit murder.” Killing and murder is vastly different. Few people
would call a soldier defending his country or a father defending his
daughter from a violent crime, a murderer. A soldier is authorized by
his country to take life and a father is exercising his God given
responsibility to protect and defend his child. In a sense, both are
killing in the line of duty. Murder, in contrast, is to kill someone
without legal right. Revenge and vigilantism are unsupported by
scripture.
God said, “See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no
god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound and I heal: neither is
there any that can deliver out of my hand.” 175 God determines who
lives and who dies. There are examples in the Bible where God
commands death as punishment and wages war against his enemies.
187
Deut. 32:39.
273
The nation of Israel was told to completely destroy heathen nations,
including women and children. In these situations, God the Author
of Life invested men with the authority to execute his righteous
judgment.
Since life is the sole providence of God, we must not decide
issues of life and death contrary to his revealed will in the Bible. We
read in Exodus, “Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent
and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.” 176
According to God’s Word, we are not to shed innocent blood.
Whatever the spiritual justification, in God’s economy abortion is
murder.
188
Exodus 23:7.
274
Points to Remember:
1. A woman who sins hurts her own soul (Prov. 8:36).
2. As a woman thinks in her heart, so she is (Prov. 23:7).
3. Whatever wickedness a woman’s heart is tainted with, results in
a corresponding sin (Mark 7:2123).
4. The more women deceived by feminist spirituality, the more
children prenatally murdered (2 Tim. 3:13, Ezra 9:6, Jer.
7:26).
275
CHAPTER 7
A CALL TO REPENTANCE
Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my
people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.
Isaiah 58:1
I have set watchman upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold
their peace day or night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silent.
Isaiah 62:6
The Old Testament prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel
were commanded by God to rebuke the sin of child sacrifice. These
warnings were not limited to the faithful remnant in Israel who still
obeyed God; they were spoken for all to hear. Nor were these
warnings restricted to the place of worship; they were proclaimed
throughout the rebellious nation.
In one example, Jeremiah was sent to the site where the
278
human sacrifices were performed to prophecy to the religious and
political leaders of his day. The prophet was told to go to the valley
of Hinnom and bring the leaders of the people and the priests with
him. 1 Tophet, the area where the sacrifices took place, was located
within the valley of Hinnom. So abhorrent was the valley of
Hinnom to God that Jesus used this term to denote hell in Matthew
chapter 5 and Luke chapter twelve. The narrow valley of Hinnom
separated Mount Zion from a place that later came to be called the
“Hill of Evil Counsel.” The “Hill of Evil Counsel” is believed to be
where the house of the high priest Caiaphas stood when the religious
rulers plotted to put Jesus to death.
Imagine for a moment what the scene must have looked
like. One man stands before the hostile nation holding a small clay
jar. The stench of burning flesh sickens those present. Smoke wafts.
Fragile black ashes fall. Babies cry. All the while the merciless idol of
1
Jer. 19:2.
279
Moloch looks on with fire roaring from its’ hollow belly.
The frenzied drum beat slows as the people, with mocking
interest, quiet to hear what the strange weeping prophet will say.
With a loud voice full of power and authority the prophet declares,
“Hear ye the word of the LORD, O Kings of Judah, and inhabitants
of Israel. Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I
will bring evil upon this place, the which whosoever heareth, his ears
shall tingle. Because they have forsaken me, and have estranged this
place, and have burned incense in it unto other gods, whom neither
they nor their fathers have known, nor the kings of Judah, and have
filled this place with the blood of innocents; They have also built the
high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings
unto Baal, which I commanded not, nor spake it, neither came it
into my mind: Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD,
that this place shall no more be called Tophet, nor The valley of
280
Hinnom, but The valley of slaughter.” 2
The people’s amusement turns to shocked silence. Jeremiah
continues the prophecy of judgment. He raises the clay jar high
above his head and throws it violently to the ground. The jar
smashes. The broken pieces of clay lay at the feet of the priests and
the rulers. A moment passes, then another. A sense of doom settles
on the crowd. Through tears the prophet concludes, “Even so will I
break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter’s vessel, that
cannot be made whole again: and they shall bury them in Tophet,
till there be no place to bury.”3
From there, Jeremiah went directly to the Lord’s house and
preached in the outward court where all the people could hear. The
prophet publicly denounced the sin of child sacrifice where the
2
Jer. 19:36.
3 Jer. 19:11
281
murders took place and then confronted God’s people with that
truth in the place of worship. In Jeremiah chapter twenty, verse one,
we read that Pashur, “the chief governor in the house of the LORD
heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things.” He beat the prophet
and had him imprisoned.
The Church’s Responsibility: “Watchmen, What of the Night?”
Today we stand in our own valley of Hinnom. People are in
hell. Idolatry and child sacrifice surround us. There are many
religious leaders from the “Hill of Evil Counsel” but few prophets
pointing the way to Mount Zion and eternal life.
Just as in ancient Israel, the Lord has prophets and
watchmen speaking and interceding for our nation. These prophetic
voices are warning the Church as to her complicity in abortion.
With one voice they are decrying the sin of abortion, equating it
with ancient child sacrifice, and warning of impending judgment.
282
At great personal cost, these humble men and women are praying
and pleading for corporate repentance.
Operation Rescue has been a faithful voice for the unborn
and a shout of warning on the walls of the Church. Operation
Rescue/Operation Save America recently concluded its Walk Across
America tour. In a prophetic visual, the walk team consisted of a
man sounding a biblical shofar, a broken set of Ten
Commandments, an aborted baby, a white horse marked judgment
and a donkey marked mercy. As the solemn procession passed by the
question left to observers was whether America wants to meet Jesus
Christ in judgment or mercy.
According to the ministry, when God’s people would not
listen to his Word, “He would call his prophets to dramatize His
message sometimes in bizarre ways: Moses with all of the plagues,
miracles, and judgments; Isaiah walked around Jerusalem naked for
three years; Ezekiel laid outdoors on his side beside a model of
283
Jerusalem for 390 days, etc.” 4
The ministry’s website explained, “When words fail God
speaks in ‘Living Parables’.” 5 Led by the Reverends Flip Benham and
Rusty Thomas, the Walk Across America was meant to call the
Church of America to repentance over abortion. The trek began in
California and finished in Washington, D.C. Their large caravan
rested in local church parking lots or at the homes of willing
families. As they traveled, they were met along the way by fellow
Christians. A woman who witnessed the procession with her two
small children told me how she was moved to tears by the powerful,
visceral message. During its final public demonstration in our
nation’s capital, Reverend Benham warned, “Abortion will come to
an end in America either through our repentance or the cataclysmic
4
Operation Rescue/ Operation Save America, “The Walk Across
America,” Operation Rescue/ Operation Save America,
http://www.operationsaveamerica.org/walk/live/index.html (accessed
284
judgments of Almighty God. One way or another, it will come to an
end.” 6
Of course, Operation Rescue/Operation Save America is not
the only voice of warning. God has watchmen calling out from every
corner of America. Matthew Henry wrote, “It is our duty to enquire
of the watchmen ¼what of the night?” 7 Unfortunately, the Church
rarely enquires of the watchmen, and if we do hear a shout of alarm
all too often we feign deafness. The Church has become not only
hard of hearing, but blind. Most Christians close their eyes to the
5
Ibid.
6
Kristene O’Dell, “It is Finished! But the Battle Has Just Begun,”
Operation Rescue/Operation Save America,
http://www.operationsaveamerica.org/walk/live/index.html
7
Matthew Henry, “Complete Commentary on Isaiah 21,” Matthew Henry
Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible,
http://www.searchgodsword.org/com/mhc
com/view.cgi?book=isa&chapter=021 (accessed September 25, 2004).
285
sin of abortion. Others respond with platitudes and a shrug of their
shoulder, “I’m personally opposed to abortion but…” Some support
politicians who create laws in favor of abortion. Still others shed the
blood of their own children and behave as though no sin has been
committed. Such attitudes engender a lukewarm Christianity that
God will vomit from his mouth.
In the book of Leviticus, God promised to turn against the
person who committed child sacrifice and to separate that person
from the community “because he hath given of his seed unto
Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name.” 8
This passage does not imply the people carried out child sacrifice in
the sanctuary; it refers to those who would worship in the holy
sanctuary after having murdered children.
In Ezekiel we read of those who sacrificed children and then
entered God’s house with unrepentant hearts, “For when they had
8
Lev. 20:3.
286
slain their children to their idols, then they came the same day into
my sanctuary to profane it; and, lo; this have they done in the midst
of mine house.” 9 By practicing child sacrifice and then entering the
sanctuary, the people made God’s house filthy!
By tolerating and supporting abortion Christians are
defiling God’s house. When a Christian aborts her unborn child she
has defiled the temple of the Holy Spirit. When a person professes
Christ but is complicit in abortion she profanes God’s holy name.
To our great shame, we are all guilty on some level of the sin of child
sacrifice.
The Bible tells us not to practice child sacrifice, even as
those around us do. 10 We are to avoid falsehoods “and the innocent
and righteous slay thou not.” 11 We are also warned not to “frameth
9
Ezek. 23:39.
10
Exod. 23:2, Deut. 12:30, 31 and 2 Kings 17:15.
11
Exod. 23:7
287
mischief by a law” and “condemn the innocent blood.” 12 However,
in God’s balance it is not enough to simply be against abortion.
What is the Church’s responsibility? Christians are called to
deliver those unjustly sentenced to death. 13 Furthermore, the Bible
says if we refuse to stand for the innocent, God will judge our
inaction, “If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death,
and those that are ready to be slain; If thous sayest, Behold, we knew
it not; doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? and he that
keepeth thy soul, doth not he know it? and shall not he render to
every man according to his works?” 14
We know from the passage above in Leviticus, child
sacrifice is an offense to God. Leviticus chapter twenty, verse two,
instructs the people of ancient Israel to stone to death the person
12
Ps. 94:2022.
13
Prov. 31:8 9.
14
Prov. 24:1112.
288
who practices it. Naturally, I am not calling for a return to public
stoning; I share this verse to make the point God expects his people
to act. God charged the people to exact his judgment. This edict was
so important that if the people failed to, God promised to. “And if
the people of the land do any way hide their eyes from the man,
when he giveth of his seed unto Molech, and kill him not: Then I
will set my face against that man.” 15 We can construe from this
passage there were people who connived at child sacrifice, who
ignored God’s command to bring an end to the sin. However, their
inaction in no way absolved them from their responsibility. God
expected his people to act on his word. 16 Their inaction was sin.
God has given us proactive commands. Christians have
been charged with the duty, “Look not every man on his own
15
Leviticus 22:45.
16
James 2:17, John 5:36.
289
things, but every man also on the things of others.” 17 As Christians,
we are our brother’s keeper and Jesus compared not ministering to
the less fortunate to not serving him, “Then shall they also answer
him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a
stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto
thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you,
Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to
me.” 18
We are instructed, “Thou shalt not hate they brother in
thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not
suffer sin upon him.” 19
We are also told, “He that saith unto the wicked, Thou art
righteous; him shall the people curse, nations shall abhor him: But
17
Phil. 2:4.
18
Matt. 25:4445.
19
Lev. 19:17.
290
to them that rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall
come upon them.” 20
Abortion in our country speaks of the biblical story of
Baalim and the people of Israel. Baalim was hired by Israel’s enemies
the Moabites to curse the people. As much as he wanted to, it was
impossible for Baalim to put a curse on God’s people. “How shall I
curse, whom God hath not cursed?” 21 When Balaam could not curse
them, he taught the Moabites to put a “stumblingblock before the
children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit
fornication” 22 with the women of Moab. 23
The people of God were under the blessings of God. It took
sin to bring a curse. Has our Christian nation brought curses on
20
Prov. 24:2425.
21
Num. 23:8.
22
Rev. 2:14.
23
Num. 25:1.
291
itself through fornication, idolatry and the shedding of innocent
blood? God has set before us “life and death, blessing and
cursing.” 24 God will not bless what he has already cursed. “Whoso
sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the
image of God made he man.” 25 Sin has caused us to step out from
under the covering of the blood of Jesus Christ and the blessings of
God. As long as the Church remains unrepentant over the sin of
abortion, Jesus’ blood cannot atone for the blood which has been
shed.
Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, used a javelin to kill two
unrepentant people and thereby stayed the plague of judgment from
Israel. His actions speak of cutting off sin from the camp to restore
the blessings of God. The couple he killed, a prince of the house of
Simeon and a Midianite princess, showed no contrition when
24
Deut. 30:19.
25
Gen. 9:6.
292
confronted with their gross sexual immorality and idolatry. The
princess’ name was Cozbi, which means lie or deception. Phinehas
ended the deception by Israel’s enemies to bring about the spiritual
ruin of the nation. Because Phinehas was “zealous for his God,” he
acted. He brought an end to sin and was rewarded with God’s
“covenant of peace.” 26
God desires men and women to be spiritual javelin
throwers. Christians must halt the curse. We must act in a zealous
way to bring the Church and this nation back under the covering
blood of Jesus, back under the blessings of God.
Tent of Sacrifice
In the process of writing this book, I had a dream that
26
Num. 25:114.
293
spoke to me about the Church’s complicity in abortion.
I dreamt I was outdoors during a pleasant day. I was in a
place reminiscent of a quaint New England village. Trees dotted the
landscape and I noticed their leaves had turned the flaming colors of
autumn. I was immediately impressed with the beauty and seeming
tranquility of the place.
In the center of the village was a large area of perfectly tended
grass the village green. It was set between intersecting roadways. I
saw buildings across the roads bordering the village green. The
buildings faced the green. They were virtually identical to each
other, with white shutters and front porches. It was a perfect
portrait of traditional New England. Yet, it was strange there was
no movement anywhere, no bustling sounds of village life.
I grew up in Massachusetts so the setting of my dream was a
familiar one. One of the more charming facts about New England is
that many of the towns and villages have these communal greens.
294
Historically, the village green was the heart of the community. A
white steepled church or meetinghouse sat at one edge of the green.
The meetinghouse functioned as a place of worship and as a civic
building. Usually a general store, a blacksmith shop, a school and a
tavern bordered the green. Homes were built around it. With the
church at its focal point, the village green joined the residents into a
community.
In my dream, an enormous white tent with loose side panels
was positioned in the middle of the village green. The tent nearly
covered the entire lawn. After the size, I noticed the tent was spotless
and of perfect quality in spite of being outside in the elements.
Because of the side panels, it was impossible to see what was taking
place inside without approaching. I walked up to the tent and
looked through a gap created by the fabric panels. I saw the back of a
man bearing over an altar. I was shocked when I saw he was
murdering a precious baby.
295
The next moment I was looking through the entrance of the
tent at the same scene. Other then the man and the baby, the tent
was empty. The man looked up, saw he was observed, and boldly
continued. I knew then the tent was a place of continuous child
sacrifice.
Horrified, I remember screaming out, “He’s killing babies.”
I ran to the buildings desperate to find anyone to help me end the
sacrifices, but no one was visible. I finally spotted an elderly man
sweeping the porch of a general store, directly across from the green.
His back was turned towards the tent. I ran up to him and yelled,
“They’re killing babies over there.” On hearing my voice, the man
turned slightly to address me but his back was still towards the tent.
“We know,” he replied with a shrug. At that, he turned completely
away and continued to sweep. We know? I peered into the homes
closest to me and sensed they were not empty. People were aware of
the child sacrifice going on in the center of their community but
296
they remained hidden away in the comfort of their homes or the
security of their stores. I woke up.
I asked God what he wanted me to learn from this dream. I
recognized the correlation between abortion and child sacrifice but
the rest of the dream meant nothing. Writing it down now, it seems
so obvious.
It was autumn in the village, a time when things die.
Winter was on the way, a time of hardship. The sacrifices were
performed in the light of day and took over the public green. The
community was built around child sacrifice meaning it was central
to the community’s way of life. The white shuttered buildings
looked exactly the same and the elderly man responded, “We know.”
The people were of one mind. They were grossly indifferent to the
murders happening right in front of them; they had turned their
backs on the murder of the innocent.
On the outside, the tent was white and pure but inside it
297
was a place of blood and sin. It reminded me of Jesus’ rebuke to the
scribes and Pharisees “for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which
indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s
bones, and of all uncleanness.” 27 The tent panels were loose, anyone
who cared enough could have parted the curtain and seen the reality.
So essential was child sacrifice to the people’s way of life, the tent
was erected in the heart of the community where the Church once
stood. The community was built on the blood of children instead of
the blood of Christ. In place of a church with a white steeple, there
was a tent of human sacrifice. And the Church was nowhere to be
seen.
The Missing Church
The Church in America has been unwilling to speak to the
sin of abortion in a meaningful way. While allowing individuals
27
Matt. 23:27.
298
within the body of Christ to defend the unborn, the Church stepped
to the side of the abortion debate and did not invest these
individuals with its God ordained authority.
For those of us struggling to make meaning out of the
cultural collapse around us and the Church’s mixed message, we felt
disenfranchised. Without the clear leading of the Church, prolife
Christians were left to figure out their own response. We knew love
was the answer to abortion but our “flesh” was involved too. While
loving the sinner, we also focused on a worldly response to a
spiritual problem. The majority of us felt if we could only prove the
humanity of the unborn baby, hearts would soften, laws would
change, the culture would rebound abortion would end.
Hindsight is twentytwenty. With the advent of feminist
spirituality and the ferociousness in which abortion supporters
demand the right to partialbirth abortion, we now know this to be
untrue. Due to the Church’s indifference over abortion, or at the
299
very least its lack of vision regarding the spiritual magnitude of
abortion and its implications for the future, prolife Christians were
untrained in spiritual warfare, making the Christians’ battle over
abortion untenable. The lack of Church oversight left room for
vigilantism and acts of desperation, and it is impossible to process
the reality of abortion 44 million lives snuffed out in a tortuous
but systematic way reminiscent of Nazi’ Germany’s efficiency
without spiritual guidance. Headship is a component of spiritual
accountability and discipleship is necessary for maturation. Because
of organized Christianity’s lack of meaningful response, prolifers
were left outside the protective covering of the Church. This
resulted in a lack of real spiritual power and authority.
Fast forward thirty years. As we mature in our faith, we
understand we are not engaged in a political contest or a clash of
ideologies, we are not “wrestling against flesh and blood.” We are
coming up against principalities and spiritual powers warring with
300
more then just demons. Principalities, the governing authorities in
the kingdom of darkness, and powers, the energy or forces of evil,
are behind abortion. At the risk of seeming overly spiritual, Charles
H. Kraft, professor at the School of World Mission at Fuller
Theological Seminary and the author of Confronting Powerless
Christianity: Evangelicals and the Missing Dimension made the point
abortion is a way for demons to control and inhabit unrepentant
people. According to Kraft, “abortion establishments crawl with the
spirits of murder and death.” 28 Kraft believes, “one of the major
concerns of such cosmiclevel spirits [principalities] is to move their
demonic underlings into the people who participate in these
activities.” 29
The author related, “Those of us involved in spiritual
28
Charles H. Kraft, Confronting Powerless Christianity: Evangelicals
and the Missing Dimension (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House,
2002), 223.
29
Ibid.
301
warfare often feel the presence of satanic spirits in and around
establishments that propagate these activities. But when we partner
with God to break the power of these spirits, interesting things
happen. A former student of mine reported that she had once
worked in an abortion clinic. As Christians prayed outside that
clinic, what was going on inside was crippled. In fact, she said she
felt the power of God so obviously that she left the clinic and never
returned.” 30
As the story demonstrates, God has given his Church
authority “over all the power of the enemy.” 31 Yet our power to
effectively conqueror has been neutralized through unrepentant sin.
To our judgment, more Christians are like Pashur the priest who
had Jeremiah seized, beaten and put in stocks for speaking the Word
of the Lord in the Temple, then like Jeremiah, the weeping prophet.
30
Ibid., 190.
31
Luke 10:19.
302
Our hearts are hardened, not broken over abortion.
The Church’s silence has brought us into tactic agreement
with sin. Our nonresponse has concealed the gravity of abortion.
For every one thousand live births, there are three hundred and six
dead babies. A prenatal child is murdered every twentyfour seconds;
in less time then it takes to read this paragraph, another child will
die. In spite of this horrible reality, the majority of Christians do not
function as prophetic witnesses at abortion clinics or as ministers of
reconciliation at crisis pregnancy centers. Neither do we corporately
repent of the national sin of abortion or of the Church’s part in the
death of 44 million children. The Church is as salt and light that has
lost its savour; in this allimportant issue of murdering innocent
children, we are “good for nothing.” 32
The Church is ultimately responsible for the sin of
abortion because we have willfully ignored Jesus’ commission to
32
Matt. 5:13.
303
minister to “the least of these” and connived at prenatal murder. We
abrogated our office as prophet by removing the responsibility of
rebuke from our shoulders and placing the weight on the back of
politicians. We have conceded abortion to the political arena and
have walked away from the public square under the pretense of
propriety.
It should not surprise us that the wholesale slaughter of
helpless prenatal children has continued despite our best political
efforts. The abortion issue is profoundly spiritual and the arm of the
flesh has no power to cast down these strongholds. Paul wrote, “For
we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities,
against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world,
against spiritual wickedness in high places.” 33 Because “the weapons
of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling
33
Eph. 6:12.
304
down of strongholds” 34 secularizing our opposition to abortion is
unbiblical, ineffective and an excuse to marginalize an issue that
should be at the forefront of a national call for repentance by the
Church.
There are no pat answers, no simple strategies for
regaining the culture of life. But when I think of the Church’s role
in the spiritual battle of abortion, I remember the account of the
people of Israel crossing over the Jordan into the Promised Land,
with Joshua as their leader. 35 God promised to drive out their
enemies before them once they entered the Promised Land. Priests
of Israel were instructed to carry the Ark of the Covenant into the
waters of Jordan. As soon as their feet touched the waters, the Jordan
34
2 Cor. 10:4.
35
Joshua 3:117.
305
divided and the people passed through to the blessings and the
promises of God. The priests were told to simply stand still in the
waters. Just stand. Stand in faith.
Abortion is a sin that separates us from the promised
blessings of God and the waters seem impassable. If pastors and
priests filled with God’s presence would enter the waters of Jordan
in faith, God would do the rest. God’s people would follow them,
the kingdom of God would advance, and the enemies’ territory
would be taken for the glory of God. I do not mean that Christian
leaders should become embroiled in secular politics and abandon
their spiritual authority and that realm of influence in the heavenly
places to which God has ordained them. I refer to the need for them
to enter the spiritual fray to heed the call to repentance, to pray, to
be a prophetic voice, to hold the sword of the spirit over the places
of child sacrifice and command, in the name of Jesus, those places to
fall, or to do whatever else the Lord would instruct them in this time
306
of war. As long as the organized Church stays on the shoreline,
unwilling to enter the turbulent waters and stand on God’s Word,
we forfeit the blessings, promises, and victory of God. Until we are
willing to cross the Jordan we will waste on the bank and suffer the
encroachments of our enemies.
It is my opinion that the responsibility for the current
spiritual crises lies at the door of the local church and nothing short
of repentance and the power of the Holy Spirit released in the lives
of forgiven saints can accomplish God’s purposes. Before we can
discern God’s specific direction in this matter of innocent blood, we
must remove the wall of sin that stands between us and him. It is
God’s heart to answer our intercessory prayers for the unborn and
for this nation. But our God is not a genie in a magic lamp. He
answers prayers, he does not grant wishes. He asks us to join him in
fulfilling his purposes on earth. God is waiting for us, his Church, to
repent so he can act through us. God desires to answer our prayers
307
but he has withheld an overflowing of his spirit because we have not
confessed our sin and repented corporately. We need a spiritual
revival to end abortion and repentance always proceeds revival. In
the preface I framed the question for this book as what should we
do, not why should we care. The answer is as simple and as
profound as repentance.
Without corporate repentance reconciling us to God, prayer
pulling down spiritual strongholds and the Holy Spirit empowering
us to accomplish the Father’s will, how can we presume to end
abortion? The battle can only be won through the power of God.
“Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of
hosts.” 36
Abortion clinics are high places of child sacrifice. Although
the sacrifice is designed to fit the requirements of our modern
culture, the sin is the same. Women’s bodies have become bloody
36
Zech. 4:6
308
altars, abortionists the “holy” priests, and prenatal babies acceptable
human sacrifices. By changing the nature of life, feminist
spirituality has reconstructed the abortion debate and forced the
often secular prolife movement to address the spiritual implications
of abortion and the larger questions of faith. Abortion is now being
fought on familiar territory, the landscape of the Church. Feminist
spirituality has drawn the abortion debate back into the arena in
rightly belongs the spiritual. Because feminist spirituality moved
the battlefront, we may have just won the war. That is if we choose
to enter in and fight it. We can take hold of the promises of God,
“Through thee will we push down our enemies: through thy name
will we tread them under that rise up against us.” 37 Or we can
relinquish more ground, the ground we are to occupy, to the enemy.
The longer the Church waits, the greater our culpability.
37
Ps. 44:5.
309
Points to Remember:
1. Abortion is a spiritual issue (Eph. 6:12).
2. Christians are given the responsibility to deliver those unjustly
sentenced to death (Proverbs 31:8, 9).
3. God expects his people to act on his word (James 2:17, John
5:36).
4. If we refuse to stand for the innocent, God will judge our
inaction (Proverbs 24:11, 12).
310

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ABORTION

© 2005 by Kendra Wilcox. All rights reserved.

Cover Photo by Digital Vision

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from

Other version used:

Operation Rescue/Operation Save America

(John 3:16 KJV)

Part I: Feminist Spirituality

1. The Seduction of Eve

Part II: Abortion Rites

4. Whetting the Knife

National Coalition of Abortion Providers (Oops, I meant Providers)

marriages, families, churches, cities, and nations. Child sacrifice has

movement, I have elected to use feminine pronouns when referring

to unborn children. I have included biblical “Points to Remember”

Feminist spirituality, or womenspirituality as it is more

life for them. Its labels imply it is the spirituality for women.

difficult to narrowly define. It can be as obvious as witchcraft and as

slow execution of Christ and Yahweh.” 2 The same author maintains,

imprinted with the Greek goddess Rhea 5 reveals the fascination

Singer Tori Amos; the movies Practical Magic starring

witch in every woman;” The Craft starring Neve Campbell; the

television programs such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Charmed

Ritual make feminist spirituality accessible to even our youngest

affiliation. An article in the New Age Journal reveals, “The

deities. For the purpose of this book, I will refer to the goddess when

not “Why, should I care?” The question is what do we do.

kick. A slight smile crossed her face. When she first thought she

saw, in a protestor’s elderly hands, a picture­ the picture. Now she

mind because she did not want indecision to lead to a late­term

abortion. Eve eventually decided on a clinical abortion at the same

music, twisting the pamphlet nervously between her hands. She took

advocate said baby slowly and carefully, “is part of that miracle.” She

Eve studied the stones­ aventurine for emotional

come back again when I’m ready for her. It’s true. It’s true. They

after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And

The attractive woman was neatly dressed and her blonde

“Diana,” she repeated. I watched as the woman appeared to

possesses the power to create life it only follows that she owns the

best altar of the Goddess,” 6 and “abortion is a sacred act.” 7 As one

was seduced. Eve was led astray by the Serpent’s temptation. She was

1998 Ladies’ Home Journal survey discovered that eight­three

past.” 12 The same Ladies’ Home Journal contained an article, “30

images and concepts of a God of my understanding. I discard those

The premier issue of Women’s Faith and Spirit magazine

best for them.” 19 This “mix­and­match” spirituality is growing in

Your truth, or mine, is not the truth if it does not originate from

more often than any other book in the Bible. 24 Christian author

of Paradise, this Paradise was lost to us by human folly, and the way

God is from the Hebrew Elohim, Supreme God. He is Elohim,

with him. These first words, “In the beginning God created” 26

the ground” and bestowed within him a soul. 30 The book of Job,

had formed.” 32 Surmised as lying between what we now call the

was fertile and teeming with life. Eden is from a Hebrew word that

pejorative role. Help is the vernacular used to describe one of God’s

God created he him; male and female created he them.” 38 Life in the

fact Eve was the first woman to sin the promise is that through her

Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? But my people

have changed their glory for that which doth not profit. Be astonished, O ye

waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

saw, in a protestor’s elderly hands, a picture the picture. Now she

mind because she did not want indecision to lead to a lateterm

Eve studied the stones aventurine for emotional

1998 Ladies’ Home Journal survey discovered that eightthree

best for them.” 19 This “mixandmatch” spirituality is growing in

Cady Stanton, part of the committee of twentythree women who

this attack the messenger instead of the message and when that fails

characteristics idolatry, sexual immorality and abortion while

2. Children belong to God (Ezek. 16:2021).