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George Tiller's Murder a Human Tragedy
The murder of Dr. George Tiller is a human tragedy.
If the perpetrator of this violence proves to be someone who was acting in the name of the pro-life movement, as appears to be the case, everyone in the pro-life community must swiftly and soundly repudiate him and his actions.
Murdering someone is a grotesque and bizarre way to emphasize one's commitment to the sanctity of human life. People who truly believe in the sanctity of human life believe in the sanctity of the lives of abortion providers as well as the unborn babies who are aborted.
After a spate of violence against abortion providers in the early 1990s, as president of the then-Christian Life Commission, I convened a group of Southern Baptist ethicists and theologians who issued a statement in September 1994, which has become known as the "Nashville Declaration of Conscience," that condemned the killing of abortion providers.
The document underscores the fact that each human life is sacred, noting that every "human being is made in the image of God."
"For this reason, each human life bears divinely granted and immeasurable value. Human beings are not free to take the lives of others, for those lives belong to God, their Creator," reads the declaration.
The statement recounts that there are legitimate forms of Christian response to the evil that is abortion and each of those responses fall far short of violence: "Most Christians who believe, as we do, that the overwhelming majority of abortions are morally unjustifiable acts of killing, rightly feel the need to offer significant moral response. Indeed, millions of American Christians even today are engaged in activities that constitute such a response; most of these activities, in our view, are fully and morally justifiable and quite constructive. They are aimed at saving lives, and are directed at each of the participants in the abortion decision."
Despite the fact that some have already used the media to try and paint the entire pro-life movement with the bloody brush of this heinous crime, in truth it is an extraordinarily tiny and maniacal minority that will condone Dr. Tiller's murder.
As the 1994 declaration reads: "We reject the argument that killing an abortion doctor is an act of violent civil disobedience made necessary by the gravity of the moral evil of abortion on demand. It is our conviction that no act of lethal force can be properly ascribed to the rubric of civil disobedience. ...the killing of abortion doctors is not a morally justifiable or permissible Christian response to abortion. We utterly reject such conduct as inconsistent with Scripture."
Particularly as citizens in a democracy, we must remember the government is ordained of God (Romans 13). It is His expectation that we submit to and obey those He has allowed to be in authority over us. Morally justifiable responses to abortion do not include violence against individuals or their property.
In December 1994, for an issue of First Things, I wrote, "Pro-life Americans must take the moral high ground and vigorously oppose vigilante violence against abortion doctors or anyone else. We must tirelessly provide alternatives to abortion, engage the legal system, and affirm the overwhelming majority of physicians who refuse to perform abortions. So long as American democracy remains a legitimate form of government, with provisions for redress, reform, and nonviolent protest, we must remain "wise as serpents, harmless as doves."
Clearly the killing of abortion providers is unbiblical, unchristian and un-American. Such callous disregard for human beings brutalizes everyone.
For people to take the law into their hands in this fashion and to attempt to be judge, jury and executioner of a fellow human being is reprehensible.
Let's be clear about this. The struggle here is not between "pro-life" and "pro-choice"-it is between civilization and barbarism. The murder of Dr. Tiller is an act of domestic terrorism and should be condemned by every civilized person in our nation.
It is incumbent upon us to pray for Dr. Tiller's family and all those who were forced to witness the terrible act of violence in a house of worship. The perpetrator of this violence should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
By
Richard Land
|
June 1, 2009; 2:22 PM ET
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Posted by: justillthen | June 2, 2009 4:13 PM
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Murder by pro lifers is still murder. those who disagree with pro lifers are being terrorized for their beliefs. and killed. as usual.
Posted by: BernardEckholdt | June 2, 2009 8:58 AM
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Mr. Land,
Be honest with yourself. Reread your own essay. This is a simple matter of murder, unsurprising considering the climate "pro-lifers" create. Search your soul. What more could you do to see that such an atrocity never happens again?
Recent cases of abortion-related violence
By The Associated Press – 1 day ago
A look at recent cases of abortion-related violence:
_ May 31, 2009: Prominent late-term abortion provider George Tiller is shot and killed in a Wichita church where he was serving as an usher. The gunman fled but a city official said a suspect is in custody.
_ April 2007: Authorities say Paul Ross Evans placed a homemade bomb in the parking lot of the Austin Women's Health Center in Texas. A bomb squad disposes of the device, which contained two pounds of nails. There are no injuries.
_ Oct. 23, 1998: Dr. Barnett Slepian is fatally shot in his home in a suburb of Buffalo, N.Y. Militant abortion opponent James Kopp is convicted of the murder in 2003 and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.
_ Jan. 29, 1998: A bomb explodes just outside a Birmingham, Ala., abortion clinic, killing a police officer and wounding several others. Eric Rudolph later pleads guilty to that incident and the deadly bombing at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. He justifies the Alabama bombing in an essay from prison, writing that Jesus would condone "militant action in defense of the innocent."
_ Jan. 16, 1997: Two bomb blasts an hour apart rock an Atlanta building containing an abortion clinic. Seven people are injured. Rudolph is charged by federal authorities in October 1998.
_ Dec. 30, 1994: John Salvi opens fire with a rifle inside two Boston-area abortion clinics, killing two receptionists and wounding five others. Sentenced to life without parole, he kills himself in prison in 1996.
_ Nov. 8, 1994: Dr. Garson Romalis, who performs abortions in Vancouver, Canada, is shot in the leg while eating breakfast at home.
_ July 29, 1994: Dr. John Bayard Britton and his volunteer escort, James H. Barrett, are slain outside a Pensacola, Fla., abortion clinic. Barrett's wife, June, is wounded in the attack. Paul J. Hill, 40, a former minister and anti-abortion activist, is later convicted of murder and sentenced to death.
_ Aug. 19, 1993: Dr. George Tiller is shot in the arms as he drives out of parking lot at his Wichita, Kan., clinic. Rachelle "Shelley" Shannon is later convicted and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
_ March 10, 1993: Dr. David Gunn is shot to death outside Pensacola, Fla., clinic, becoming the first U.S. doctor killed during an anti-abortion demonstration. Michael Griffin is convicted and serving a life sentence.
Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Posted by: Farnaz1Mansouri1 | June 2, 2009 1:37 AM
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Go ahead and repudiate him if you want to. But recognize that you created him.
Posted by: EgregiousPhilbin | June 1, 2009 9:03 PM
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Mr. Land,
Thank you for your essay on this. I appreciate what you said and that you said it clearly.
"Clearly the killing of abortion providers is unbiblical, unchristian and un-American. Such callous disregard for human beings brutalizes everyone.
For people to take the law into their hands in this fashion and to attempt to be judge, jury and executioner of a fellow human being is reprehensible.
Let's be clear about this. The struggle here is not between "pro-life" and "pro-choice"-it is between civilization and barbarism."
Exactly true. Abortion clearly is central in the motive of the killer, but the fact is, upon proven, that it is murder that is the crime, not abortion.
If abortion were to be a crime, this case would still be about the crime of murder.
It is about civil order over anarchy, and should be viewed in that light. We will continue to debate abortion in this society. We should do so without guns pointing at opponents and proponents, or it become an un-Civil War.