Yet another weigh-in on the Roy Moore controversy. From everything I read, the main argument in Alabama for electing the morally compromised Moore is that he takes a rabidly anti-abortion stance. His Democratic opponent, Doug Jones, is running on an “anything goes” pro-choice abortion platform.
Reality: this abortion argument is just a smokescreen so that the GOP can pass their “let’s see how far we can rob the poor to make the rich (i.e., Trump and his family and the wealthy GOP donors) even richer” tax plan. Nonetheless, this is what may drive the good people of Alabama to elect the most despicable candidate ever to run for US Senate.
Let’s talk about abortion
The truth: both stances concerning abortion access are abhorrent.
The rabid anti-abortion stance reduces women to nothing but incubators that have no other purpose than the production of offspring, no matter what the mode of conception or the mental/physical toll on the woman, uhh, incubator.
The “rip ’em out until the last minute before birth” stance ignores advances in medical science, the increasingly hazy line between what is a viable fetus and what is not viable, and our moral and good human reluctance to kill babies. In many ways, the “no limits to abortion” is nothing but a modern way to support the long-standing and always horrific practice of murdering recently born infants.
For a tragic and stomach-churning summary of this history of infanticide, go to this article. We’ve been practicing it since the beginning of time.
Using sex for power is biblical
Ultimately, it all comes back to sex: who regulates it, who has power over whom, and who pays what price.
Samson and Delilah
Artus Quellinus the Elder: Samson and Dalila, terracotta, Antwerp 1640
Using sex for power exchanges is hardly new. The few people who have read all the Bible, instead of just cherry-picking their favorite passages, know that stories of rape, sexual conquests, and seduction permeate the Holy Scriptures.
Trying to control sexuality by saying “no sex outside of marriage (unless, of course, you are a male)” didn’t work then and doesn’t work now.
Trying to free sexual expression by saying, “anything you want anytime you want it” utterly cheapens what should be powerful moments of holy intimacy between loving and committed partners.
If we are going to solve the problem of the Roy Moore/Donald Trump/name-your-favorite-sexual-predator-here getting elected to high office, we are going to have to start looking at a far more substantial theology of sexuality and reproduction.
Those of us on the more liberal side must affirm that the anti-abortion folks do have reasons for their decisions. When forced to make a choice, I land on the “pro-choice” side. Nonetheless, I do so with significant reservations.
As a follower of Jesus, I believe that I need to honor and respect life and especially human life. As a woman, I know that the privilege of being the bearer of the next generation also means grave responsibility for using my sexuality. As an observer of the human condition, I know women pay 99.9% of the price for unwanted conceptions.
If we want to eliminate abortion, and thus the argument that such a morally compromised candidate as Roy Moore, sponsored by the morally-compromised Donald Trump, should EVER serve in public office, we must help women find their power and own both their bodies and their future.
The first step is to promote reliable empowerment programs for women. We need programs that take the education of the poorest among us far more seriously than anything else we do in our national life. Everyone needs to gain the ability to think critically as well as the confidence to engage in life-long learning to keep up their job skills.
Better practical education must also be coupled with good, effective, available and free birth control.
One significant difference between higher-income and lower-income households lies in the ability to delay child-bearing until couples have built stable financial foundations. Those foundations are impossible in today’s economy without reliable birth control.
Furthermore, we can’t start raising people out of desperate poverty by creating tax policies that punish the poor and strip them from access to affordable and decent health-care. Unhealthy people cannot work. We condemn them to a horrible, destructive cycle.
Back to Moore/Jones
Now, back to the Moore/Jones election. Again, both hold despicable stances where abortion is concerned. But the people of Alabama have to choose one of the two.
Moore will keep abortion restricted and will also vote for policies that will keep women impoverished and uneducated. Jones, on the other hand, will find tooth and nail for fairer economic policies and the long-range empowerment of women but will do nothing to restrict access to abortion.
As we seek to create a government that works for all its people, it becomes mandatory that we elect to office those willing to look at the greater good and not just at their narrow agendas.
At this point, the majority of the GOP has abandoned all pretense of looking out for the greater good of US citizens. The Republicans are promoting a tax bill that even they acknowledge is aimed at keeping their wealthy donors satisfied. That is why, for all the posturing and protests, if Moore gets elected, he’ll be seated in the Senate because they can count on him to vote the party line.
Sex and money: the major players in any corrupt decision-making process. The GOP, now publically represented by the child-predation tendencies of Roy Moore, says “yes” to the wrongful use of sexual power for the sake of gaining favor from their deep-pocketed donors. And “Christians’ have made this happen.
As sad as it is, I bet Moore gets elected. May God have mercy on us as a nation and on any “Christian” who has enabled his election.
Christy Thumb
The Rev. Christy Thomas
Author and columnist, the Rev. Dr. Christy Thomas is a retired clergy member of the North Texas Annual Conference. This post is republished with permission from her blog, The Thoughtful Pastor, on Patheos.com.