Outrageous

So people are outraged by the killing of a lion named Cecil in Africa.

A beautiful creation of God has been killed, with no respect for the inherent worth of that creature. The death came about not to preserve another life, but by callously imposing one “will” over the other’s right to merely exist.

OK, I get it. I share some of their outrage.

So on the other side of the world, videos surface of Planned Parenthood leaders talking about how to best use the bodies of human babies to “reimburse” their costs.

Again, a beautiful creation of God has been killed. And their deaths came about not to preserve another life (saving the life of the mother is a factor in only a fraction of abortions), but by callously imposing one “will” over the other’s right to merely exist.

To top it off, these abortion doctors talk about the mangled bodies of babies with the same callousness we might speak of scrap metal or recyclable garbage. I hope the irony and the outrageously misplaced outrage is not lost on you.

I’ve heard environmental activists talk of how much better the world would be without humans. We are responsible for so much of the destruction of “the planet” (you have to use “the” when referring to earth, for some reason. I guess “our planet” is too vainglorious). It would probably be better for global warming (sorry, now “climate change”) if we all just died out, right?

As a species, we have reached a level of self-loathing that is I believe unprecedented in human history. We actually seem now to be rooting for our own annihilation.

We are entering a new paganism, where we regard nature and the animal kingdom with more value than ourselves. On one hand, this seems almost humble. Our earth (sorry, “the planet”) is truly awe-inspiring, so it is natural to feel small in comparison to it. Yet just like the pagans of old, we are again guilty of bowing down to that which does not know us or care for us.

Perhaps nature’s callous disinterest toward humanity makes us only admire it all the more.

This is how confused our thinking has become. We ignore the fact that Cecil had cubs that now have to be protected from other lions. Why? Because those male lions will kill them to keep them from growing up as rivals.

So much for animals winning the Nobel Peace prize anytime soon.

I love my dog Cassie, a gentle medium sized mutt we rescued when we lived in Chicago. I love her in spite of the fact she will try to kill any smaller animal that comes within 20 feet of her. And she will do this for no other reason than she finds it entertaining. And I won’t even dare mention the atrocities our cat Frankie has left at the front door as her “trophies”.

We are understandably angry at Cecil’s killer because he didn’t do it for food or in self-defense. He did it “for the fun of it”…just like an animal might do!

The book of Genesis sets up mankind as the caretakers of the earth. God expects more from us than He does from the animals. We are created in His image, which means we have a conscience and understanding of right and wrong. Because of this, we have infinite worth and purpose.

And because of this, it is unthinkable to destroy another human life. To do so is a direct affront to the Creator and His purpose for that life on the earth (sorry, “the planet”). When we take a human life, we are stepping into God’s shoes because only He has the right to say when a life has fulfilled its purpose.

So…take the life of a majestic animal and you diminish the beauty of God’s creation.

But…take the life of an innocent baby and you destroy the very image of God.

In essence, abortion sabotages our very future as humans. One familiar argument is “how many MLKs, Lincolns, Einsteins, and Da Vincis have we killed in the womb?” That statement is admittedly time-worn, but no less stunning in its truth when you think of the last time God decided to save humanity.

When the world had no hope and was cursed by sin, God’s answer was to send a baby. No matter the amount of darkness into which a child is born, a baby brings the promise of hope and new life.

I’m wondering, how many of our prayers haven’t been answered simply because that answer was never allowed to be born? How much joy never made it into the world simply because we didn’t have nine months of our lives to wait?

You see, when God answers prayers, He almost always sends a human. True, we humans have done some horrible things. But we when we have listened to God, we have also done wonders.

Last night, we celebrated with friends the adoption of a beautiful little baby girl into our family. Even though she was born to a young woman with no husband and few resources, she has already brought immeasurable joy into our lives.

However, I’m sure many people would have encouraged her to end the life of that child, since she had so many odds stacked against her. As I write this, I cannot imagine what joy I would be missing if that birth mother had chosen abortion.

You may say, “Now Dave, you are going too far. You are making this personal”.

Exactly. Because taking a human life is a very personal thing, even if you talk about it like just so much “tissue”.

And isn’t it fascinating how all the news articles refer to the lion killed by the name of “Cecil”…

We give a name to a poached animal, while babies are tossed anonymously onto some laboratory’s metal observation table.

So next time you talk about abortion with me, just remember I am seeing a face in my mind as we talk. Along with your arguments, there is a name that is ringing in my ears. And that’s because abortion is undeniably personal. It is in fact the death of a person – a human being.

And that human being is infinitely more valuable than any animal…even when those humans act no better than the animals themselves.

_____________________________________________________________________