ABORTION AND THE CULTURE OF LIFE: 40 years After Roe Vs Wade Gabriel Uchechi Emeasoba (Rev.

Fr) From the 19thst to the 27th of January, pro-lifers and Christians all around the world celebrated the 40th anniversary of 1973 Roe vs Wade decision, that landmark decision by the U.S Supreme Court that created a constitutional and nationwide right to abortion in the U.S and legalized the killing of the innocent unborn baby. On that 22nd January 1973, the United States Supreme Court ruled 7-2 that a right to privacy under the due process clause of the 14th Amendment extended to a womans decision to have an abortion. With that law, many federal and State restrictions on abortion in the United States were disallowed and the government of Barack Hussein Obama has further enhanced these rights and made it easier for women of the middle class and low income earners to freely procure abortions publicly without cost and without having to resort to the poor services of quack medical practitioners (for economic reasons), which may lead to complications or even death. Since this popular court ruling was given and enforced, Roe vs Wade decision has prompted much debate that continues till today both in the US and beyond. These professional debates focus on many issues including whether and to what extent abortion should be legal, who should decide the legality of abortion, what methods the Supreme Court should use in constitutional adjudication, and what the role should be of religious and moral views in the political sphere. Roe v. Wade reshaped the US national politics, dividing much of the United States and the whole world into pro-choice and pro-life camps, while activating grassroots movements on both sides. Apart from occasioning professional debates around the world, this landmark court ruling evoked a spiral of universal denigration of the sanctity of human life around the world. It had a domino effect on the value placed on the dignity of human life. It injected into modern culture what Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul before him called a culture of death to the extent that, not only in the US, yearly abortions have continued to increase worldwide. Unfortunately, the range of worldwide abortion statistics has come up to 40-55 million cases yearly. Dr David Jamil in conjunction with the Allan Gutmacher Institute furnishes us with some scaring statistics on abortion rates in the world. These statistics show that: One in five pregnancies worldwide and one in three pregnancies in Europe ends in abortion. Of the 41.6 million abortions worldwide, 35 million were in the developing countries, and 6.6 million in developed countries. 54 countries allow abortion, which is about 61 per cent of the world population. 97 countries, about 39 per cent of the population, have abortion laws that make it illegal according to the pro-abortion Centre for Reproductive Law and Policy in New York.

Another statistical report has this to present: Annually, 46 million babies die from abortion worldwide. Thats approximately one baby being aborted every two seconds. In the U.S, an estimated 50 million babies have been aborted since 1973. Approximately 24% of all U.S. pregnancies end in abortion. Over half (56%) of all women having abortions between 15-44 are in their 20s. In Africa, the case is not different either. The annual number of induced abortions in Africa rose between 2003 and 2008, from 5.6 million to 6.4 million. In 2008, the most abortions occurred in Eastern Africa (2.5 million), followed by Western Africa (1.8 million), Northern and Middle Africa (0.9 million), and Southern Africa (0.2 million). The increase in the number of abortions is due largely to increase in the number of women of reproductive age (www.guttmacher.org). And unfortunately, Of the 6.4 million abortions carried out in 2008 in Africa, only 3% were performed under safe conditions, due to factors like ignorance, poverty, and poor medical conditions etc. Indeed, these figures have increased considerably by 2012 both worldwide and in Africa where most times, it is even difficult to actually calculate the number of abortions carried out due to poor record culture and facilities. The weight of the above evidence brings to the fore the precarious dominant effects of the Roe Vs Wade decision on universal world culture. Apart from the negative aid it offered the spread of H.I.V, especially in Africa, the abortion culture has led to the terrible loss of human lives and resources. Abortion has dealt a terrible wound not just on the victims and their families but also on the perpetrators themselves. Examples abound of many young women who never survived the guilt and mania of post-abortion syndrome and therefore have been permanently robbed of their useful contribution to the society of their environment. The abortion mentality of the modern culture has been blamed for the radical funtionalistic and materialistic view of human life in our time. As a matter of fact, in our age, there has been a dethronement of God and the human person has taken the centre stage. The human person struggles to become the author of morality in such a way that what is true and good, in our time, is relatively defined. Human life is no longer considered as inviolably sacred and people do no longer treat it with dignity and respect. Is it therefore any surprise that our age is filled with manifest violence, murder, arson, sundry violence to and commercialization of human life? Perhaps, the abortion virus has entered into every aspect of world socio-politics, diplomacy and international relationships. In the face of all these, it understandable why the Catholic Church, (especially, in the U.S) took the week of prayer against abortion very seriously this year. Throughout the week, there were workshops, prayers and calls for more limits on abortion rights by pro-life members and all well meaning Christians in the US, Ireland and in many

parts of Europe. Particularly, protest marches were rife in Washington DC and Ireland. This year, there was a nine-day nationwide prayer, penance and pilgrimage in the US which culminated in a march for life on the 25th of January 2013. This March for life was preceded by a national vigil for life. Thousands of people who came out to proclaim the Gospel of life trooped to the National Mall and in front of the Supreme Court making the statement that the unborn child has right to live. The National Prayer Vigil for Life was an all-night pro-life prayer vigil held on the eve of the March for Life each January. This year, over 20,000 pilgrims from across the U.S prayed through the night for an end to abortion and a greater respect for all human life. It was held at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. The vigil schedule included the Opening Mass celebrated in the Great Upper Church. Prayer continued throughout the night with the National Rosary for Life, Night Prayer and Holy Hours for Life. The morning after, the prayer vigil ended with Morning Prayer, Benediction and the Closing Mass the next morning with an inspirational homily given by Bishop Kevin Farrell of the diocese of Dallas. The US National Prayer Vigil for Life is one small part of the Church's "great prayer for life," sponsored by the USCCB (US Conference of Catholic Bishops) Pro-Life Secretariat, the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, and the Catholic University of America Office of Campus Ministry. Within this national programme of prayer, the bishops, priests and lay faithful in the US prayed for healing and conversion, for elected officers who support abortion and for all whose lives have been forever changed by an abortion. The bishops recognize that prayer is the foundation of all our efforts on behalf of human life. Time has come in Africa and in Nigeria when we would take the fight against abortion very seriously. The perennial teaching of the Catholic Church has made it clear that abortion is not an option for the incidence of unwanted pregnancy both inside and outside marriage.