Thoughtful
At least I did not have to think about it.
That, it seems, was for many Americans the principal benefit of letting stand for almost fifty years the dreadful decision of Roe v. Wade. By placing it among rights granted by the Constitution, it saved much thought and even more discussion. It was not good, but at least it was settled. We could focus on other things.
But now, suddenly (or not so suddenly, since the draft was leaked weeks ago) that has changed. The false assumptions, false assertions, false logic, and false predictions of that bad juridical decision have been enumerated and repudiated in a careful and conscientious ruling. The regime of Roe is ended; praise God and the hard work of generations of countless souls. But as history shows is often the case when a murderous tyrant is deposed, uncertainty and even chaos follow.
Right on cue, chaos has erupted. Why else would those businesses in our own capital city be boarding their storefronts? Hysteria on the news, recriminations, accusations, sobbing, threats, celebrities swearing they’re leaving the country! Arson, vandalism, assassination attempts. Dark predictions of “what they’ll take away next.” All of it, all of it meant to generate fear, to synthesize a sense of danger: these are things people would rather not have to think about.
The histrionics upset people, as is the intention. Surveys do show that many people are now unhappy with the overturn of Roe, but it seems likely that many of them are upset because of the mayhem and hysteria, and that they have been dislodged from the comfortable place where they didn’t have to think about it.
But if you do think about it, you realize that this decision does not change nearly as much as they insist. We live in the great commonwealth of Maryland, which through its elected legislators, and over the governor’s veto, erected one of the most pro-abortion regimes in the world. It is easier for a minor to procure an abortion legally in our state than to buy a beer – and it costs less. The overturning of Roe does not overturn this. In fact, it precipitated it.
What does this say about where we live, and the people who live here with us? Nothing we didn’t already know, unfortunately. The sour looks in stores at our families with small children, and don’t even describe the response when they learn that you’re pregnant (again). All those yard signs, all those issues, all that activism, but none of them, none of them with concern for the littlest among us. How can they call it social, much less justice, if it comes at the cost of innocent lives? This is worth thinking about.
The way our government, our Constitution, works, is that citizens may elect legislators who pass laws that promote and provide abortion on demand. The Supreme Court did not even try to change this. The people who live in Maryland have done precisely this. You and I need to think about this.
Because now, without the heedless, faceless backstop of the artificial “right” to pursue this grievous wrong, actual people with faces and names must think about what it is that they are advancing and abetting. Actual people you and I know and like and spend time with are capable of recognizing the grim horror that is abortion, and the damage it does, has done and will do, to our society and our culture. But this will only happen if you and I set before them true food for thought, in charity, not enmity.
We can and must pray, for strength for ourselves, for our wisdom for our fellow citizens, for courage in the right for our leaders. We can pray for our nation and our neighborhood. God already knows what we need, and will provide.
You know, people demonstrated (and worse) after Brown vs Board of Education, too, and made apocalyptic predictions. But aren’t you glad we powered past that as a nation? It has not been easy, mind you; but definitely better.
So too, this Supreme Court decision is a clear and lasting improvement. It will not be easy, of course, but the demonstrations and apocalyptic predictions do not come from the contingent or culture that will do the work to make our society and our nation better. Our forebears made slavery not only illegal, but unthinkable. People we remember made racial discrimination indefensible. Abortion, which is also indefensible, can and should be made unthinkable in our society.
So it is not our lament, but rather our resolution: now, we have to think about it, and begin the work we need yet to do.
A blessed anniversary of the independence of this great country to you and your family. God bless America, God bless you, and God help all of us to help people think about this.
Monsignor Smith
