Following reports that a network of Texas churches is opposing the state's heartbeat legislation while simultaneously supporting abortion's continued legality, pro-life theologian Albert Mohler observes this as a sad crossroads between "liberal religion and abortion politics."
According to the Dallas Morning News, a local group in Texas is trying to bring together churches that support women's reproductive rights in a bid to build a profile of religious communities whose views do not match with the campaign against abortion.
"Just Texas," a religious organization that campaigns for reproductive rights, launched a project dubbed "Reproductive Freedom Congregations" on August 25th at the First Unitarian Church of Dallas, a title that will be given to other churches supporting abortion in the city.
25 of the participating congregations were reportedly designated as "Reproductive Freedom Congregations," with one of its three principles stating that they "promise that people that attend your congregation will be free from stigma, shame, and judgment for their reproductive decisions including abortion, and that you believe access to comprehensive, affordable health services is a moral and social good."
Al Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., stated that defining abortion as a "moral and social good" goes against the values of the Christian faith.
During an episode of his podcast, "The Briefing," he stated: "That's an astounding statement that turns the entire Christian theological heritage of 2,000 years on its head."
The event, according to Mohler, was a "tragic intersection of liberal religion and abortion politics."
Christian Headlines pointed out that the designation was issued a week before the implementation of Texas state legislation that bans abortion if the heartbeat of an unborn child is discovered.
First Unitarian Church of Dallas reportedly hosted Just Texas' press conference.
Rev. Dr. Daniel Kanter, the church's pastor, said that they "have a long history of working with reproductive rights. Women at our church started Roe v. Wade along with staff from the local Planned Parenthood at the time, so when we entered into dialogue about being the first recipient of the reproductive rights congregation in Texas there was a lot of history behind it."
Erika Forbes, coordinator for Just Texas, said at the conference that the goal of the participating churches is "lasting culture change."
In contrast, Christian Headlines reported that the majority of churches in the alliance are Unitarian Universalist, while others are Presbyterian and one, University Baptist Church in Austin, is a Baptist congregation.
When this was brought to their attention, the pro-life organization Live Action said that despite touting liberty and choice, the "Just Texas" group keep mum on alternative solutions to abortion, or even support for women who regretted their abortions.
It further noted that when it comes to crisis pregnancies, organizations such as the "Reproductive Freedom Congregations" suggest that abortion is the only genuine option.
"Women deserve real options like those they can find at pregnancy resource centers, which in 2019 served two million women around the country," reads one statement in their report.
Their research also revealed that Just Texas is a project of the Texas Freedom Network, which was founded in 1995 by former Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards and is committed to pro-abortion causes.
