Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Pagan
3 Pagans & A Cat: The Sanctity of Choice

3 Pagans & A Cat: The Sanctity of Choice

Last updated on: May 19, 2019 at 3:18 pm by Gwyn

3 Pagans & A Cat: The Sanctity of Choice 2019-05-19T15:18:44+00:00 Gwyn

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

For most of my life I identified as an Evangelical Christian who fell in lockstep with the Pro-Life movement. I listened to the rhetoric on the sanctity of life, nodded my head at the vilification of abortion providers and, while uncomfortable with the tactics, supported the picketing of clinics or “sidewalk counseling” being done in an effort to “save the babies.”

As a Witch, I hold life sacred. Photo by Jonny Lindner via Pixabay.

But always in the back of my mind were those caught in the situation where a choice to terminate their pregnancy was necessary. People being harassed by protesters during a vulnerable time in their lives. Who was I to judge how they came to be pregnant or to push them into keeping the baby? And with all the momentum focused on keeping the fetus in the womb until delivery, what consideration was given to the mother? Was the child being brought into a stable life if the mother was coerced into finishing the pregnancy? Who would pay the medical bills?

I am no longer bound by Christian beliefs, their ancient scripture, or church tradition. As a Witch, I do hold life as sacred but I am no longer compelled to agree with the anti-choice camp in their agenda. And what these years outside a patriarchal religion have taught me is their argument is not so much about the “sanctity of life” because if it were they would fight just as hard for people facing death in our prisons.

No, this desperate campaign to abolish abortion is about bringing all who possess a womb under control.

Christianity teaches that women are (in effect) responsible for “sin” based on the creation story found in Genesis 2 & 3. In the story, God created man and then woman from man’s rib, thereby putting man in authority over woman. Woman was the one who, after being tempted by the serpent, chose to flout God’s command and eat the forbidden fruit of the tree of knowledge and then influencing man to do the same. As a result, sin brought death and destruction into the world, man and woman were cast out of the idyllic garden, man would have to toil in hard labor for the rest of his days, and woman would experience great pain in childbirth as punishment for bringing suffering into the world.

Man failed to bring woman under submission in the garden. His descendants have been doing their best to rectify the situation through religion and law ever since.

The Fall of Man with Scenes of the Creation, attributed to Augustus Cordus. Wikimedia Commons.

Controlling women through limiting reproductive choice is not new. And what seems to be a recent push toward stricter abortion laws is, in fact, part of a forty-six year strategy by Christian organizations such as Right to Life and Operation Rescue to abolish abortion and deny anyone with a womb the right to claim autonomy over their own bodies. Don’t believe me? Watch the documentary film Reversing Roe.

According to an article from the Freedom from Religion Foundation, 400 state laws restricting abortion have been passed since 2010. And you better believe the most recent laws passed in Texas and Alabama are the latest salvo in an attempt to get a case before the Supreme Court which has been stacked by the current administration as an attempt to overthrow Roe v Wade.

To reverse Roe means that abortion rights would be determined by the states.

At this time, there are multiple states where people have no access to abortion services because clinics have been closed due to restrictive laws or the efforts of anti-choice groups. If Roe is reversed the number of states severely restricting or abolishing abortion will increase. In fact, 10 states (including Michigan, where I live) are poised to make it nearly impossible for a woman to terminate her pregnancy and could turn people into criminals should they seek an abortion in another state.

In my opinion, this push to reverse Roe is nothing short of an attempt to force society to adapt to Christian doctrine. Anti-choice leaders are excited, saying they’ve never been closer to abolishing abortion due to recent additions to the Supreme Court.

Let’s be not be naïve. Once abortion rights are curtailed, the LGBTQ+ community will be targeted with a reversal of marriage equality. Transgendered individuals are already under attack with states allowing doctors to deny medical service for “religious” reasons. They are being excluded from military service and let’s not forget the “bathroom” laws. Then there is the travesty still happening on our borders with immigrant families whose children have been victimized.

“Let’s make America Great Again” has a sinister ring when fomented by a motivated, authoritarian Religious Right determined to push forward their theocratic agenda regardless of who they have to elect to get their ideal society.

We have come to the point where we cannot remain silent. Photo by StockSnap via Pixabay.

Cyndi Brannen from Keeping Her Keys writes “All human life is sacred. This is not to be debated. However, the mother holds the power of creation and destruction. It is up to her to decide her own future and that of her children. If you think for one second that these politicians care at all about women and children, you are 100% wrong. Controlling women, and other marginalized groups, has always been the campaign of a certain class of men in power.”

All people with a womb, however they self-identify, are affected by this alarming political situation.

We have come to the point where we cannot remain silent. Reproductive rights will not be protected in the current political climate as it stands. We must make our voices heard. We must stand together, shoulder to shoulder, as those who came before us did. We must exercise our right to vote and support candidates who honor a person’s right to govern their healthcare while providing resources and access to all.

Witches and magickal practitioners are coming together to perform a spell in support of reproductive freedom and women’s rights. You can follow Cyndi’s spell or join a magickal resistance group on Facebook in their magickal working, perform the Hands Off Laws Off: Hekate Invocation for Reproductive Rights, or create your own spell.

Many people are looking at what is happening and comparing it to the novel (and the TV show which it inspired) The Handmaid’s Tale. If you’ve not read the book then I recommend you pick up a copy and educate yourself. In the story, the United States becomes a theocratic society known as “Gilead.” Published in 1985, the story is a cautionary tale giving readers a glimpse of what happens when individual rights are chipped away by people not unlike those who support the current administration.

Women’s rights. Minorities rights. LGBTQ+ rights. Freedom of Religion and the public expression thereof. We tend to believe nothing like what is depicted in a dystopian novel such as The Handmaid’s Tale could happen in real life. But when Alabama adopts a law which could subject doctors to a prison sentence of up to 99 years, I have to wonder if we are not so far away from Gilead after all.

About Gwyn

Gwyn is one of the hosts of 3 Pagans and a Cat, a podcast about the questions and discussions between three pagan family members, each exploring different pagan paths and how their various traditions can intersect. The most practiced pagan on the path, Gwyn is an Eclectic Green Witch and Clairsentient Medium. She loves working with herbs, essential oils and plants. In the past, she has been a teacher, musician and published writer. Now, she just wants to be a free spirit and talk about life. You can read more about the author here.

Previous Post

May 18, 2019

Pan-Celtic Hoofbeats: Manannán mac Lir – Book Review

Next Post

May 20, 2019 Irish-American Witchcraft: Medb Isn't Mab and Other Truths

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category A Lakeside Hearth Adventures in Wortcunning Alone In Her Presence Arts, Crafts & Cooking Birthing Hereditary Witchcraft Book of Blackbirds Book Reviews Born-Again Witch Cauldron, Sword, Spear, & Stone Cermony and Liturgy Columns Community Dandelion Seeds Dear Jasmine Druid Thoughts Editor's Picks Everyday Pagan Family & Household Practice Family Traditions Full Frontal Magic Gateway Goddess Guest Articles Happily Heathen Health and Wellness Hearth of Hellenism Heathen Woman Hills of the Horizon History Holidays Horse Goddesses Interfaith Interviews Irish-American Witchcraft Jewish Witch Lamp & Labyrinth Letters from Midgard Literature, Media, Film, Music Loop of Brighid Love, Sex & Relationships Magic or Magick Making Light Naturalistic Traditions Nature News Outside The Circle Pantheisticon Politics Prayers, Poems, Blessings & Stories Queer Femme Mystic Queer of Swords Recipes Ritual and Practice Science and Research Seekers and Guides Seeking the Grail Socially Responsible Magic Spear of Athena Star Made Witch Syncretic Electric Technology The Blooming Staff The Busy Witch The Cartomancer The Crow's Nest The Dance of Pagan Recovery The Hearth of Hellenism The Lady's Quill The Other Side of the Hedge The Path of She The Rantin' Raven The Witches Next Door The Zen Pagan Theology, Ethics, Philosophy Tree City Witch Urban Earthwitch Wayfaring Woman Witch on Fire Wyrd Words

Select a Month January 2026 March 2025 December 2024 June 2024 April 2024 March 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 August 2023 July 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which epistle focuses on joy and is addressed to believers in Macedonia?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Galatians Colossians Philippians Ephesians