LDS Outreach Opportunity: Join The 40 Days For Life Campaign Against Abortion Through November 3rd

Most active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have rather full plates with large families and church callings. But here's an outreach opportunity which may be better geared towards less-active Mormons who still believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Consider participating in the 40 Days For Life campaign.

The 40 Days For Life campaign is currently taking place in 306 U.S. and Canadian cities through November 3rd, 2013. The most visible aspect is a peaceful prayer vigil outside an abortion facility, but other forms of activism can include face-to-face flyer distribution (respect No Soliciting signs if going door-to-door), public witness, petition drives, and table displays. Most of the facilities targeted for the vigils are Planned Parenthood clinics. During the current campaign, they project that, as of Day 13 of this year's campaign, they have saved 135 babies from abortion. They claim that during the six years they've been running this campaign, 41 abortion clinics have closed, and 83 abortion workers have quit.

If you do not have a Planned Parenthood clinic or abortion facility in your town, you can still conduct a 40 Days for Life vigil. But you will need to select a different location which has some strategic significance – perhaps near city hall, a courthouse, or a highly visible intersection. And if you intend to wear the 40 Days For Life mantle, you need to abide by their standards of behavior. For a believing Mormon, the latter should be no problem. If you cannot find time to physically participate, they accept donations.

Why is this so important? Here's a video by Alexander Tsiaras which graphically shows the process of human progression, beginning by showing an egg being fertilized and ending by illustrating a baby’s actual birth. The actual sequence of fetal development begins at 2:05:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKyljukBE70



Here are three reasons why it would be beneficial for members of the LDS Church to get involved in this campaign:

(1). It shows that we care about unborn human life. The current map shows a disturbing lack of pro-life activism in the most Mormon parts of the country -- Utah and Southeast Idaho. Only one vigil has been mounted in Utah. This needs to be corrected.

(2). It gives us the opportunity to show our detractors that we don't have horns and a forked tail. We show fellow Christians that we are indeed Christian, and we show social progressives that we are not racist, sexist, or homophobic.

(3). It gives us an opportunity to offer the fulness of the Gospel to others as the Holy Ghost prompts us. But this does not mean if we take part in a vigil that we immediately "spam" non-Mormons with the Gospel and shove the Book of Mormon at them. First, we show respect for the venue by doing THEIR thing. Then, after we've earned the confidence of our fellow activists and they ask us about our religion, we can tell them we're Mormon and answer any questions they might have. As LDS members, we display a disturbing tendency to view non-Mormons primarily as prospective converts. We must FIRST show a willingness to love and value non-Mormons just as they are. Above all, allow the Holy Ghost the opportunity to prompt us as to when, how, and to whom we extend an offer to learn the fulness of the Gospel.

And finally, here's the official LDS Church's position on abortion. We can accept therapeutic abortion after prayerful consideration, but we don't accept elective abortion, and Church members who undergo elective abortions may face a disciplinary council:

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes in the sanctity of human life. Therefore, the Church opposes elective abortion for personal or social convenience, and counsels its members not to submit to, perform, encourage, pay for, or arrange for such abortions.

The Church allows for possible exceptions for its members when:

-- Pregnancy results from rape or incest, or
-- A competent physician determines that the life or health of the mother is in serious jeopardy, or
-- A competent physician determines that the fetus has severe defects that will not allow the baby to survive beyond birth.

The Church teaches its members that even these rare exceptions do not justify abortion automatically. Abortion is a most serious matter and should be considered only after the persons involved have consulted with their local church leaders and feel through personal prayer that their decision is correct.

The Church has not favored or opposed legislative proposals or public demonstrations concerning abortion.

40 Days For Life Campaign A Worthy Pro-Life Endeavor For Involvement By Mormons

The life of the average active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints revolves considerably around the local ward. In heavily-Mormon areas such as Utah and Southeast Idaho, this can cause many LDS members to become insular and develop tunnel vision despite their best efforts. Not even a two-year stint in the mission field may necessarily cure this syndrome, since a full-time mission is still "all-Mormon all the time".

Here's an opportunity for Mormons to break out of that insular mode and interact with other people in the community -- all for a worthy political cause. The 40 Days For Life campaign begins nationwide on September 26th and continuing until November 4th. This campaign -- the 11th on record -- will be the largest and longest internationally coordinated pro-life mobilization in history; it will encompass 49 US states, Washington, DC, seven Canadian provinces, Australia, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Uganda. Some of their previous successes include 69 abortion workers quitting their jobs and walking away from the abortion industry, and 24 abortion facilities completely shutting down following local 40 Days for Life campaigns.

The complete list of locations is available HERE. Note that most of the vigils will take place outside of Planned Parenthood facilities.

Although an activist can simply show up at a designated time and place, 40 Days For Life prefers that you register an account like on this vigil calendar so you can sign up for a particular time block. Since some pro-life advocates are under frequent attack by the Southern Poverty Law Center, 40 Days For Life also asks you to certify your agreement with the following pledge:

I testify to the following:

1. I will only pursue peaceful solutions to the violence of abortion when volunteering with the 40 Days for Life campaign

2. I will show compassion and reflect Christ’s love to all abortion facility employees, volunteers, and customers

3. I understand that acting in a violent or harmful manner immediately and completely disassociates me from the 40 Days for Life campaign

4. I am in no way associated with the abortion facility/Planned Parenthood or its affiliates by way of employment, informant, volunteer, client, or otherwise

While standing in the city right of way in front of the abortion facility:

5. I will not obstruct the driveways or sidewalk while standing in the public right of way

6. I will not litter on the public right of way

7. I will closely attend to any children I bring to the prayer vigil

8. I will not threaten, physically contact, or verbally abuse the abortion facility/Planned Parenthood employees, volunteers, or customers

9. I will not vandalize private property

10. I will cooperate with local city authorities

Although the primary purpose in showing up for one of their vigils is to represent THEIR cause, a secondary purpose can be to capitalize upon opportunities to share the fulness of the Gospel as they arise. It's best to wait until asked, but invariably, one of your fellow activists will ask you about your church, and that gives you the opportunity to introduce them to Mormonism. Don't try to spam them with all the missionary discussions at once; answer their questions one at a time. Also be conversant on the official LDS position on abortion, in which abortion is permissible for life or health reasons, and in the case of rape and incest.

Remember, a Roman Catholic's faith is just as sacred to a Catholic as ours is to us.

Alexander Tsiaras' Video Visualization Of The Progression Of An Unborn Human Baby Validates LDS Church's Official Position On Abortion

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially deplores abortion, although they do distinguish between therapeutic abortion, normally defined as abortion to save the mother's life, preserve her fundamental health, and to deal with the product of rape and incest, vs. elective abortion, which generally has no medical necessity. While elective abortion can expose an LDS woman to church discipline, therapeutic abortion results in no sanctions.

A video produced by Alexander Tsiaras, author of the book “From Conception to Birth: A Life Unfolds", underscores why the Church takes abortion so seriously. This video, discovered on The Blaze, graphically and progressively depicts the development of a human baby, beginning by showing an egg being fertilized and ending by illustrating a baby’s actual birth. Throughout the clip, viewers see the full fetal development with explanations as to what is occurring at each phase. The actual sequence of fetal development begins at 2:05:



This video should illustrate to the pro-choice viewer why we pro-lifers consider unborn human life to be so sacred. Allowing therapeutic abortion represented a major political compromise on our part; it should be matched by a commitment to respect parental consent and parental notification initiatives from the pro-choice side.

Here's the full official LDS Church statement on abortion, first published a while back:

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes in the sanctity of human life. Therefore, the Church opposes elective abortion for personal or social convenience, and counsels its members not to submit to, perform, encourage, pay for, or arrange for such abortions.

The Church allows for possible exceptions for its members when:

* Pregnancy results from rape or incest, or
* A competent physician determines that the life or health of the mother is in serious jeopardy, or
* A competent physician determines that the fetus has severe defects that will not allow the baby to survive beyond birth.

The Church teaches its members that even these rare exceptions do not justify abortion automatically. Abortion is a most serious matter and should be considered only after the persons involved have consulted with their local church leaders and feel through personal prayer that their decision is correct.

The Church has not favored or opposed legislative proposals or public demonstrations concerning abortion.