Building a Post-Roe America

by Pastor Tom Anderson

The Supreme Court ruling last week was an historic day in the life of our country. The court decided that there is no constitutional right to abortion. What this means is that we are now set free to have a public debate around the fundamental moral issue of our generation—the sanctity of human life.

Our first thoughts should be with the little ones whose lives have been taken since 1973. We mourn their loss, and we entrust their souls to God, who loved them and who will love them for all eternity. Our hearts are also with every woman and man who has suffered grievously from abortion; we pray for their healing, and we pledge our continued compassion and support. As a Church, we need to serve those who face difficult pregnancies and surround them with love.

We have come to this moment because for the last 50 years, millions of people of faith—including myself—have been involved in peaceful efforts to persuade our neighbors that we needed to make a moral change in this country. We should all rejoice that we live in a country where peaceful, persistent democratic efforts do make a difference and so does prayer. Our democracy is not broken, but in fact is alive and well.

Now is the time to begin the work of building a post-Roe America. It is a time for healing wounds and repairing social divisions; it is a time for reasoned reflection and civil dialogue, and for coming together to build a society and economy that supports marriages and families, and where every woman has the support and resources she needs to bring her child into this world in love.

We live in a big country with millions of differences. It is the nature of democracy that compromise must prevail. No one gets everything their way. All sides in the abortion debate will need to come to terms that—while not perfect—will be something they can live with. This may take a few years and several election cycles to arrive at. But democracy does work well. Our system is not broken! As an American, I believe in it.

As your pastor, I pledge myself to continue my service to God’s great plan of love for each person, to speak for the most vulnerable population—unborn children, and to work with everyone to fulfill America’s promise to guarantee the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all people.