The Road to Shalom

Are Most Christians Really “Pro-Life”?

• Fran Sciacca • Season 2 • Episode 7

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     What do fasting, pasta, Alexander the Great, and abortion have in common? You might be surprised. In this provocative episode, Fran lays bare the words that we as evangelicals either misunderstand or are misusing to describe ourselves. And in so doing, he exposes some tender areas of neglect when it comes to the part we're supposed to play in restoring shalom.
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OTHER  RESOURCES BY FRAN SCIACCA:

It seems like the title of this podcast, “The Road to Shalom,” is becoming more significant with each passing week of this pandemic. The ancient word, shalom, is an incredibly nuanced Hebrew word for everything being the way it’s supposed to be. The flourishing of all things without the diminishing of anything. A beautiful arrangement. Something God, the creator of shalom described at the end of Creation, with the phrase, “very good.” But now it seems, we find ourselves wandering in a minefield, searching for that very thing. It seems like the whole world is trying to find the Road to Shalom right now. I’m Fran Sciacca, the show host. Welcome or welcome back.

In the last episode, “What Color is Your Passport?”, I introduced a biblical but relatively UNDER-known idea that having an answer to the question, “Who do I say that I am?” is a vital thing for people of faith. So much so, that getting it wrong at this time in history—at least from where I’m sitting with 70 years behind me—may cost us our last seat at the table in terms of gospel ministry.

What I’d like to do here at the front end, is to make a very brief visit back to that episode and connect the dots up to what we’re going to look at in this one. And the best way I can do that is to lay out the three questions that I think are churning under the hood of anyone with a full set of chromosomes. The first question we looked at last episode, “Who do I say that I am?” - which is basically the question of identity. And I tried to make a case for us getting our identity from scripture rather than any other source.The second question is, “What’s the point?” - or put another way, the question of purpose. The notion that I have a reason to get out of bed each morning that’s adequate enough to actually motivate me to do it. Believing that I’m a part of something bigger than me…or at least there’s something bigger than me that I’m SUPPOSED to be a part of. One author described the idea of purpose like a plot, a storyline in which we each have a role. But his assessment of how that’s going for most people isn’t so good. Here’s what he said: “Most middle class Americans tend to worship their work, work at their play, and play at their worship. As a result, their meanings and values are distorted. Their relationships disintegrate faster than they can keep them in repair. Their lifestyles resemble a cast of characters in search of a plot.” –Gordon Dahl

A cast of characters in search of a plot…wow! Talk about a portrait of being lost on the road to meaning. But you know something, I think this guy’s spot on. Our obsession with all things new and improved; our constant attempts at being known; at being noticed; all point to a quest for purpose. The third question has to do with our sense of calling or mission. And that’s the question, “What’s my place?” In other words, what’s MY contribution to whatever the point is, now that I know who I am. It might sound a little complicated, but it’s not. The real issue is that we just don’t take the time to think about it. Or worse, no one’s ever introduced us to these questions.

All three of these questions are legitimate and universal. And all three beg for answers for life to have meaning, direction, and satisfaction. And beloved, this is not only true for us as individuals. It’s also true for us corporately, as a race. One more thing…and this, I think, is really important…there’s a proper order to getting this right. As well as a predictable dismay from getting it wrong. Identity leads to purpose, and purpose leads to mission. Jump in at the wrong spot, and you’ll end up disillusioned, disenfranchised, and even cynical. I’m convinced that this is one of the major causes of the growing disintegration of organized religion in America, and the polarization within evangelicalism. The American Church, without any real sense of WHO we are, has set out to fulfill what it BELIEVES is its mission. But too often, this mission is based on a purpose built around a few Bible verses about evangelism, yet totally disconnected from the actual narrative of the Bible, which is our only window into what in the world God is doing and always has been doing. In the words of a dear friend of ours in England, we’ve “lost the plot.” And beloved, purpose DEPENDS on plot. No plot, no purpose. Regardless of how passionate, loud, busy, and big all our activity is. American evangelicalism is a cast of characters in search of a plot. And when you don’t have a plot, you end up with an agenda. 

The social justice, abortion, and racial equality movements in our day are excellent examples of how this plays out in real time. One one hand, the secular culture often tries to promote a mission that only makes sense in light of the biblical narrative, yet our culture denies the authority of the very scriptures that validate it. Then on the other hand, American Evangelicalism seems to dismiss, deny, or marginalize the same secular mission, because we’ve pawned our identity as subjects of a single Kingdom, for citizenship of a democracy, and have embraced a variety of political agendas rather than the plot of Scripture. Because God loves me and has a wonderful plan for my life, I can pursue my best life now. Which of course means affiliating with people who are no threat to that. People who want what I want. And that involves picking sides. And whenever believers pick sides, they almost always choose the wrong one.

Okay.  Let me take you back about 3,500 years, to a Hebrew war encampment just outside the city of Jericho. The commander of the Jewish army was getting himself psyched for the next day’s battle. I’m picture him strolling through the camp with his sword at his side.  While he was, he had this unexpected encounter with another warrior; one who had his sword DRAWN. He asked the stranger, “Who’s side are you on? Ours, or our adversaries?” The stranger gave an unusual answer. He said, “No.” Then he went on to say, “…but I am the commander of the army of the LORD. Now I have come.” Or put into a more modern idiom, “I’m not on either side. I’m on God’s side…with the unspoken but clearly implied question to Joshua, “Who’s side are YOU on?”

This classic snippet from the life of Joshua is a great illustration of the danger to assume that God takes sides, and it’s ours. Suddenly it’s “us” versus “them.” This is the birthplace of polarization. But, the angel’s subtle rebuke to Joshua is a reminder that when we focus on “us” or focus on “them,” we can’t focus on HIM. Unfortunately as a result, God is often excluded from our choices because we’ve exchanged our narrative for his, and assumed they’re the same. Beloved, words like, “we,” “us,” “them” or “those” lead well-meaning Christians onto paths of purposeless efforts. Or worse, they engender a wartime mentality rather than a missional one. Life becomes a war of agendas rather than fulfilling the mission of God.

The issue of abortion is a clear modern example. In the nearly radioactive environment we find ourselves at the moment politically, the issue of abortion is glowing in the dark. I’m running into more and more Christians who talk about being, “single issue voters.” I’m not going to comment on the wisdom of that. But I have to admit that those conversations are a lot like Joshua talking to the angel. “Which side are you on?” You’re either Pro-Choice or you’re Pro-Life. The assumption is that God is Pro Life. And of course He is. I’m just not so sure that many evangelicals are. Pro-Life that is. And, best I can understand what most white evangelicals mean when they say THEY’RE Pro-Life, I have to say I’m not one. Now, don’t hit the Stop button here. I am not in favor of abortion on demand. I wasn’t when Roe vs Wade stripped personhood from a human fetus the winter of my senior year of college. And, 47 years later, my convictions haven’t changed. But, I AM deeply troubled by the confusion of terms that characterizes much of the Christian chatter on this issue. Let me go back to our friend Joshua to explain.

You remember his question to the angel, “Which side are you on?” I’d like to fast-forward that encounter to the present, and have the conversation with the angel be about abortion, rather than the defeat of Jericho. I want you to picture Joshua ( or yourself would actually be better) approaching the angel and asking, “Which side are you on, Pro-Life or Pro-Choice?” and the angel responding, “I’m on God’s side, which side are you on?” Just like with Joshua’s error, it turns out there’s three sides to the abortion question, not two. And the confusion is all wrapped up in our vocabulary. If someone asked you, “Are you Pro-Life or Pro-Choice”? I think I know how most of you would respond, so let me push this in a little further. If you told someone  you were Pro-Life, and they then asked you, “What does that mean? What are you ‘for’?” What would you say then? If your response would be any version of, “I’m against abortion” or “I think killing a fetus is murder,” or “I’m an advocate for the rights of the unborn,” I’m going to suggest to you…that’s the wrong answer.

Do you remember learning about synonyms in school? A word or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same thing as another word or phrase. That’s a synonym. Okay, here’s the most important thing that I think we’ve got to get straight on the issue of abortion. Because in my experience, this is an illustration where we evangelicals have been talking TO each other and AT the larger culture for so long, we’ve never taken the time to examine our vocabulary. At least a ton of us haven’t. Being anti-abortion and being pro-life are NOT synonymous. They’re related, but they are NOT two ways of saying the same thing. If a person is Pro-Life, then they’re very likely going to be anti-abortion. But, a person who is anti-abortion, is NOT automatically Pro-Life. In fact BEING anti-abortion does NOT qualify me as Pro-Life. Well then, what DOES it mean? It means what the words mean. It qualifies what I’m against, which is abortion. Not what I’m “for.”  So am I saying that a person who’s against abortion should SAY they’re against abortion? I don’t want there to be any confusion here. That’s exactly what I’m saying. Unless of course, they’re also Pro-Life. Then, they should say they’re Pro-Life, and their position on abortion is one expression of being Pro-Life. But, they should say it both with their lips and their life. This is the Joshua Question in real time. The correct question now becomes, “Which side are you on, anti-abortion or pro-abortion?” And the angel responds, “Neither. I’m on God’s side. I’m Pro-Life. Which side are you on?” Are you confused? If so, then my point is hitting home.

Beloved, let me say this gently, but clearly. God is Pro-Life, and we should be too. But…we’re not really. We’re anti-abortion. That’s what we’re against. So if God’s Pro-Life, what does being Pro-Life look like?

Let me take you to another passage of scripture and let’s approach this from the back door. Let’s say it’s the beginning of Lent and you’re thinking of fasting from pasta. You’re going to sorta be “anti-pasta” for a few weeks. You encounter this same poor angel, who by this time is tired of being a sermon illustration, and have a similar conversation, “Who’s side are you on, those who are pro-fasting or those who are anti-fasting?” The the good ole “us” versus “them” question. The angel responds, “I’m on God’s side, and He has defined true fasting. Which side are you on?” Remember, you’re anti-pasta. So, what does being anti-pasta have to do with being pro-fasting? Well, God’s short answer is…nothing. Listen as he describes what it looks like to be pro-fasting:

“Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call THIS a fast, and a day acceptable to the LORD? “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him,” (Isaiah 58:4-7). 

This is the difference between being anti-pasta and pro-fasting. Being anti-pasta doesn’t make me pro-fasting. It only makes me anti-pasta. But, if I get this wrong, I’ll really believe that I’m pro-fasting. I’ll tell people that. I’ll affiliate with others who are, and shun those who aren’t. All the while never being pro-fasting while assuming I am.

Beloved, the same is true of being Pro-Life. It’s very possible that I can be anti-abortion, and BELIEVE I’m Pro-Life. Tell others that. Hang out with folks like me. Vote for folks like me. All the while merely being anti-abortion. What does it mean that God’s Pro-Life. Well, just like the words, anti-abortion or anti-fasting, it means what the words say. He’s Pro-LIFE. He’s invested in what makes for life, he’s active in protecting, nurturing, and propagating what makes for life. And just like his descriptive list of the characteristics of being pro-fasting, he’s done the same thing about being pro-life. As a former classroom teacher, I sort of see Yeshua’s descriptive list of being like God; of being Pro-Life as similar to the angel’s response to the Joshua question. Here’s what Yeshua says it looks like to be Pro-Life:

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’”

And fortunately for us, he also gives us the descriptive list of what it looks like NOT to be Pro-Life:

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” (Matthew 25:41–46)

Some of you are rolling your eyes. I just hope you’re not driving. Seriously, this passage is a theological swamp for a lot of reasons. I get that. But, just this once, don’t immediately go to some explanation that begins with, “Yeah, but…” Just listen to what Yeshua is saying here. This is God in a body telling us what HE thinks about people without food, without water, people who are justly or unjustly incarcerated, people without clothing. Children without parents, refugees without countries, widows without families. People without healthcare and textbooks. People without clean water. People with no advocates. It’s also about those who entered into those hard spaces and brought some relief. This is the God Jesus told us to address in prayer as “Our Father.” Our Father. And what does God himself say about this portrait of being a father? The scripture says, “Father to the fatherless, protector of widows, IS God in his holy habitation.” This is what God does, because this is who God is. And make no mistake, God is pro-life. Is he anti- abortion? Of course he is. But, he’s also FOR a lot more things as well, because he’s truly pro-life. The question is: Am I? Are you? Does our vocabulary match our actions, our investments, and our associations?

Let me end by telling another story. This one is very likely more legendary than historical, but it’s nearly been given the status of truth because it’s been cited so many times by so many different people. As the story goes, Alexander the Great was walking through his military camp on one of his campaigns to conquer the world. And while strolling through his camp he came upon a sleeping soldier who was supposed to be on guard that very hour. Alexander, the ultimate Macedonian warrior, was furious. He woke the young soldier, and staring at him eye to eye, demanded to know his name. Face to face with his king, the trembling soldier muttered that his name was also Alexander. Alexander the Great replied slowly and fiercely, “Either change your name or live up to your name.”

As we close this episode, I’d like to revisit this idea that God has a mission. And, it’s an authentic Pro-Life mission. Our purpose as individuals and as the Body of Christ—the thing for which he’s redeemed us—is inseparable from his mission to make things “very good” again. To restore shalom and remove the things that rob it. The righting of wrongs, and setting things straight. And there’s another beautiful Hebrew word for that. It’s the word, mishpat…justice. Every kind of justice. God’s a God of justice because he’s pro-life He’s FOR life as it’s supposed to be. Shalom is his goal. Justice is His means to restore and protect it. The restoration of shalom through the work of justice was at the heart of the ministry of Jesus himself:

“…a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law.” (Isaiah 42:3–4)

Being anti-abortion doesn’t cost much, in most cases, nothing, and it allows a person to be a “single issue” Christian. Being Pro-Life costs… a lot in fact…because you can’t just talk about it. It’s actually measurable. People can tell if you’re really Pro-Life by watching. As I close, I want to challenge all of us with the words of Alexander the Great to that sleeping soldier. When it comes to our use of the phrase, Pro-Life, I think we need to either change our vocabulary, or change our behavior. And if we’re following God’s narrative rather than our own, it’s gotta be the latter of those two options.  Think about it…Shalom.