Page "Reformed Church in America" Paragraph 14

The Reformed Church is generally opposed to abortion.

The official stance, approved by the General Synod in 1973, affirms that: " We believe the Bible teaches the sanctity of human life.

Men are given the precious gift of life from God and are created in the image of God.

Therefore, we believe, in principle, that abortion ought not to be practiced at all.

However, in this complex society, where many times one form of evil is pitted against another form of evil, there could be exceptions.

It is our Christian conviction that abortion performed for personal reasons to insure individual convenience ought not to be permitted ./ We call on all who counsel those with problem pregnancies, especially youth workers, campus pastors and staff members of our church colleges, to uphold the Christian alternatives to abortion ./ We call on our churches to expand their efforts to support agencies providing a ministry of mercy to those seeking alternatives to abortion ./ We call on our members to support efforts for constitutional changes to provide legal protection for the unborn.

" The stance was reaffirmed by the Commission on Christian Action in 1990: " One way for the church to respond to the tragedy of abortion is to address those forces to which women are especially vulnerable: poverty, a lack of support services, the demands of the work place upon the family.

Women should not be forced to choose between living in poverty or giving birth, between caring for their newborn or losing their job.

They should not feel pressure to abort an unborn child because they have nowhere to turn for support.