I have just been thinking a little bit about President Obama's recent
speech at Notre Dame. It is a beautiful speech. One that urges a united
front.
After a Christian pastor contacted him requesting respectful treatment and depiction of pro-life America, the President said:
" After I read the doctor's letter, I wrote back to him and thanked him. I didn't change my position, but I did tell my staff to change the words on my website. And I said a prayer that night that I might extend the same presumption of good faith to others that the doctor had extended to me. Because when we do that - when we open our hearts and our minds to those who may not think like we do or believe what we do - that's when we discover at least the possibility of common ground.
That's when we begin to say, 'Maybe we won't agree on abortion, but we can still agree that this is a heart-wrenching decision for any woman to make, with both moral and spiritual dimensions.
So let's work together to reduce the number of women seeking abortions by reducing unintended pregnancies, and making adoption more available, and providing care and support for women who do carry their child to term. Let's honor the conscience of those who disagree with abortion, and draft a sensible conscience clause, and make sure that all of our health care policies are grounded in clear ethics and sound science, as well as respect for the equality of women.'"
(You can check it out yourself at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/17/obama-notre-dame-speech-f_n_204387.html )
For some reason this brought me to his 2008 speech on race. In it his speaks about the signing of America's Constitution.
"The document they produced was eventually signed but ultimately unfinished. It was stained by this nation's original sin of slavery, a question that divided the colonies and brought the convention to a stalemate until the founders chose to allow the slave trade to continue for at least twenty more years, and to leave any final resolution to future generations. "
(Also full text here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/03/18/obama-race-speech-read-th_n_92077.html )
So what I understand is that a.) Slavery is a sin that has stained our nation’s history and constitution. And b.) Abortion is a right that should be protected. That we should look with understanding and open our minds and hearts to the arguments and times that necessitate it. Additionally we should make sure we have clear science and ethics in regards to it.
After a Christian pastor contacted him requesting respectful treatment and depiction of pro-life America, the President said:
" After I read the doctor's letter, I wrote back to him and thanked him. I didn't change my position, but I did tell my staff to change the words on my website. And I said a prayer that night that I might extend the same presumption of good faith to others that the doctor had extended to me. Because when we do that - when we open our hearts and our minds to those who may not think like we do or believe what we do - that's when we discover at least the possibility of common ground.
That's when we begin to say, 'Maybe we won't agree on abortion, but we can still agree that this is a heart-wrenching decision for any woman to make, with both moral and spiritual dimensions.
So let's work together to reduce the number of women seeking abortions by reducing unintended pregnancies, and making adoption more available, and providing care and support for women who do carry their child to term. Let's honor the conscience of those who disagree with abortion, and draft a sensible conscience clause, and make sure that all of our health care policies are grounded in clear ethics and sound science, as well as respect for the equality of women.'"
(You can check it out yourself at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/17/obama-notre-dame-speech-f_n_204387.html )
For some reason this brought me to his 2008 speech on race. In it his speaks about the signing of America's Constitution.
"The document they produced was eventually signed but ultimately unfinished. It was stained by this nation's original sin of slavery, a question that divided the colonies and brought the convention to a stalemate until the founders chose to allow the slave trade to continue for at least twenty more years, and to leave any final resolution to future generations. "
(Also full text here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/03/18/obama-race-speech-read-th_n_92077.html )
So what I understand is that a.) Slavery is a sin that has stained our nation’s history and constitution. And b.) Abortion is a right that should be protected. That we should look with understanding and open our minds and hearts to the arguments and times that necessitate it. Additionally we should make sure we have clear science and ethics in regards to it.
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