Jess1234
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jrs81.bsky.social
Jess1234
@jrs81.bsky.social
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I’m a mother, farm wife, baker and life long learner.
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jrs81.bsky.social
This issue isn't abstract for me. My wife and I are expecting our third child next month here in Idaho, a state with some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country. I cannot tell you how terrifying it is to know that if complications arise, the government-not my wife or her healthcare provider-would have the final say over what happens to her and our unborn son. I love my children. I believe all life is sacred. But I also believe control and compassion are not the same thing. When laws criminalize necessary medical care, force women to carry doomed pregnancies, ignore the unbearable circumstances of pregnancy caused by the various forms of S-A, or push families into financial ruin to receive out-of-state treatment, we are not honoring life. We are weaponizing it. A Better Way Forward: That's why I ardently support both women's rights and efforts to reduce abortion. These are not contradictions. In fact, the data shows that the following reduce abortions far more effectively than bans: • Addressing poverty • Expanding access to healthcare • Access to contraception • Paid family leave • Affordable housing • Reproductive education • A living wage • Dismantling misogyny and violence We must also do so much better at holding men accountable for the choices they make that results in pregnancy. While they play a central role in causing pregnancy, it does not impact them bodily, socially, and mentally as it does women. Teaching our sons to not sexualize women and to understand the gravity of the choices they make would make a dramatic difference and save so many lives and prevent so many victims of abuse. These save lives, both unborn and born. My plea to fellow Christians is this: do not shame those who hold different convictions on this issue. Many Christians believe compassion, not control, will do more to protect life. And many of them have deeply personal reasons, rooted in both faith and lived experience, for that belief. Jesus said: "Whatever you did for the least of these... you did for me." (Matthew 25:40) So instead of these rigid binaries, let's ask: -Are our policies lifting up the least of these-or punishing them? -Are we prioritizing compassion or power and control? -Are we centering the real people at the heart of this issue or just ourselves? We must also do so much better at holding men accountable for the choices they make that results in pregnancy. While they play a central role in causing pregnancy, it does not impact them bodily, socially, and mentally as it does women. Teaching our sons to not sexualize women and to understand the gravity of the choices they make would make a dramatic difference and save so many lives and prevent so many victims of abuse. These save lives, both unborn and born. My plea to fellow Christians is this: do not shame those who hold different convictions on this issue. Many Christians believe compassion, not control, will do more to protect life. And many of them have deeply personal reasons, rooted in both faith and lived experience, for that belief. Jesus said: "Whatever you did for the least of these... you did for me." (Matthew 25:40) So instead of these rigid binaries, let's ask: -Are our policies lifting up the least of these-or punishing them? -Are we prioritizing compassion or power and control? -Are we centering the real people at the heart of this issue or just ourselves?
July 30, 2025 at 3:59 AM
jrs81.bsky.social
Benjamin Cremer ... X 11h • © Why I believe advocating for women's rights and seeking to reduce abortion do not contradict each other, but go hand in hand. In today's cultural climate, few issues expose our polarized, binary thinking more than abortion. We are told we must either be "pro-life" or "pro-choice," as if the complexities of life, faith, justice, and care can be distilled into just two rigid boxes. As a public writer, this is one of the most common responses I receive daily on everything I write. So I wanted to address this here. But what if that binary is deeply insufficient? What if the way Christians think and talk about abortion actually says more about our commitment to power than our commitment to people? The Bible doesn't allow us to stay in our binary thinking: Scripture consistently portrays the unborn as sacred, not through legal definitions, but through relational, emotional, and theological ones. The pain of barrenness expressed by particular women in the Bible is a repeated theme of lament, and the joy of conception is seen as divine blessing: "When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive..." (Genesis 29:31) "When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive..." (Genesis 29:31) "God gives the childless woman a family, making her a happy mother. Praise the Lord!" (Psalm 113:9) "Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. 'The Lord has done this for me, she said." (Luke 1:24-25) The longing for children is deeply tied to hope, legacy, and divine faithfulness for many. Christians rightly see this as sacred. Yet the Bible does not treat the unborn identically to those already born when it comes to legality. In Exodus 21:22-25, if a pregnant woman is injured and the baby is lost, a fine is imposed, but if the woman herself is harmed, the punishment is "life for life." This passage, among the most direct legal statements on fetal harm, suggests the ancient world did not ascribe the same legal personhood to the unborn as to the mother. The command "you shall not murder" was not applied the same way to a miscarriage caused by a third party. As a local Rabbi told me, it is precisely because of the Torah that even some of the most conservative sects of Judaism are pro choice politically today. This doesn't mean unborn life is meaningless. It means the Bible recognizes complexity. It means the sacredness of life doesn't always equal simple legalism. This doesn't mean unborn life is meaningless. It means the Bible recognizes complexity. It means the sacredness of life doesn't always equal simple legalism. Consider Mary, the mother of Jesus as an example. A young, unmarried girl with no proof of her virginity, she easily could have been accused of sexual sin and punished severely. Deuteronomy 22:13-21 mandated death for such cases. And yet... she was not dragged before the elders. She was not stoned. Instead, Joseph was described as "a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace." (Matthew 1:19). Then an angel intervened. Even Zechariah, the priest and enforcer of the Law, chose compassion towards Mary rather than the letter of the law. Mary's story reminds us: even when laws demanded retribution, God invited compassion. How this relates to real-world Impact of extremism today: Extreme abortion laws today do not reflect this kind of grace. They do not save lives, they put them at risk. In Texas, Idaho, and other states, women are being denied care even in emergency situations. Pregnancies with lethal complications have become traumatic ordeals where doctors fear prosecution for helping. We must ask: is this really the goal? Despite these bans, abortions increased in 2023, according to the Guttmacher Institute. If the goal is to reduce abortions, bans are clearly not the answer. And let's look at the facts: -7 in 10 women who have had abortions identify as Christian, according to Lifeway Research. -Over half of women who seek abortions live below the poverty line, a rate that has doubled since the 1990s (Georgetown Journal on Poverty Law & Policy). -Maternal mortality is rising: Idaho (where I live) saw a 121.5% increase between 2019 and 2022, and it ranks highest in the nation for postpartum depression. The biggest predictors of abortion? Poverty, lack of healthcare, domestic abuse, and fear. If we truly want to reduce abortion, we must address these realities, not criminalize women. Also, notice how men's responsibility in creating a pregnancy is not focused on at all in most abortion laws? This is an intentional byproduct of an inherent negative bias towards women. Jesus declared his mission was to bring "good news to the poor" (Luke 4:18). Are we following his lead? Our Personal Reality
July 30, 2025 at 3:59 AM
Reposted by Jess1234
abesmith5b.bsky.social
Yep, Noem is running her mouth about how under-invested the NWS is. Biden proposed to increase the FY2025 NWS budget by $71 million, for a total budget of over $1 billion. Trump immediately gutted that.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

www.pbs.org/newshour/pol...

kfor.com/news/local/t...
July 6, 2025 at 11:45 PM