Just two points.
(1)Contraceptives like the pill can and do cause chemical abortions.
In fact there are SEVERAL more abortions from the secondary "back-up" effects of contraceptives than surgical abortion.
See Chemical abortions in the United States
Before 1930 ALL Christian churches openly condemned contraceptives. Why? Because it leads to abortion. Abortion and Contraception are from the same poisoned tree.
(2) I believe we past the open maw of the pit (ref to your last para.) in 1973. When Roe happened, ANYTHING then became possible.
Chemical abortions in the United States (1965-1996)
Because many contraceptive measures are abortifacients (drugs that induce or cause abortions), it is important not to overlook the number of children killed by chemical abortions. Since 1965, an average of 11 million women have used abortifacient methods of birth control in the United States at any given time. This means about 14 million chemical abortions are committed in the United States each year, giving a total of 450 million chemical abortions between 1965 and 1996. **
THE PILL
The "birth control pill" is also not merely a contraceptive. Although it is designed primarily as a contraceptive, it is not always effective as such . . . and when it is not effective, it has a "back-up" mechanism that is clearly abortifacient! The "pill" has three mechanisms of action. You can easily look them up in the Physician's Desk Reference.
It attempts to suppress ovulation. When successful in this action, an egg is not released and conception, of course, cannot occur.
It thickens the woman's cervical mucus. Thus, the sperm are restricted from moving up the reproductive tract. This is also contraceptive.
However, the "pill" causes certain changes in the uterine lining so that if conception does occur, the new life meets a hostile environment when it arrives in the uterus 6 to 10 days later. It cannot implant. It dies. This is abortifacient. As you see, this is similar to the IUD. Why, then, do some Christians continue to accept the "pill" as a morally acceptable choice in planning families? One attempted justification centers upon the uncertainty of just how often the "pill" works as an abortifacient. Unlike the IUD, such persons might argue, the "pill" is primarily contraceptive since it suppresses ovulation most of the time. (The most obvious exceptions here are the "mini-pills" which have no estrogen and allow ovulation to take place 40-60% of the time. This is published in Emory University's Contraceptive Technology.)
Initial studies showed that even the early "pill" formulations (which were much more likely to suppress ovulation due to their higher doses of estrogen) still allowed "breakthrough ovulation" to occur 13% of the time! An award-winning study by the Dutch gynecologist Dr. Nine Van der Vange presented at the Second International Conference of the Society for Advancement in Contraception (SAC) in Jakarta showed that low-dose contraceptive pills do not always suppress ovulation. In follicular ultrasound measurements she found detectable follicular growth in 52 to 56% of the cycles investigated, and preovulatory size follicles in at least 30% of the cycles. Proof of ovulation based on ultrasound exams and hormonal indicators occurred in about 4% of the cycles studied. In summarizing her presentation before the Society, Dr. Van der Vange remarked, "We conclude that the contraceptive preparations are more complex than has been thought. They are not only based on inhibition of ovulation." Dr. Ronald Chez, a scientist at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), publicly stated that the "pills" of today, with their lower estrogen dose, allow ovulation up to 50% of the time! Dr. Thomas Hilgers, the renowned fertility expert who is currently the Director of the Pope Paul VI Research Institute, was present when this statement was made but the NIH has never published this information. In fact, the NIH has been more than a little hesitant to publish specific data in the medical journals to which private MDs have access. The drug companies are similarly reticent to provide such data. Nevertheless, the scientist mentioned above was at that time the head of the pregnancy re-search development branch of the NIH, itself the spearhead for contemporary medical research!
So, then, just how often does the "pill" have to rely on this abortive "backup" mechanism? No one can tell you with certainty. Perhaps it is as seldom as 12% of the time; but perhaps it is as frequently as 50% of the time. Does it matter?
The clear conclusion is that it is impossible for any woman on the "pill" in any given month to know exactly which mechanism is in effect. In other words, the "pill" always carries with it the potential to act as an abortifacient! In light of these realities, can Christian couples truly neglect the disturbing ramifications that use of either the IUD or the various "birth control pills" create? Those Christians who are sincerely committed to God and His Word must strictly obey His clear mandate ----"Thou shalt not kill." This is a most important message, involving human lives and loyalty to the commands of Holy Scripture, which Christian couples must hear and heed.
David Sterns, M.D., is a graduate of the University of Nebraska School of Medicine, and is Board Certified in internal medicine and electrocardiology. His wife, Gina Sterns, R.N., holds a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Biola University. Dave and Gina have two children. They attend Harvest Community Church in Omaha, Nebraska.
Pam Yaksich, a high school principal and teacher of science, biology and theology, has worked as a medical researcher with the physicians of the Pope Paul VI Institute for the Study of Human Reproduction. Pam is also the Chairman of the Vital Signs Ministries Board.
For further information and documentation, order the eight-page booklet The Birth Control Game
Available for $2.00 from: American Life League P.O. Box 1350 Stafford, VA 22555 (703) 659-4171 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vital Signs Ministries vitalsigns@vitalsignsministries.org P. O. Box 3826 Omaha, NE 68103 (402) 341-8886
Depending on the actual statistics, the same could be said for simply having sex. Sex results in a certain number of miscarriages, so to be 100% certain of not causing an infant's death, one would have to be celibate.