Posted on 02/08/2010 10:44:18 AM PST by Between the Lines
Considering the abortion lobby's deluge of pre-emptive protest against the Tim Tebow Super Bowl advertisement, sponsored by Focus on the Family, few might have guessed its actual form, first unveiled last night: a clean, simple, family-oriented message that never mentioned abortion.
The brief spot, garnished with light humor, left pro-abortion forces so scattered in their effort to respond that one group even called another's harsh criticism of the ad "absurd."
The ad took two forms - one that showed during the pre-game show, and an extended version that played during the Super Bowl.
The first spot shows Pam Tebow against a simple white backdrop, holding up a photo of her son as a baby. “I call him my miracle baby,” she says. “He almost didn’t make it into this world.”
“I remember so many times when I almost lost him,” she continues. “It was so hard. Well he’s all grown up now, and I still worry about his health. Everybody treats him like he’s different, but to me, he’s just my baby. He’s my Timmy, and I love him.”
Tim then walks on screen and gives his mom a hug. “Thanks mom. Love you too,” he says.
The second spot is similar to the first, except that at one point Tim runs across the screen and humorously tackles his mom as she is speaking.
“Timmy!” says Pam, “I'm trying to tell our story here.”
Tim: Sorry about that, Mom... You still worry about me, Mom?
Pam: Well, yeah, you're not nearly as tough as I am.
Both ads direct viewers to learn more about Tebow's story at FocusontheFamily.com. There Pam and Bob Tebow discuss the miraculous circumstances of their son Timothy's conception and birth, and their decision not to abort him against the advice of doctors. The parents also urge viewers struggling with a difficult pregnancy to trust in God's love and choose life for their baby.
The president of NOW, one of the leading forces urging CBS to remove the ad, responded by condemning the ad's “celebration” of violence against women, in a reference to Tim’s tackling of his mom.
"I am blown away at the celebration of the violence against women in it," said NOW's Terry O'Neill, according to the LA Times. "That's what comes across to me even more strongly than the anti-abortion message. I myself am a survivor of domestic violence, and I don't find it charming. I think CBS should be ashamed of itself."
Before the ad aired, O'Neill responded to former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, who had criticized NOW's objections to the ad, by saying that “Focus on the Family has cynically set it up so they can say anyone who disagrees with airing this ad is disrespecting one woman and her choice. NOW respects every woman's right to plan her own family and insists our laws do the same."
Also prior to its airing, NOW vice president Erin Matson called the Tebow spot "hate masquerading as love."
Pro-abortion blogger Amanda Marcotte also took issue with the tackle, writing in a Twitter post: "Tebow: Hey Mom! Tried to kill you from the womb and failed. How about a blind side tackle? Violence against Moms FTW [for the win]!" In another tweet, Marcotte called the spot "misogynist porn for the anti-sex crowd."
"I think they're attempting to use humor as another tactic of hiding their message and fooling the American people," the president of the Women's Media Center, another top lobbyist against the ad, told the LA Times.
Other pro-abortion leaders demurred from attacking the ad's humor point.
"It's absurd to claim that this is an endorsement of violence against women," said Frances Kissling, former president of Catholics for Choice.
Saying Pam and Tim Tebow "came across as affectionate, loving, funny and happy," Kissling admitted that Focus on the Family's lighthearted pro-life message can credit much of its impact to the publicity generated by the all-out pro-abortion campaign against it.
"If there had not been all of that publicity over the last 2 weeks, this ad could have passed almost unnoticed. Who would have known what they're talking about? It's so subtle," said Kissling.
Last week, Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins wrote a scathing editorial against the abortion lobby's reaction, presaging the negative effect of their media coverage. "Tebow's 30-second ad hasn't even run yet, but it already has provoked 'The National Organization for Women Who Only Think Like Us' to reveal something important about themselves: They aren't actually 'pro-choice' so much as they are pro-abortion," she wrote.
Pro-life blogger Dr. Gerard Nadal agreed, saying the ad's great success lay in focusing attention on the pro-abortion lobby's reaction to a simple celebration of life.
"Focus on the Family are expert fisherman, and you Big Mouth Bass took the bait," said Nadal in an open letter to Planned Parenthood and NOW.
"You allowed yourselves to be exposed for just who and what you are: Haters of motherhood, fatherhood, family and babies."
"You allowed yourselves to be exposed for just who and what you are: Haters of motherhood, fatherhood, family and babies."
LOL. Excellant job!
I just watched the commercial and was not prepared for the humor! A true “pro-choice” person couldn’t possibly object, even if abortion had been mentioned.
And Mrs. Tebow is one tough lady.
Ok, so now the protest has shifted from promoting Pro-Life to promoting violence against women? Do they have the same problem with the Snickers commercial where the granny was playing football and got tackled by a guy? Probably not.
I don’t even like football but found the tackle (hello, pro-death people—it’s fake!) funny.
The excellent thing about the Tebows -- is that they put the Gospel Message first. It's the message of Salvation which is the primary message, above all other messages, whether political or even the abortion issue.
Salvation is paramount and is first, and that's what they do... and then they also do other things, which are a result of the Salvation that they have received.
Some of what they say about the Bible, the Church and Salvation... all very important...
The Bible
We believe God has chosen not to remain silent but to reveal Himself. He primarily reveals Himself to us through the Bible. Scripture is the inspired Word of God. The entire Bible is God-breathed. The Holy Spirit moved apostles and prophets to write the words of Scripture. This inspiration extends to all parts of Scripture. Scripture originates with God, and He has used human language to make Himself known. Because God never lies, His Word is completely true. This means that Scripture is without error (inerrant) to the degree it represents the original manuscripts. We believe that the original manuscripts are completely free of error, and God has preserved the Bible so that it remains authoritative. The Bible helps us know God and how to live a life pleasing to Him. Exodus 24:4; Deuteronomy 4:1-2; 17:19; Joshua 8:34; Psalms 19:7-10; 119:11,89,105,140; Isaiah 34:16; 40:8; Jeremiah 15:16; 36; Matthew 5:17-18; 22:29; Luke 21:33; 24:44-46; John 5:39; 16:13-15; 17:17; Acts 2:16ff.; 17:11; Romans 15:4; 16:25-26; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 1:1-2; 4:12; 1 Peter 1:25; 2 Peter 1:19-21.
The Church
We believe the Church is the worldwide community of believers in Christ united by the Holy Spirit who relate to God on the basis of the New Covenant and gather in local assemblies. The mission of the church is to glorify God and to be a visual expression of Christ to a lost world. As the body of Christ, the church strives to grow into the fullness of Christ. Each member has a part to play. The church is encouraged to meet on a regular basis, observe the ordinances, worship the Lord together, build one another up in the faith, and preach the Gospel. The purpose of baptism is to identify with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection and to identify as a member of the local church. The purpose of the Lord’s Supper is to remember and celebrate Christ’s sacrifice on the cross and to encourage believers to anticipate His return. The offices of pastor/elder and deacon are designed to serve the body. Matthew 16:15-19; 18:15-20; Acts 2:41-42,47; 5:11-14; 6:3-6; 13:1-3; 14:23,27; 15:1-30; 16:5; 20:28; Romans 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 3:16; 5:4-5; 7:17; 9:13-14; 12; Ephesians 1:22-23; 2:19-22; 3:8-11,21; 5:22-32; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:18; 1 Timothy 2:9-14; 3:1-15; 4:14; Hebrews 11:39-40; 1 Peter 5:1-4; Revelation 2-3; 21:2-3.
Salvation
Salvation in the Scriptures, in the spiritual sense, can refer to salvation from the penalty of sin (justification), salvation from the power of sin (sanctification), or salvation from the presence of sin (glorification). Everyone is in need of spiritual salvation, because all have sinned. Sin is rebellion against God and justly deserves God’s wrath. We are unable escape from our fallen condition on our own, so we need God’s grace. Because of God’s great love, He sent His only Son, Jesus, to die on the cross to pay for our sin. He took our punishment and died in our place. Three days after Jesus died, He rose again. He conquered death, and He’s offering us the free gift of eternal life. We receive eternal life by believing and putting our faith in Jesus. Repentance is a genuine turning to Christ for salvation. Jesus is the only way, because He alone can take away sin. When a person trusts in Jesus, he becomes a child of God. This is a permanent relationship that culminates in heaven. Genesis 3:15; Exodus 3:14-17; 6:2-8; Matthew 1:21; 4:17; 16:21-26; 27:22-28:6; Luke 1:68-69; 2:28-32; John 1:11-14,29; 3:3-21,36; 5:24; 10:9,28-29; 15:1-16; 17:17; Acts 2:21; 4:12; 15:11; 16:30-31; 17:30-31; 20:32; Romans 1:16-18; 2:4; 3:23-25; 4:3ff.; 5:8-10; 6:1-23; 8:1-18,29-39; 10:9-10,13; 13:11-14; 1 Corinthians 1:18,30; 6:19-20; 15:10; 2 Corinthians 5:17-20; Galatians 2:20; 3:13; 5:22-25; 6:15; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-22; 4:11-16; Philippians 2:12-13; Colossians 1:9-22; 3:1ff.; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; 2 Timothy 1:12; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 2:1-3; 5:8-9; 9:24-28; 11:1-12:8,14; James 2:14-26; 1 Peter 1:2-23; 1 John 1:6-2:11; Revelation 3:20; 21:1-22:5.
My wife thought the ad was kind of lame. She was surprised they didn’t mention that Tim Tebow’s mother received pressure to abort Tim. Did Focus on the Family try to avoid controversy here?
I think the commercial’s focus was that pregnancy can be difficult but worth the risk and that more than just the mother is affected even when her life is at stake. Interestingly enough, the pro-death people are abuzz with the controversy they manufactured out of a choice for life one woman made. They’ve exposed themselves for what they are, not truly interested in real choices but in the politics of controlling women’s votes.
Perhaps it was more of a carrot than stick sort of approach, but isn’t it fun watching the left beat themselves with the stick that wasn’t there?
ABORTION *IS* THE ULTIMATE ACT OF VIOLENCE AGAINST BOTH THE CHILD AND THE MOTHER.
THE FOCUS ON THE FAMILY AD WAS "PRO-WOMAN" SHOWING, THAT NOT EVEN THE CHALLENGE OF PREGNANCY CAN TARNISH A WOMAN'S TOUGHNESS. GIVING BIRTH IS THE STRONGEST, MOST BEAUTIFUL THING A WOMAN CAN DO!
I myself am a survivor of domestic violence, and I don’t find it charming.
________________________________________
As a “survivor” of domestic violence myself, I find nothing wrong with it...
There is no suggestion of violence, and Pam was never in danger or threatened...
There is just a Mom and a son who love each other...
I think that would be the greater threat to Ms ONeill..
Actually when the term “survivor” was first introduced years ago I said then that this will cause women to be stunted and limited in recovering from domestic abuse...
and cause them to think they cannot have a normal life, or one without a crutch like Ms ONeill...
I prefer to consider myself beyond mere survival and living life to the fullest...
Females like Terry O’Neill hate me but thats too bad...
aw man...do I actually have to agree with Frances Kissling?
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