Christian Action Commission

‘I am pro-life, but…’

Those opposed to the statewide Initiative No. 26, also known as the Personhood Amendment, start out by saying, “I am pro-life, but…” Then they begin tearing down the amendment, not with truth and facts, but falsehoods, confusion, rumors and fear tactics.  To say, “I am pro-life, but…” is likened to the lady who said to her doctor, “Doctor, I am afraid I am a little bit pregnant.” Well, you are or you aren’t because in life there are some things you cannot have both ways.

You will hear some who are saying there are going to be unintended consequences.  This may be true in some cases but the other two initiatives, voter ID and eminent domain, will also have unintended consequences.  However, this does not warrant a no vote on Initiative 26.

DOES INITIATIVE 26 SUPPORT CLONING?  NO!! This is perhaps the most confusing of the rumors circulating.  Bill Crawford, a contributing columnist to the Clarion Ledger, wrote an article on Sunday, October 9 titled “Cloning fouls my vote for initiative.” Having read the article several times, it appears (at least to me) that he insinuates that passage of Initiative 26 would lead to legalized cloning as one of the unintended consequences.  I question the research he did before writing his column, especially when he states, “I know, I know, the smart lawyers behind this approach to nullify Roe vs. Wade say cloning is illegal in Mississippi so this won’t legalize cloning.  Well, my experience tells me smart lawyers often forget about another law called the law of unintended consequences.” Why?  Evidently Mr. Crawford does not even know that statutes do not exist in our code that make cloning illegal.  If I read him correctly, he can now vote YES on 26 because his fears are removed because cloning is already legal.

If you OPPOSE cloning, then vote yes on Initiative 26.  Cloning is often performed for “embryonic stem cell research,” where a human embryo is cloned and its stem cells are harvested for profit and research.  Therefore, when we define life at the moment of fertilization, this practice will be illegal.  This is a great first step AGAINST cloning, but we also need to continue asking our legislature to pass a complete ban on all cloning.  If you oppose cloning, then you must support this Personhood Amendment and vote yes on November 8. 

DOES INITIATIVE 26 OUTLAW ALL CONTRACEPTIVES?  NO!! The amendment will not ban the use of hormonal contraceptives, including most forms of the “Pill.” It will ban the use of RU486 and IUDs that are abortifacients. These abortifacients allow a baby to be conceived and then expelled, thus ending life.

DOES INITIATIVE 26 END INVITRO (IVF) FERTILIZATION?  NO!! This practice will not be illegal.  IVF will continue to be an available solution for infertile women with one exception — the remaining embryos cannot be destroyed.  To the surprise of many, there are pro-life options which already exist that not only protect but also give life to these embryos.  For example, the unborn embryo can be saved for a later pregnancy or the embryo can be placed with an agency, like Snowflake Ministry, where they can be adopted by infertile couples.

DOES INITIATIVE 26 PREVENT A DOCTOR FROM PRACTICING LIFE SAVING PROCEDURES?  NO!! Rumors abound that if a female has a troubled pregnancy, she cannot receive medical assistance from her attending physician.  These rumors are false.  The doctor’s goal is and has always been to save the life of the mother and child, but if this is impossible he/she must save the life of the mother when the baby is unviable.
The Liberty Counsel, a non-profit public interest law firm specializing in the First Amendment, issued a memorandum on July 14, 2011 that states, “Based upon our review of the Mississippi statutes, it is our opinion that current law already appears to provide adequate protection from criminal liability for licensed physicians performing legitimate medical procedures at the request of the mother of the unborn child.”

The Mississippi Medical Association has just released a statement by their trustees stating they cannot support the Personhood Amendment.  Just remember they do not speak for all their members just as I cannot speak for all Mississippi Baptists.  There are many physicians in our state who DO support Initiative 26 and will vote YES on November 8.

This initiative is about defining in our constitution what already is being taught in basic biology — when the sperm fertilizes the egg, life begins.  Life begins at the moment of fertilization and is to be protected by law.  Please call us at the Christian Action Commission (601-292-3329 or 1-800-748-1651) with your questions.  I encourage you to go to http://www.Yeson26.net and read the information on that site.  Speak to your friends, pray, and debunk the lies and rumors that are circulating around our state.  A YES vote on November 8 is a vote for life.

Porter can be contacted at 601-292-3332 or at .

As with *any* proposition or law there is grey area. Our state handled issues just fine prior to roe v. wade & I personally, after much prayer & time spent seeking the holy spirit’s guidance on this, have to believe that God will be so pleased when Mississippians stand up for his law & quit *murdering* the innocent life of precious babies that HE will take care of the rest! I have faith that my God is a big God & will bless us for doing the right & moral thing!

It is so disheartening to me to see or hear women begin with,"I in no way agree with abortion, but...” but what?? Tell me a reason that it *is* okay to murder a baby? To have had nearly 54 million babies murdered since r v. w?? We’ve stood idly by and watched a holocaust happen right here in our country :’( Seriously, finish the sentence...It is okay to kill a baby if _____. I can’t fill that blank in.

abortion activists are scared & are desperately spreading lies from the devil-- recognize that he is strongly invested in this! I’d be lying if I stated I don’t hope to persuade anyone who will listen to vote yes because I feel so very convicted that it is the morally right thing to do. It’s an opportunity we have to show God we want & need him in our state after shutting the door in His face so very many times.

Any confusion can be easily put to rest with prayer & seeking guidance from the holy spirit. I, too was confused & concerned about the what if’s, but some time spent with God gave me a peace and a passion for seeing this thing pass.

The answer for me is personhood!

lindey
mccomb, ms

Good job Dr. Porter.  Keep it coming.  The doubts and criticisms will be heating up over the next couple of weeks.

J. Clark
Sebastopol, MS

Check the discussion at SBC Trends of baptistlife.com/forums on this matter.
Charles Pickering’s Alliance Defense Fund I am convinced sees some political calculation in this matter that outruns the indulgence Emory Proff and native Mississippian Petrino gives him in the Book In Search of Another Country.
One thing Mississippi Baptists as well as Al Mohler and the fundamentalists there have failed to engaged in Christian Fashion and Civility are the findings of Cynthia Gorney in her easily googled transcript of NPR Fresh Air recently:  Parsing the Politics of Abortion

marco
Southeast

Great article, wish more knew what the initiative defined. One issue I have that you stated toward the end was, “when the sperm fertilizes the egg, life begins”. This is true but egg (blastocyte) is not viable until implantation. Most hormonal contraceptives are able to disrupt a woman’s ovulation cycle but they also cause thinning of the endometrial linning, inhibiting the egg from implantation. Just thought I’d mention this.

Jeremiah Estes
Hattiesburg, MS

just so you guys know, if this bill is passed, it will completely eliminate ALL stemcell research (which will SAVE millions of lives) and cloning (which allows scientists to grow healthy organs in a lab from a single cell instead of a dying person waiting for a TRANSPLANT). all i can ask is please do your homework before forming an opinion.