Responding to the Supreme Court Decision to Overturn Roe vs. Wade

The Supreme Court voted today to overturn Roe vs. Wade and let states determine laws regarding abortion. While we have had indications that this ruling was coming, we as your pastors still find ourselves struggling to find words. There are no simple answers here and we can appreciate that we may have a variety of views among our membership. What will follow is by no means a comprehensive response, but we felt it was important to speak to what is happening.

We are both in favor of safe and legal access to abortion because it is sometimes the difficult and painful choice an individual woman or a family feels they have to make. The reasons for such a choice are manifold and particular to each situation. Abortion is not an isolated matter but intertwined with so many other issues, including individual health of the mother or fetus, access to healthcare and contraceptives, economic and racial inequities, and violence against women which often results in unwanted pregnancy.

We do not want to see women having to resort, once again, to unsafe attempts to end pregnancies. We do not want to see women or health care providers go to jail for seeking and providing safe abortion services. Access to help should not be limited to those who have the privilege and resources to travel to places where abortions remain legal.

We do not want to judge or shame women who have to make these painful choices. Having said so, we also believe that all life is a precious gift and a mystery. Every loss of life bears its own sorrow that needs to be acknowledged. Our hearts go out to all the women and families who have had to face such a difficult choice. Our hearts go out to all women and care providers who are now fearing legal recriminations. We pray for God’s grace to enfold us in the face of all this complexity and the real lives that are being affected.

Read the letter from the leadership of the United Church of Christ.

Please also know that both Patty and Ute are available for conversation.

In peace,

Ute and Patty