Recently I had breakfast with a monsignor in the Catholic Church. Presently

he is charged by the Pope to raise funds for the construction of a new

cathedral in Guadalajara, Mexico. As envisioned, the cathedral will feature

never-before aspects. It promises to be a city within a city: a hospital,

a university, and much more.

Upon the direction of Pope John Paul, the Guadalajara cathedral will

also include a Protestant chapel, a place where someone like me could

go, pray, and worship. When I heard that bit of news from the Monsignor,

I was floored. He explained that Pope John Paul was very serious about

his ecumenical emphasis and the inclusion of the Protestant Chapel was

concrete evidence of his intentionality.

Catholics and evangelicals are waking up to the realization that we

have more in common than not. The most pressing issue, according to our

two groups, is the fate of the unborn, not necessarily the war in Iraq.

Although it is of concern that nearly 1000 lives have been killed so

far in the war in Iraq (a war of more than a year long), we hear nothing

on nightly news that about 3,700 lives were killed that day through abortions.

You tell me. You go figure. You do the math. What's the difference

in 3,700 lives lost in one day compared to the five to upwards to 15

U.S. deaths in Iraq on one day. In one day more lives are snuffed out

through abortions than all the lives lost in the tragedies of September

11, 2001.

Abortion should be a primary campaign issue in this year's election

for president and Congress. For me the litmus test whether I vote for

anyone is his or her stand on life. Yet, abortion will not be a primary

campaign issue in this year's election because both sides realize

it's too volatile. Heaven yes, it's volatile. It's wrong.

It's immoral. It's un-Biblical. It's un-Christian. It's

the world's easy way out of unwanted consequences of sex, whether

or not that sex was immoral or not.

Catholics and Protestants believe that every single life is important.

We believe that life begins with conception. In fact, we believe that

our individual lives were begun in the heart of God before the foundation

of the world. When abortion happens, the heart of God is deeply grieved

because that life was in his heart for a long, long time.

My personal genealogy makes a good case against abortion. I should not

be here if my grandfather and grandmother took the world's advice.

My grandfather married a way, way younger woman than he was. In fact,

my grandmother was his second wife and the children she gave him were

his second set. At 79 years of age, he was still sexually virile and

desirous.

His wife was in her late twenties. She got pregnant by this old man

when he was 79 years old. Now, conventional logic would tell that he

was too old to be a responsible father to the child and would not be

able to afford, nor probably live long enough, to support the child.

They should have aborted the child, many would say. Things were just

not right.

However, in the early part of the 20th century, abortion was not on

the public buffet of moral choices. So the young bride gave birth to

my mother and you know the rest of the story.

My daughter would not be here enjoying life and all its challenges if

granddad and grandma had done the worldly wise thing. No, they just hung

on for the ride and had two more children after my mother was born. As

far as I know, two of their grandchildren are in the ministry.

To my disappointment, I think the Catholic Church has its act together

better on this issue than we in the evangelical tradition. They are making

issues of coming to the Eucharist based on politicians' stand on

life.

To my disappointment also, the presidential campaign has thus far focused

on Iraq, the economy, jobs oversees, and the like. Perhaps someone will

wake up to the idea that perhaps God is withholding his blessings on

America because we are killing his children left and right and it's

all legal and socially acceptable. "What did you do this afternoon?" The

answer, "Oh, I went to women's clinic and had an abortion." Not, "I

committed murder."

I suggest that Catholics and Protestants unite as never before to present

a powerful front for the cause of life. We should begin praying together

and worshipping together since we have the two most important things

in common: Jesus as Lord and life is sacred.

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