Silent Abortion
The Christian’s Silent Abortion Clinic
By Brandon and Rebekah Staggs
List of Links at Bottom of Page
The information you are about to read may shock you. This information is little known in most Christian and Pro-Life circles. The pill you take for birth control can and will cause you to abort your baby sometime in its use. (This is even more likely to happen using Norplant, Depo-provera and IUD’s.)
Many couples will choose to close their eyes to the truth of this matter, preferring instead the ease, comfort and control of using the pill. Christian counselors today will actually suggest the pill to a young couple as a means of contraceptive, furthering the belief that it is safe, not knowing themselves that the pill can and does work as an abortifacient.
An average woman who is Pro-Choice might have 1-4 abortions in her lifetime. How many are we as Christians, using the pill, having in our own homes? Is it any wonder we can’t stop abortion clinics from murdering unborn children? Is the size of the baby what really matters or is it life itself we are protecting?
Life begins at conception. Its as simple as that. The egg is the woman’s, the sperm the mans. When the two join it becomes no longer his or hers, but both and all its own. Anything that stops that life from continuing from then on is abortion. The pill can change the lining of your uterus so that a fertilized egg can not implant, aborting your baby at about 1 week of age.
We think it interesting to note here how much has developed by the time this happens. When the egg is fertilized it divides two, three, four times. The 16 celled solid ball drops into the uterus. Fluid enters the ball dividing it into to two, placenta and baby. Which then implants itself in the uterine wall. When the uterine wall is changed so it is unable to implant, the baby then dies. You never even knew you conceived a child.
How can this be so, you say? To answer that we need to take a little look at how the various birth controls work. Listed here are birth controls that CAN AND DO KILL the already forming life:
Abortion: Life has already begun. You already know and have tested positive that you are pregnant. It is murder, at any time in the pregnancy, plain and simple. End of story.
IUD: Intrauterine device. This is a small plastic or metal device inserted into the cavity of the uterus through the vagina. Does not prevent conception from occurring. It creates a hostile environment in the uterus preventing implantation. In addition the IUD has been known to cause infection, repeated miscarriages and sterility.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration stated in an official report that its effectiveness is “in direct proportion to the quantity and quality of the inflammatory response which it engenders.” The report summarizes the various types of IUDs and the various theories of action, and states that there “is one common thread…” They all ” interfere in some manner with the implantation of the fertilized ovum in the uterine cavity.” (Second Report on IUD’s, Dec. 1978 U.S. Dept of HEW, Food and Drug Administration Document 017-012-00276-5)
RU-486: The same as an abortion, only this time without surgical procedures…It is taken after the mother misses her period and the baby is at least two weeks old. It cuts off an essential hormonal nutrient, progesterone, and the baby withers on the vine, dies and drops off. It has been tried as a once a month menses inducer, but has caused such an upset to her cycle and body rhythms, and has not prevented pregnancies, that such use has been abandoned. (Santen & Haspels, “Failure of RU-486 as a Monthly Contraceptive,” Contraception, vol. 35, no.5, May 1987, p. 433)
The Morning-After Pill: A high dosage of synthetic estrogen. This can work in one of two ways depending on where a woman is in her cycle. If a woman takes it prior to ovulation, the high level of estrogen should block that ovulation, preventing fertilization from happening. If it isn’t in time to prevent ovulation the estrogen will also change the lining of the uterus preventing a fertilized egg from implanting.
Combination Pill: Estrogen inhibits ovulation by suppressing hormones, fooling the body into thinking its already pregnant, thus an egg is not released. Because high doses of estrogen have caused medical problems, lower and lower dosages of estrogen are being used in pills today. The lower the estrogen, the more likely you are to have breakthrough ovulation. Progesterone inhibits ovulation, thickens cervical mucus impeding the travel of sperm to the uterus. If this were the only way the pill worked it would indeed be a contraceptive and not an abortifacient. But, the third way it works is changing the uterine lining so implantation of the fertilized egg into the endometrium does not occur.
“In a natural cycle, the uterus lining thickens under the influence of estrogen during the first part of the cycle, and then matures under the influence of both progesterone and estrogen after ovulation. This development sequence is not possible during a pill cycle because both progestin and estrogen are present throughout the cycle. EVEN IF OVULATION AND CONCEPTION DID OCCUR, SUCCESSFUL IMPLANTATION WOULD BE UNLIKELY” (Felicia Stewart, M.D.;Felicia Guest; Gary Stewart, M.D. and Robert Hatcher, M.D..; My Body, My Health, Consumers Union, pgs. 169,170).
Mini-Pill: Contains progesterone only. Inhibits ovulation, thickens cervical mucus, changes the lining of the uterus so that implantation does not happen should conception occur.
According to “Maternity & Gynecologic Care: The Nurse and the Family” by Irene M. Bobak, (RN,MS,PhD, FAAN, Professor Emerita, San Francisco State University), and Margaret Duncan Jensen, (RN,MS, Professor Emerita, San Jose State University: “Oral progestins. The mini-pill of 0.5 mg or less of a progestational agent daily presumably impairs fertility. Ovulation may occur. Progestational impact on cervical mucus decreases sperm penetration and alters endometrial maturation to discourage implantation should conception occur. (Fifth ed., published by Mosby, 1993, page 1313.)
Depo-Provera: Injectable form of Progestin taken every 3 months. (see Mini-Pill)
Nor-plant: Progestin Implant can be left in up to 5 years. (see Mini-Pill)
Don’t believe me? Try finding the little piece of paper that came with your birth control or looking it up in a Physician’s Desk Reference. How does your birth control work?
There are links to other Christian and the Pill web pages below. It is interesting to note that most of the information I have found has not been put out by Born Again Christians, but for the most part by Catholics. There are few Christians who are aware of this subject or who take a stand on it, but we need to learn and speak out for those who can’t.
This is something all Christian couples need to seriously consider and pray over. If this hasn’t convinced you this is something to talk about and pray over, then we’ve done all that we can. The choice to continue or stop must be yours.
It is impossible to tell or say how often which mechanism works in any given cycle. Or how many times breakthrough ovulation occurs, conception takes place, and implantation is stopped. The risks are higher the lower the estrogen dose or with the progesterone only forms. Is there an amount of risk you are willing to take? Even if its just a risk, is the life of your child really worth playing with just to make your life easier?
If this has convicted you then pray. Get right with God, seek His forgiveness, and forgiveness from the little one(s) you may have already unwittingly allowed to die. It is painful to think you may have killed your own child, but remember this verse: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” – 1 John 1:9
Please share this with other couples you know. Its a difficult subject to talk about, but it needs to be talked about. Christians must become aware of this.
Wither you choose to use a form of birth control is between you as a couple and God. If not getting pregnant right now is what you choose then its important that you pick a contraceptive that prevents contraception not just pregnancy. Here are birth control methods that DO NOT KILL an already forming life:
Barrier Methods:
Condom (male or female): Placed over the penis or inserted into the vagina, before sex, prevents sperm from reaching the egg and conception from occurring. Can be used with or without spermicide and are available at almost any store.
Vaginal foams, creams, suppositories: Placed into the vagina before sex, spermicides immobilize or kill sperm. In some cases it creates a barrier preventing sperm from reaching the egg. Can be bought at almost any drug store.
Diaphragm: Placed into the vagina before sex it covers the cervix preventing sperm from reaching the egg.
A spermicide must be used in addition with the diaphragm for it to be effective. Must be fitted by a Doctor.
Cervical Cap: Placed over cervix works in the much the same way as a diaphragm. Like the diaphragm spermicide must be used in addition to the cap for it to be effective. The Cap also must be fitted by a Doctor.
Sterilization: Tubal Ligation or Vasectomy. Operation performed on the female or the male. Considered permanent.
Natural Family Planning:
Rhythm: A women charts her past history of menstrual cycles to predict future cycles, judging which days are fertile days you might get pregnant from sex. And which days are non-fertile where pregnancy would be unlikely to occur. This doesn’t always work due to irregular cycles.
Billings Ovulation Method: A woman not only observes when she is bleeding, but the secretions from her cervix. Cervical mucus is hostile to sperm, until it changes right before ovulation so that sperm can pass through the cervix to meet with and fertilize an egg. Using this method a woman will know when she is likely to be ovulating or not. With daily charting and the guidance of a qualified teacher, a woman can become quite accurate at predicting her fertile times.
Sympto-Thermal Method: Using the Billings method the woman also, checks the positioning of her cervix and charts her daily Basal Body Temperature. (This is the reading you get upon first waking in the morning.) Cross checking this with your body’s other readings allows for better determination of the fertile and non-fertile times.
Withdrawal: Can have a high effectiveness rate if done correctly. (This is actually more of a barrier method than an NFP method.)
Abstinence: We believe this to be wrong for the Christian :
1 Corinthians 7:3-5 “Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband. The wife hath not authority over her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not authority over his body, but the wife. Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.”
Our Note on this: All of these methods have the added benefits of being completely natural with no side effects and can be used in the opposite way to achieve a pregnancy. Properly taught and implemented NFP can have an effectiveness rate the same as the pill without the possibility of harming a child. Your effectiveness with these methods is directly related to how much you want to risk pregnancy on the unsure fertility days. NFP can be used intermixed with barrier methods to be effective and provide a choice other than abstinence.
For your comparison, below is the approximate method effectiveness (percentage of couples of normal fertility who go one year without getting pregnant, using each method properly.)
No Birth control method 20%
Rhythm 87%
Withdrawal 91%
Billings 96%
Sympto-Thermal 99.8%
Condom 99%
Diaphragm w/ spermicide 97%
Foam (suppositories) 97%
IUD 99%
Pill 99.7%
Tubal Ligation 99.6%
Vasectomy 99.85%
Castration, removal of ovaries, abstinence 100%
This data was reported by the U.S. Dept. of HEW, and various respected medical journals. The references are in “The Art of NFP” book.
Other Links About Birth Control and Abortion
Prolife Pill Warning
Vital Signs Ministry: Gambling with Life by David Stern MD, Gina Sterns RN, and Pamela Yaksich
THE PILL AND EARLY ABORTION by John F. Kippley
The Pill: Abortifacient or Contraceptive? A Literature Review by Nicholas Tonti-Filippini, BA, MA
Understanding “Birth Control” What Every Christian Counselor Should Know
American Bioethics Advisory Commission: When do Human Beings Begin? Scientific myths and scientific facts The question of when does life begin answered by human embryologists.
We support and suggest Natural Family Planning/Fertility Awareness Methods using Barrier Contraceptives during fertile times for Christian married couples that feel the need to use a form of Birth Control.