By John Mauck
Roe v. Wade which contradicted centuries of American and British legal precedents that unborn children were human and had rights was rightly criticized as “an exercise in raw judicial power.” It opened the abortion floodgates bringing death to millions of our smallest and most vulnerable boys and girls.
Rightly, Dobbs v. Jackson reversed Roe v. Wade in June 2022, returning the responsibility to protect the innocent back to the citizens of each state and their elected leaders. Consequently, many states have prohibited or restricted abortion resulting in the saving of thousands, eventually millions, of lives. The legal battle to protect the unborn — or remove legal protection from them— has now moved to state legislatures and courts. There the progress is limited because: 1. Many states, Illinois included, actively support, even promote, abortion; 2. Pregnant mothers in states where the unborn are protected, such as Indiana, often easily travel to an abortion friendly state; 3. Abortion inducing drugs – even when illegal – are widely available and effectively impossible to eliminate.
Thus, a woman determined to end her pregnancy can often or usually succeed. After all, as a practical matter, she first knows when she has conceived and mostly controls whether the child is protected or not.
We are realizing that changing the outlook of the mother is now the best way to protect unborn children. The medical conclusion that a child from the moment of conception has her or his unique DNA, determining gender, hair and eye color and, conceivably, favorite ice cream has helped the cause.
One new and radical approach is to celebrate “Conception Day” Conception Day celebrates the day a person was conceived.
Children love their birthdays and their birthday parties. Conception Day will give children another day to have fun and celebrate themselves. Such a celebration, which comes nine months earlier than individual birthdates, will help children learn they came into being before they were born. By extension, years later when she experiences (or he causes) an unwanted pregnancy she or he is much less likely to consider the embryo or fetus to be a “blob” or pre-human to be flushed away. More likely the pregnant mother will consider abortion alternatives. If Conception Day is regularly celebrated as a child grows up, can’t we reasonably expect a more informed understanding — and compassionate response — to the life in the womb?
I, together with some supporters, have developed a number of scenarios for popularizing Conception Day parties. We have presented this Conception Day Celebration approach to saving lives to scores of knowledgeable Christians who unanimously endorse this radical new concept to help expectant but reluctant parents decide to protect their child’s life. What is now needed is more organized efforts, perhaps in the form of an organization with a director and staff. All of the program detail and materials I have will be donated to whoever wishes to extend their efforts for this.
Reader, you can help! Forward this article to all your pro-life friends and organizations asking for prayer and further distribution. Somewhere there’s a person or group ready to save more lives in a radical new way. They may contact the author at jmauck@mauckbaker.com or 312-853-8709 for more discussion.
In Jesus Name,
John Mauck
