A Letter from Bishop Chris (January 2024)
Dear DOMA family,
As Spirit-filled and biblically-informed Anglican Christians, we believe God is the author and preserver of life. Because of this, we know that all human life is a sacred gift from God and that it must be protected from the moment of conception to natural death.
Scripture tells us that we are created, as males and females, in God’s image (Genesis 2:28). Scripture also tells us that God knit us together in our mother's womb and that we are fearfully and wonderfully made by a loving God who knows us through and through (Ps. 139:13-16). Scripture is clear that life does not begin at birth, but at the moment of our conception. My birthday may be on December 21, but my life began nine months before that.
In what is surely a profound and glorious mystery, Scripture further reveals that we were chosen by God even before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4) - long before our conception. Think about that - you and I have been known by God and chosen in Christ from eternity. As Article 17 of the 39 Articles indicates, to contemplate this “is full of sweet, pleasant, and unspeakable comfort to godly persons.” Each one of us is the focus of God’s powerful grace and love.
Because we are known, loved, and created by God, we understand that an unborn child in his/her mother’s womb is a human person; not merely a blob of tissue. Just like any other person, an unborn child deserves to live until his or her natural death. To take that life prematurely through abortion is a form of killing which is expressly forbidden in the Ten Commandments. It is a grave sin to take the life of a child through abortion.
As a life-affirming Anglican Christian, I hope you will join me on Friday, January 19, at 9:30 a.m. at The Falls Church Anglican for a service of Prayer & Worship and then board the buses to attend the March for Life in Washington D.C. Then join me again on Saturday, January 20 at the Life Summit where this year’s theme is: Life Beyond Dobbs.
While many people had hoped the fight to protect the unborn had been won when Roe v. Wade was overturned in June of 2022, sadly, the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision didn’t end abortion. Instead, it just moved the battle from the national stage to every state’s legislature. Abortion is still widespread in the United States and statistically has fallen less than 20% overall.
Now, as each state in America grapples with abortion and euthanasia related legislation, God’s people must pivot from 50-year-old tactics, and adopt new Life-Affirming strategies, resources, ministry, and biblical advocacy that reflect our ever-changing cultural landscape. You can find out more about the March for Life and the Life Summit here.
See you next week!
Blessings,
+Chris