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Madison J. McBratney
Mrs. Mary Martin
English 110
3 December 2015
Keep Your Rosaries Off My Ovaries
The Center for Medical Progress is an anti-abortion group with a single goal in mind;
block safe access to abortions. However, their path to block abortion isnt through the traditional
route of legislation but using media to instill fear. The Center for Medical Progress makes
documentaries using extreme special effects, editing and Photoshop to perpetuate lies about
abortion and Planned Parenthood. The most notable film that this group produced however was
the one that would lead to a new level of difficulty for women seeking access to safe abortion
services and sexual health care.
The Center for Medical Progress created a fake medical research company to investigate
Planned Parenthoods practice of fetal tissue donation for medical research. The CMP, posed as
representatives of the fake research company, held a meeting with representatives of California
Planned Parenthood in order to obtain fetal tissue for research purposes. A video camera was
running however. These videos went viral, highlighting Planned Parenthood discussing payment
options with the fake medical research group. These videos were intended to make it appear as if
Planned Parenthood was selling fetal tissue or baby body parts. This prompted an uproar
amongst Republicans and pro-lifers all over the country and to ordinary citizens who were
simply confused as to what was going on. These videos also raised questions about Planned
Parenthoods motives and practices regarding fetal tissue donation. The California law allows
for small compensations to be paid to Planned Parenthood to cover any shipping and handling

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costs. (Lewin 1) However, questions have been raised as to whether or not receiving any
payment is ethical.
This scandal has drastically changed the access to abortions and assorted other
reproductive care that is available for women in America. Post Planned Parenthood scandal,
Republican legislators have attempted to defund Planned Parenthood under Medicaid. This
action would make it so Medicaid would no longer be able to pay for abortions which would
block abortion access for women from a lower socio-economic background. President Obama
warned the states that to defund Planned Parenthood would be a violation of federal law.
(Armour 1) New Hampshire, Utah, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas and Alabama all defunded.
Thirteen additional states launched Planned Parenthood investigations. Five Congressional
committees have been appointed to investigate Planned Parenthood.
The consequences for Planned Parenthood have spread to more than just legislative and
political backlash. The disapproval for Planned Parenthood has turned violent with a fatal
shooting at the Colorado Spring Planned Parenthood clinic. While this shooting caused shock
around the country, perhaps this violent incident should not have been such a surprise.
There always has been violence against abortion and pro choice groups, but this violence
increased significantly against Planned Parenthood clinics in the wake of the video scandal. In
early August, the car of a Planned Parenthood security car was set on fire using gasoline.
September, a Pullman,Washington Planned Parenthood clinic was set on fire and declared an
arson charge by the police. (Helsel 1) On October 1st, 2015, an ignited container of gasoline was
flung into a Southern California Planned Parenthood clinic. (Gregory 1) Shortly afterwards, the
Southern Poverty Law Center recorded similar incidents took place at Planned Parenthood
clinics in Illinois, Washington and Louisiana. (Calmur 1) Perhaps the most shocking part of these

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incidents is the fact that the FBI warned various law enforcement agencies that pro-life
organizations were a threat to the safety of Planned Parenthood. (CBS News) These warnings
were ignored.
Looking at all of these warning signs as well as an actual FBI issued warning, one might
be confused as to why America didnt see the writing on the wall. Before the Planned Parenthood
shooting these other violent incidents were barely covered by the media. It could be speculated
that media refused to advertise these events because they would make abortion, and the much
dreaded Planned Parenthood, appear as a victim. While there is a pink I stand with Planned
Parenthood filter that can be applied over ones Facebook profile picture, the lack of support
and coverage over the violence is shocking.
What perhaps is most shocking, is the fact that the ones carrying out these extreme
violent acts and attempting to pass legislation to cut abortion access, are those same people who
proclaim themselves Christians. This religious group claims to be about helping others but when
it comes to a young woman who needs help via an abortion, they will go to any length possible
to prevent her from having an abortion.
Roe v. Wade ruled abortion as a Constitutional right as according to the Supreme Court.
Yet we still see backlash when a woman tries to use this right. We see such severe opposition to
abortion from Christian groups that they will resort to violence to further their agenda. This
makes one wonder why abortions so threatening to the Christian faith. Christians disagree with
abortion because of their belief that life begins at conception. Therefore, if an abortion is
performed, this is taking the life of a person. This classifies abortion as murder in the minds of
Christians, which goes against their religion. It has been wondered what makes this religion so
adamant that life begins at conception. Many Christians point to this verse from the Bible.

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Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I
appointed you a prophet to the nations. (Jeremiah 1:5)
However, this right-wing Christian attack on abortion is a relatively new concept.
Abortion and pro life rhetoric seem to be at the top of every conservative Christians political
rant, yet Christians identifying as pro-life started in the 1980s. Quite interestingly, Christians
originally believed that life began at birth, not conception, voiding out their entire pro-life stance.
In 1968, Christianity Today, a Christian magazine at the time, published a special edition issue on
abortion and contraception. (Dudley 1) Shortly after, Christian Life published an article agreeing
with Christianity Todays sentiment. The Bible definitely pinpoints a difference in the value of a
fetus and an adult. (Christian Life)
Professor Bruce Waltke, at conservative Dallas Theological Conservatory, also offered his
surprisingly pro-choice opinion in an article published by Christianity Today in 1968.
God does not regard the fetus as a soul, no matter how far gestation has progressed. The
Law plainly exacts: 'If a man kills any human life he will be put to death' (Lev. 24:17). But
according to Exodus 21:2224, the destruction of the fetus is not a capital offense Clearly,
then, in contrast to the mother, the fetus is not reckoned as a soul.
The Southern Baptist Convention even went as far to pass a resolution legalizing
abortions to protect both the physical and emotional health of the mother. (Dudley 2) Looking at
these facts, the Christians were not always anti abortion, in fact most Christians were very prochoice. This may cause one to wonder what happened to make Christians change their tune so
quickly. Looking at the religious makeup at the time, protestant Christians held a definite
majority in both membership and popularity when it came to public perception. At this time,
when the majority of Christians supported abortion there was a clear outlier in this trend; The

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Catholic Church (Dudley 2) Ever since the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, the Catholic Church
had pushed a religious argument against abortion. However, this was not the view of most
everyday Catholics. A surprising 90% of Catholic laymen and women believed that abortion
should be legal when a womans health was at stake. Four out of ten catholics even stated they
thought abortion was an acceptable way to limit and control family size. (Hull and Hoffer 131)
The push for a pro-life agenda came not from members of the Catholic Church, but from the
highest levels of the hierarchy in the Catholic Church. When the highest levels of church
authority endorse and teach an idea such as pro-life as correct and abortion as wrong it is only
natural that eventually followers of that religion will conform despite their own personal beliefs
on the issue. (Hull and Hoffer 131) Louisiana at this time had a large Catholic population
compared to most states. This is why the pro-life movement was able to start and takeoff with
moderate success here through state legislation. However, the rest of the country and most
Protestant Christians were not on board with the Catholic pro-life agenda just yet. That is when
Jerry Falwell came along. Jerry Falwell, a protestant television pastor, taught the Catholic stance
on abortion and the idea that life begins at conception. Falwells position as a television pastor
gave him the ability to reach many people and further perpetuate the pro-life agenda in the late
1970s. (Dudley 2) By 1984, the majority of the Christian population in America was strictly prolife, no matter the circumstance. While many Christians use anti abortion rhetoric as their
platform, stating that the Bible said it, based on history we see that this is not the case, nor did
most Christians ever believe it was the case.
This brings up the question, if Christians dont truly believe the Bible and their religion
says abortion is wrong, why was there such a push to stop abortion? It is argued that the
Christian right focuses on abortion because it is an easy cause to get people to rally behind.

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When pro-life advocates frame abortion as murdering innocent, defenseless babies, it is easy to
pull many people into the pro-life beliefs. Laws against and restricting abortion control and
oppress women under the rule of men which is the goal in many religions. Dr. Steve Taylor
explains that the reason many religions aim to control or oppress women is because women are
seen as sensual creatures who will lead a man astray. A man could be a good, law-abiding
member of society or a religion and then a woman set upon leading him into sin could tempt him
into that sin. (Taylor 1) This is also because many men psychologically fault women for making
them feel temptation and sexual urges they dont believe they should feel because of God. It is
because of this view that men in many religions hold of women that men are determined to try to
control women as much as possible so that the woman no longer has sexual power over them.
(Taylor 2) By allowing a woman to have an abortion, she is being given sexual power. This is
why religious men are so opposed to abortions because abortions give the woman the sexual
power that the religion has worked so hard to keep from her.
Bill McKibben expresses concern over the issues Christians choose to focus on in
America in his essay The Christian Paradox: How a Faithful Nation Gets Jesus Wrong
Christianity has grown progressively more political as the years go by. A poll shows that 11% of
American churchgoers were encouraged by their church clergy to vote a certain way in the 2004
presidential election, a number that has most surely risen by today. The Christian Coalition of
America announced that their main focus would be making sure that George W. Bushs 2001
federal cuts would be maintained. McKibben also points out the streamlined focus on abortion
seems poor intentioned. The Catholic Church has a long history in America as being one of the
most generous and loving of their neighbor. Arguably the Catholic Church has done more
charitable works than most churches and denominations in America. However, as McKibben

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points out, the recent, single issue focus on anti abortion being pushed by the hierarchy of the
Catholic Church.
Separation of church and state. We hear the term so often in America. We are a country
that prides itself on allowing the freedom of religion and the government not enforcing a singular
religion. We shy away from the idea of religious rule as a country, especially when we look to
other people in the world who live under tyrannical religious rule. But not in America, we would
never stand for religious rule...would we? Looking at the United States we see a government and
nation being ruled with Christian ideals. Most of the time, Americans dont notice this fact. Until,
they realize that these Christian laws have forced them to follow the ideal of a religion they do
not believe in. Looking at abortion rights in America, one key group is preventing this integral
rights to a womans autonomy. This group is extreme right-wing Christians. Looking at
opponents of abortion, we see that the concerns are always purely religious sentiment from the
religion of Christianity. While no one will argue that these people are entitled to their own
opinion, are they allowed to make laws based on their religion that the whole, supposedly nonreligious country has to follow? Is that not the government establishing a religion and religious
beliefs?
This integral idea of church and state originated in the First Amendment of the
Constitution, in the establishment clause. The federal government is prohibited from declaring
and financially supporting a national religion. (The Constitution) It is argued however that
Christian legislators arent breaking the establishment clause by passing laws that limit the right
to an abortion. (Skahn 488) However, look at this from the perspective of a religion that isnt
quite as accepted in America as Christianity. Imagine this hypothetical situation. A Muslim man
is elected into the position of a United States Senator. His personal religious beliefs include the

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belief that women should wear the hijab to cover their hair. Some Muslims living in America
believe that all women should by their religious belief that women should cover their head at all
times. However, since getting a Muslim majority in Congress to even attempt to pass these laws
would be near to impossible, hence why this scenario hasnt become reality yet. Many
Americans would find this offensive to a womans right to make her own choices regarding her
body and what she does with it if a man tells her she must wear the hijab. If this Muslim
legislator passed this as a law, American citizens would be utterly horrified. The parallels
between this hypothetical situation and abortion in America are startling. Looking at this
example, it is shown that America is not tolerant of religion being pushed onto them. Americans
only find religious indoctrination acceptable when it is Christian based. However, these same
people consider learning or hearing about any other religion as religious indoctrination.
Eck argues this concept in her essay Afraid of Ourselves Eck explains the view
America takes on other world religions. This is especially prevalent the public school system.
Religions such as Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Wicca are not only discouraged but feared in
American society. Eck cites an incident in the small town of Winter, Wisconsin when a high
school teacher brought attention the the fact the school computer control system blocked all
information about Wicca and Buddhism, while all information regarding Christianity was
accessible. This is why laws based on Christianity are considered the norm, but laws based on
any other religion would be considered horrific and scandalous by the American public.
Maria Poggi Johnsons essay Us and Them reveals more of this hypocritical nature of
Christians in America. Johnson narrates her time as a Catholic living in a completely Orthodox
Jew neighborhood but explains how she was completely accepted by the Jewish community for
her beliefs. A sentiment that is not echoed by many Christians as shown by Eck. This is where

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the hypocritical nature of Christian-based laws on abortion come in. As a nation we are not
accepting of other religions, but somehow find it acceptable to make laws everyone must follow
based on one religion.
In her memoir, Forgetting to Be Afraid, Wendy Davis recounts her experience with
abortion laws in the Texas State Senate. Davis explains that the abortion laws that were being
passed on the senate floor were being put there for purely religious purposes. Yet, the sponsors of
these bills never seemed to connect their bills to the fact that they were motivated by their
religions beliefs or the fact that passing a law based on their religion wasnt acceptable by
American and Constitutional standards.
Currently, we find ourselves in the biggest battle over abortion since the original backlash
after the Roe v. Wade decision. As violence continues to persist against Planned Parenthood,
conservative politicians continue to justify their partisan attacks against women's rights and these
actions are justified by religion it is important to recognize religions role in the abortion battle. It
must be recognized that in a country founded on freedom of religion we cannot allow one
religion to make laws restricting womens rights and justifying horrendous violence against
abortion providers. A popular T-shirt sold online reads Keep Your Rosaries Off My Ovaries.
Looking at our current political position on abortion, fueled by religion, no shirt is quite as
appropriate.
Works Cited
Johnson, Maria. Us and Them
Eck, Diana. Afraid of Ourselves
McKibben, Bill. The Christian Paradox: How a Faithful Nation Gets Jesus Wrong

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Skahn, Steven L. "Abortion Laws, Religious Beliefs and the First Amendment." Valparaiso
University Law Review 14.3 (1980): 487-526. Web. 3 Dec. 2015.
Davis, Wendy. Forgetting to Be Afraid. N.p.: Blue Rider, 2014. Print
Hull, N.E.H., and Peter Charles Hoffer. Roe v. Wade: The Abortion Rights Controversy in
American History. N.p.: University of Kansas, 2001. Print.
Dudley, Jonathan. "When Evangelicals Were Pro-choice." CNN Religion Blog. CNN, 30 Oct.
2012. Web. 17 Dec. 2015.
Helsel, Phil. "Fire at Washington Planned Parenthood Building Ruled Arson." NBC News. N.p., 4
Sept. 2015. Web. 14 Dec. 2015.
"Planned Parenthood Shooting in Colorado Springs: FBI Warned of Threats Months Ago."
CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 27 Nov. 2015. Web. 14 Dec. 2015.
"Planned Parenthood Fire in California Deemed Suspicious." CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 1 Oct.
2015. Web. 14 Dec. 2015.
Gregory, John. "Planned Parenthood Fire in Newbury Park Deemed Arson."ABC7 Los Angeles.
N.p., 1 Oct. 2015. Web. 14 Dec. 2015.
Calamur, Krishnadev. "Planned Parenthood Shooting: The Suspect's Motive." The Atlantic.
Atlantic Media Company, 30 Nov. 2015. Web. 14 Dec. 2015.
Armour, Stephanie. "States Warned Over Ending Medicaid Funds for Planned Parenthood." WSJ.
The Wall Street Journal, 12 Aug. 2015. Web. 14 Dec. 2015.
Steve Taylor, Ph.D. "Why Men Oppress Women: The Psychology of Male Domination."
Psychology Today. N.p., 30 Aug. 2012. Web. 18 Dec. 2015.

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