It has famously been said: “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” For 36 years pro-life groups and individuals have been fighting to overturn Roe v Wade, the Supreme Court decision in 1973 that legalized abortion in America. It unleashed a holocaust upon this nation that has claimed nearly 50 million human lives. And the prospect of Roe v Wade being overturned today is as unlikely as it has ever been despite the fact that pro-life (or so-called pro-life) politicians have been elected to the highest offices in the land, despite a handful of pro-life judges being appointed to the bench, including the Supreme Court, and despite the countless time and money pro-life individuals have sacrificed in this war against the unborn. Is it time to quit, to throw in the towel, to go quietly into the night thankful that our mothers chose life? May it never be! Rather, new weapons need to be used in this war on abortion.

One such weapon is The Personhood Movement. This movement was begun by Personhood USA. Its strategy is to introduce “Personhood” initiatives in every state in the Union. It is currently active in 32 states including my home state of Montana. This movement strikes fear into the hearts of pro-abortionists because they understand, perhaps better than some pro-life groups and individuals who are reticent in their support of it, the ramifications a “Personhood” amendment would have upon the legality of abortion if it became a part of the state’s constitution.

Allyson Hagen, the executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Montana, in Helena, Montana clearly understands the lethality to legalized abortion if the Personhood Amendment is adopted. She wrote a letter to the editor recently in which she said, “This amendment is a backdoor attempt to interfere in our constitutionally protected right to privacy…‘Personhood’ initiative supporters are working for a total ban on access to safe, legal abortion care in our state, with no exceptions.” She went on to say, “We must be very careful when amending our state constitution. We don’t know the effects rewriting our constitution would have on access to birth control, in vitro fertilization, stem cell research…”

I would respond to Ms. Hagen by saying this is no backdoor attempt. It is a major, full-frontal assault to finally overturn Roe v Wade and stop the killing. For that I make no apology. Quite the contrary. For too long the pro-life movement has settled for the crumbs thrown to it by judges and politicians more concerned with retaining their positions of power than ending the murders of the most innocent among us.

One would think that every pro-life group and individual would be taking a strong and vocal stand in favor of amending their state constitution to include a “Personhood” definition if it would outlaw abortion – which it would. But that is not the case.
The Montana Catholic Conference issued the following statement: “With limited resources available, organizations must focus on those strategies they think will be most effective. We believe the strategy to pass a state constitutional amendment declaring personhood is problematic, in part, because of its heavy reliance on unpredictable courts and dependence on future legislative actions to define and implement the law. In addition, leading pro-life legal experts have expressed concerns that state personhood amendments might trigger an appellate process that could strengthen Roe v Wade. For those reasons, the Montana Catholic Conference will not support the amendment.”

These are basically the reasons other pro-life organizations are either overtly taking a stand against state “personhood” amendments or waiting on the sidelines to see what will happen.

The greatest impediment to a unified front by pro-lifers is the fear (expressed in the Montana Catholic Conference statement) that the challenges against the constitutionality of “personhood” amendments, which would certainly be brought by Planned Parenthood, NARAL, and other radical pro-death camps, would be upheld by the courts, thus strengthening the legal precedent of Roe v Wade.

But after 36 years of the legalized murder of the unborn in which upwards of 50 million babies (persons!) have been sacrificed on the altar of Choice it is obvious Roe v Wade is already a giant with enormous strength. It is just as obvious that the strategies of the past are woefully inadequate to slay this giant.

I have been told that the “Personhood” strategy is a long shot; that it has little chance of succeeding in overturning Roe v Wade. When I heard that I said, “Perhaps this long shot will become God’s slingshot that slays the giant.”

But this I do know. Roe v Wade has become the giant it is because Christians in general and pastors in particular have been lulled into a deep spiritual sleep, having ingested the lies and propaganda spewed from the mouth of Planned Parenthood, feminists, and their minions. Some pastors are fearful of preaching against the sin of abortion lest they offend some and endanger their livelihoods by a loss of congregants. Their sermons drip with honey and sweet sounding words that tickle the ears, but are useless in the warfare against the demonic powers that savor the aroma of the blood offered in sacrifice by the hand of their priests (abortionists). These pastors are false teachers and prophets crying out “’Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14 ESV).

Where are the “Davids” who will not only challenge the giant with nothing more than a slingshot and five smooth stones, but will run quickly to the battle line to meet the giant (1 Samuel 17:48), secure in his faith that the battle is the Lord’s?

While some in the fight against abortion set their eyes upon the giant, we would do well to set our eyes upon the Lord.