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EDIT: My lawyer wife basically hated my legal analysis. I am not a lawyer and was off on a number of specifics. I’ve tried to take a less detailed approach to avoid speaking on things I’m not qualified to speak on. My wife is smart, I am not.

While unofficial as of this writing, it seems very likely that Roe v. Wade is going to be overturned in our country soon. A draft of an opinion by the Supreme Court was leaked, and based on that draft, Roe v. Wade is likely to be overturned. The official reasoning why will be made clearer in the near future, but the simple, broad, quick answer is two-fold. First, the legal reasoning used in Roe v. Wade has long been held as a weak argument. Edward Lazarus, who was pro-choice, and was a law clerk to the author of Roe v. Wade, said this:

“As a matter of constitutional interpretation and judicial method, Roe borders on the indefensible. I say this as someone utterly committed to the right to choose, as someone who believes such a right has grounding elsewhere in the Constitution instead of where Roe placed it, and as someone who loved Roe’s author like a grandfather. . .”

Roe v. Wade has always existed on a shaky foundation. For those who feel I’m just being biased, I’ll note that even Ruth Bader Ginsberg was a critic of how Roe v. Wade’s decision came about, and claimed that the case should have been argued from a totally different angle.

The second part is really about how Roe v. Wade has been perceived since. Essentially, it has been argued that because the Supreme Court has already ruled that a pregnant woman’s right to an abortion for any unviable fetus is federally protected, that the matter was settled. Former Democratic Senator Hillary Clinton has already alluded to this, saying that the leaked draft goes against “decades of settled law”. However, the Supreme Court can overturn cases. It was once ruled that state-mandated segregation laws were not a violation of the equal protection clause under the 14th Amendment (Plessy v. Ferguson). Obviously, it was eventually overturned and determined that segregation was in fact a violation of that equal protection clause (Brown v. The Board of Education), so there is precedent for overturning precedent. And that’s where we are.

Here are my quick thoughts:

1. This is not a victory for pro-lifers, at least not totally (and possibly not at all; more on that later). First, this is all based on a leaked draft of a court opinion, so no final decision has been made and the draft could change significantly before that decision is made. Even if Roe v. Wade is ultimately overturned (and the leak of the draft does seem genuine), it merely becomes a state’s decision to ban or restrict abortions. Abortions will still exist, even if it is harder to get one.
2. It should go without saying then that the work of the pro-life movement is just getting started, not finishing up. And I’ll make a plea to the Church: This is the time to act. We should already have been doing more to make sure that women felt secure enough that abortions didn’t seem necessary. Some will say that abortion is simply a matter of the heart, and that without changed minds and hearts concerning abortion, it will continue to exist. And I largely agree, but it is also true that right now for many women, an abortion seems necessary. It is our job to make abortions feel unnecessary, that they have the resources and support they need to carry the child to term.
3. We must see the time as urgent, because all that has happened is undo the legal reason given for abortions. Overturning Roe v. Wade does nothing but kick the can down the road, so to speak, on determining the most pressing questions abortions raise. I suspect that those questions will be raised in the future, and so it is possible that abortion actually ends up getting strong legal grounding and deeply solidifies it for the future. Again, this is why we need to make sure we act now.
4. In terms of support, this will require sacrifice. I’ll remind my brothers and sisters in Christ though that we are called to sacrificial love. Christ died for us, so we have no reason to withhold from others. We have been clamoring for abortion to be made illegal for so long, and now the opportunity is there to nearly eradicate it. But it will cost us. It may cost us dearly. What would it take to offer enough support for women? Maybe 1–2 fewer vacations per year for our retired folks. Active pursuit of people and/or organizations that help pregnant women in tight spots. It will also mean many more of us need to consider adoption or financially and prayerfully support those that can adopt. Our hands need to get dirty and the Church be seen as a place of refuge for these women who have been told that they have no options, that their dreams will be unattainable if they have a child, that their significant other will hurt them if they don’t get an abortion, and that they cannot afford to have a baby. We cannot directly address every reason women give for getting an abortion, but we can be a solution to nearly all of them. We need to be a solution. Pay up, open your homes even, be actively involved.
5. We must be mindful. This decision will impact millions of women in the U.S. Many of them will fear what this might mean. They feel their very autonomy is being taken away from them. Do not scoff at this; this is a real feeling that is not unsubstantiated. Instead, we must be sensitive to what they are going through, and offer whatever help we can. Depression and anxiety are real. Women may feel like they cannot handle life without a child, let alone with one. Some may feel overwhelmed with the children they already have. They may be scared about how they are going to pay rent and also care for a newborn. Daycare is expensive. Personally, my wife and I pay a little under $20k a year for two kids and only 4 days a week. The pressure these women feel is real and enormous, especially if battling other elements.
6. I deserve to be here. I have shared previously my own story. In some ways, I feel vindicated that Roe v. Wade may be overturned. The only logical conclusion previously offered was that I am only here because my mother determined that it was okay. Existentially, that’s hard to swallow. While I reject that view entirely, the fact that it exists does mean that pro-choice supporters do ultimately reject my having any independent claim to being here (and I suppose for them, as well). My mom could have aborted me, and almost all of the top reasons women give for an abortion applied to her. Today, she would be celebrated for doing the thing that was “best for her”, and given her own issues, likely what was “best” for me. I would not have existed. Pardon me for taking offense to that and celebrating the fact that perhaps there will be more “mes” in the world now.

Time will tell what will all come of this, and perhaps I am premature. Regardless, most of what I’ve written here will apply. The issue of abortion should never be viewed as a political battle, even though we’ve foolishly made it our arena. It should always be a “person-first” approach, where we care for the unborn and the for the mother, and even the father. Our love should be genuine, matched by our eagerness to display it. And above all, the Church should be motivated by its love for Christ to lay down our lives for others, which does not necessarily mean death, but radical sacrifice. Being a light to the world means that we provide hope. Many women just had the lights turned off on them, and we’d do well to remember that as we move forward.