ANGELO LYNN

As fallout of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade in the Dobbs decision takes hold, what’s clear is that the issue will continue to resonate deeply in American culture — this time with pro-choice advocates on the offensive and anti-choice forces defending what is being seen as a political decision made by a radically conservative court.

And while much has been made of Evangelical Christians leading this conservative movement — as pro-life and pro-Trump — there are many millions of Christians who don’t share those same values.

At the Vermont Conference of the United Church of Christ annual conference held recently in Randolph, the group released a statement signed by over 170 church leaders opposing the Supreme Court’s decision and reaffirming why their support of Roe Vs. Wade is rooted in Christian belief and in each individual’s right to determine what one does with their own body.

The statement, brief but succinct, said: “As Christians in the Vermont Conference of the United Church of Christ, we oppose the Dobbs decision by the Supreme Court to overturn Roe vs. Wade. We believe that God is the Creator of all living beings and things, and that all human beings are created with the gift of free will and are of equal value.

“We believe that all people have a right to determine what one does with one’s own body, recognizing the difficult and painful yet life-supporting and sustaining necessity in making the decision to have an abortion. This is a statement rooted in our Christian faith, which opposes any policy, precedent, statement, or law that limits a human being’s right to bodily autonomy, determination, dignity and respect.

“Therefore, we stand with all women and people who can become pregnant in their right to choose, as we continue as followers of Jesus Christ, children of God, and members and friends of the Vermont Conference of the United Church of Christ to actively work together to answer our Christian call to love one another.”

It was signed by members of many of the local Congregational Churches in Addison County, including those in Middlebury, Cornwall, Vergennes, Weybridge, and New Haven, as well as many others in all corners of Vermont, and demonstrates the broad support throughout the state that will be needed to pass Proposal 5, a proposed amendment to the state Constitution that solidifies the right to choose in law — beyond the court’s influence.

It’s a well-considered statement that sums up why Christians, and all of us, can favor choice in good conscience, and how the Court’s recent ruling in Dobbs is contrary to America’s sense of individual freedom and independence. The issue is sure to be a continuing cultural battlefield — another stumbling block to bridge the deepening divide between right and left, with those on the side of choice challenged to further articulate why the freedom to choose is the ultimate Christian act, and most fitting with America’s culture of individualism.

Angelo Lynn