Topic: Is abortion ever the answer?

Source of this posting: moderator response

Date originally posted: September 8, 2003

Moderator who originally posted this source:  Father Phillip

Question:  i have recently declared my major at school to be be social work and with this field comes great regard to confidentiality. a few days ago we had to take a mandatory survey/test to determine where each of us stood previous to completing our degrees. one of the questions really struck me however. it had to do with abortion. the scenario was that a girl had gotten pregnant and wished to have an abortion and in the case study we were supposed to answer whether or not we would respect her decision or try to dissuade her. i know this sounds foolish, but i had to read the question a few times. i am totally against abortion, but in a field such as social work where you are supposed to do everything in and for the best interest of your client, am i supposed to respect her decision or based on my faith try to convince her not to have an abortion. i guess, im just kind of concerned because i know this type of decision will probably come up in my future. just curious as to what you thought? im concerned about this vocation because i am so strong in my faith and i don't want to let God down by having to follow a social work code of ethics instead of going with my gut instinct. hope this makes sense

Answer:

Thanks, Sara, for a really excellent question. (I am in the process of getting an MSW myself so your issue really struck home with me as well!)

Abortion is just wrong. Always and in every case. People try to make lots of rationalizations about it, but abortion is wrong.

Though folks often THINK that an abortion may be "the answer", it never is.

In almost 20 years of priestly ministry, I have never once heard a woman tell me that in hindsight she was sure that having had an abortion was the right decision. Rather, what I hear over and over is a lifetime of regret and remorse.

In professional life we do not do anybody any favor by agreeing to something that we know to be wrong -- even if the professional consequences for us are not good.

Jesus' message is about the marginalized and the weak. He comes to bring them hope and life, and He invites us to be their advocates. Our call, as Christians, is to protect and to stand up for those who have nobody else to speak for them. And so we are on the side of the weakest in society: the homeless, the hungry, those whose lives are torn apart by war and natural disaster, those who are oppressed by racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia. And who is more marginalized than an unborn child? Who is weaker than a child in her/his mother's womb? Who is more voiceless than the baby 'in utero'?

Surely, as a social worker you must abide by the profession's code of ethics -- as long as that code does not violate the most basic tenets of what Jesus calls us, as Christians, to do. In SO many ways being a social worker is going about Jesus' business -- helping families, the poor, the oppressed. And you should be proud of be part of that profession! But you would do nobody any favor by giving up your most fundamental sense of right just to be thought well of in your chosen profession.

In a scenario such as you present, I should think that a good social worker would present her convictions to the client in a respectful way; she should also be willing to share the concern with her supervisor and make provisions for another professional to take over the case if the supervisor felt that was the appropriate course of action.

But aiding a person -- even in an implicit way -- to have an abortion would not advance the well-being of the client.

Thanks for a very timely question, and many blessings to you and to those whom you serve as a social worker! I'm sure that you will be a credit to the profession!