As the Iowa Legislature gears up for a special session on abortion beginning this week, a variety of faith leaders from across Iowa gathered via Zoom on Sunday for a news conference voicing their support for reproductive freedom and urging lawmakers to reject proposed restrictions on the procedure.
The Rev. Betsey Monnot, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, said limits on abortion called for by Gov. Kim Reynolds, who has summoned lawmakers back to the Capitol for a special session beginning Tuesday, is based on the beliefs of one arm of Christianity and aren't universally shared by her and other members of the faith.
"In this week's special session of the Legislature, Iowa politicians plan to restrict all Iowans to following the teaching of one particular section of Christianity in the area of reproductive health care," said Monnot, speaking as part of the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa Action Fund, a progressive group made up of Christians, Jews and other faiths as well as atheists and agnostics.
"This is an inappropriate use of our system of government, and it will prevent Christians like myself and those that I lead from exercising our own deeply held religious convictions to respect the dignity of every human being and to love our neighbors," Monnot said.
The Alliance, in a statement released in conjunction with the online news conference, said that "people of faith are not monolithic in their beliefs on abortion. Many people of faith believe in reproductive freedom for Iowa women and all people because of their faith."
In an apparent reference to a 2022 Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll, it said 61% of Iowans "in communities big and small, urban and rural believe abortion should be legal in Iowa."
"As members of that 61% we are united in opposing any attempt to limit or ban the fundamental right to an abortion," said the statement, which invited Iowans who object to abortion restrictions to add their signatures to it online.
"...One religious belief should never be elevated above others or inserted into public policy or our state’s constitution, particularly when that action infringes on the rights of others," the statement said. "Iowa is not a theocracy and our laws must reflect that understanding."
Declaring the anti-abortion movement "the most important human rights cause of our time," Reynolds called the special session after the Iowa Supreme Court last month via a deadlocked 3-3 ruling permanently blocked a long-enjoined 2018 state law effectively banning most abortions after the sixth week of pregnancy.
Currently, abortion remains legal in Iowa until the 20th week of pregnancy. Sally Frank, a member of the Temple B'nai Jeshurun in Des Moines, said in the news conference that, like Monnot, she is concerned about how any new restrictions will impact her faith.
Frank said human life begins at birth, according to Jewish law, and that while the unborn fetus has value, it is less than that of a born human being. For that reason, she said, her faith permits abortions and in some cases requires them to protect the health and life of a pregnant woman ― a position at odds with the belief of conservative Christians that life begins at conception.
The Rev. Betsey Monnot, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, said limits on abortion called for by Gov. Kim Reynolds, who has summoned lawmakers back to the Capitol for a special session beginning Tuesday, is based on the beliefs of one arm of Christianity and aren't universally shared by her and other members of the faith.
"In this week's special session of the Legislature, Iowa politicians plan to restrict all Iowans to following the teaching of one particular section of Christianity in the area of reproductive health care," said Monnot, speaking as part of the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa Action Fund, a progressive group made up of Christians, Jews and other faiths as well as atheists and agnostics.
"This is an inappropriate use of our system of government, and it will prevent Christians like myself and those that I lead from exercising our own deeply held religious convictions to respect the dignity of every human being and to love our neighbors," Monnot said.
The Alliance, in a statement released in conjunction with the online news conference, said that "people of faith are not monolithic in their beliefs on abortion. Many people of faith believe in reproductive freedom for Iowa women and all people because of their faith."
In an apparent reference to a 2022 Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll, it said 61% of Iowans "in communities big and small, urban and rural believe abortion should be legal in Iowa."
"As members of that 61% we are united in opposing any attempt to limit or ban the fundamental right to an abortion," said the statement, which invited Iowans who object to abortion restrictions to add their signatures to it online.
"...One religious belief should never be elevated above others or inserted into public policy or our state’s constitution, particularly when that action infringes on the rights of others," the statement said. "Iowa is not a theocracy and our laws must reflect that understanding."
Declaring the anti-abortion movement "the most important human rights cause of our time," Reynolds called the special session after the Iowa Supreme Court last month via a deadlocked 3-3 ruling permanently blocked a long-enjoined 2018 state law effectively banning most abortions after the sixth week of pregnancy.
Currently, abortion remains legal in Iowa until the 20th week of pregnancy. Sally Frank, a member of the Temple B'nai Jeshurun in Des Moines, said in the news conference that, like Monnot, she is concerned about how any new restrictions will impact her faith.
Frank said human life begins at birth, according to Jewish law, and that while the unborn fetus has value, it is less than that of a born human being. For that reason, she said, her faith permits abortions and in some cases requires them to protect the health and life of a pregnant woman ― a position at odds with the belief of conservative Christians that life begins at conception.
Iowa faith leaders voice opposition to abortion law set for special legislative session
The Iowa Interfaith Alliance says the proposed law improperly places the views of one group of Christians above those of other belief groups
www.press-citizen.com
