‘It’s time for the religious left to rise up’ The Rev. Millie Horning Peters, a Methodist pastor in Kentucky, is not only pro-abortion — she runs a pro-abortion group in her area to fight for Kentucky women’s rights to have an abortion.
In an interview with Yes!, Peters discussed her belief that more religious leaders should get involved in helping women access the reproductive health care (read: abortions) that they need.
Kentucky currently has just one abortion clinic — the rest have been shut down. The “unapologetically pro-life governor” of Kentucky wants to see the last clinic shut down, making the state entirely devoid of legal abortion clinics.
The trial of EMW Women’s Surgical Clinic against the state of Kentucky commenced on Wednesday, and according to reports, is expected to wrap up Friday, though a ruling isn’t expected for months.
Earlier this year, this clinic filed suit to prevent the state from revoking its license.
A win by the state — and Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin (R) — could render Kentucky the first state in the U.S. without a legal abortion clinic.
What she said
Peters, in her interview, addressed ways to become more active in promoting abortion rights for women, which she called “justice.”
“We’re seriously looking at the moral agency of women and what we can do — whether it’s a letter, a petition, [or] a bill,” she said. “We’ve got the power as individuals who are out for justice. We might as well get started with it.”
According to the interview, Peters has had a long history of discouraging women from visiting pro-life pregnancy centers, and has spoken at many pro-abortion rallies in support of the practice.
When asked how she reconciles her faith with the murder of innocent babies, Peters said, “When we face a situation, we have to do what is best for us in the moment. Life is complicated, but it is just my firm belief that God has given us a mind and given me a heart of compassion that reaches out to people. To be pro-choice is just a given.”
“It’s time for the religious left to rise up,” Peters said. “We are stronger when we move together as a network.”
How she got involved
Peters told the magazine that she was not actively working as a pastor when Scripture moved her to champion “reproductive justice.”
As a result of her interpretation of Scripture, Peters said she was called to join the local reproductive rights movement and in 2014 helped establish a chapter of Concerned Clergy for Choice.
Concerned Clergy for Choice, according to the interview, is an “interfaith group that seeks to bring faith-based views into the reproductive justice movement.”
Peters told the magazine that her “passion for equal rights” stems from her childhood in Kentucky, where she and her family would pack boxfuls of groceries for local households affected by disaster.
“The word compassion speaks of who I am and of my beliefs,” Peters said.
http://www.theblaze.com/news/2017/09/08/pro-abortion-female-methodist-pastor-its-time-for-the-religious-left-to-rise-up/
