Breaking through the abortion nightmare

By Judie Brown

Changing hearts one person at a time. That's what Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood worker, is trying to do with her new venture. Understanding the fear and pain abortion workers face as they contemplate leaving the known for the unknown, Johnson wanted to find a way to help each and every one. Read today's commentary for more on what she is currently doing.

The first time I ever heard the name Abby Johnson I was fascinated by the information I received about her. Abby writes on her website, "I once was lost . . . but now I am pro-life. Formerly a Planned Parenthood director, I now work to save lives."

Abby wrote a book entitled Unplanned about her conversion from the culture of death to the culture of life. Among those honored to write comments about the text, I wrote, "This remarkable book is destined to reshape the culture of death into a culture of love, life, and hope in Christ the Lord . . . it's a life-changer!"

Abby has made that prediction a bit more likely to come true through her latest venture, a ministry she calls And Then There Were None (ATTWN). This work is dedicated to providing a literal safety net of love and understanding for those who want to leave the abortion industry but are fearful of the experiences they may have once they depart their comfort zone.

Telling her blog followers about her motivation for doing this, Abby writes,

Planned Parenthood is terrified of former abortion workers. They are terrified of their own . . . the defectors. "Traitors," they call us. We have betrayed women in the worst way, they say. But we know better. We have heard the truth, and we have followed a path that we didn't even know we had the courage to walk. They call us names because they fear us . . . and they should. We become strong warriors for life. We have seen the ugliest side of this movement of "choice." And, most of the time, we want to talk. And when we talk, people want to listen. Yes, abortion industry, be scared. Be scared of what we will expose. Be scared of the truth. The truth is what will bring you down.

And now we are on the eve of another step in the process of getting the entire pro-life movement involved in testifying to and helping with the powerful message this new ministry is transmitting. On Monday, June 11, at 8 pm Eastern Standard Time, there will be a live one-time only webcast hosted by Abby Johnson. The purpose of the event is to help those yet unfamiliar with Johnson's work learn more about her own motivation and the reasons why many more would leave the abortion industry if they knew there was a place to go where they could find acceptance and, ultimately, healing.

We know that what Abby is doing will bear much fruit because we know many who have made the decision to leave the killing fields and work to defend life. One such person was Dr. Bernard N. Nathanson. Speaking with a reporter from Life News about his own conversion, Nathanson also discussed abortionist George Tiller,

My switch to pro-life had nothing to do with religion. . . . Tiller was a church-going man, which doesn't say a whole lot in this country, but one wonders why he never changed his mind based on the scientific evidence. That is where I changed my mind, based on fetoscopies and ultrasound studies.

Once we had ultrasound in place, we could study the fetus and see it was a member of our community. If you don't do that, you're just a creature of political ideology.

And from that clinical determination that abortion was wrong, Nathanson progressed to a complete immersion in the teachings of the Catholic Church, which inspired him to write a book entitled The Hand of God. As reporter Julia Duin of the Washington Times wrote, "He began casting about for a system that provided space for guilt and could assure him 'that someone died for my sins and my evil two millennia ago.'" Nathanson then went on to say, "The New Testament God was a loving, forgiving, incomparably cossetting figure in whom I would seek, and ultimately find, the forgiveness I have pursued so hopelessly, for so long."

Every conversion from death to life takes time. But it also takes the understanding and Christ-like compassion of those who are already convinced that life is always and in every case precious. Furthermore, it takes a self-giving attitude and self-giving actions.

We encourage you to learn more about how you can be a witness to the power of love and mercy to those caught up in the culture of death.

Join Abby on June 11 and be inspired!

© Judie Brown