Speaking out on abortion doctor’s murder
Numerous leaders of faith groups and anti-abortion organizations have been speaking out on the murder of Dr. George Tiller, who was shot dead at his church on Sunday.
Probably the most extreme comment I’ve read thus far is the one reportedly made by the Rev. Wiley Drake, a Southern Baptist pastor in Buena Park, Calif.
“I’m glad George Tiller is dead,” Drake was quoted in an Associated Baptist Press story today.
According to the story, Drake, a former Southern Baptist Convention second vice president, made the comments Monday on his Crusade Radio broadcast.
“There may be a lot who would say, ‘Oh that is mean. You shouldn’t be that way,” Drake said. “Well, no, it’s an answer to prayer.”
Tiller, who attended Reformation Lutheran Church in Wichita, Kan., was well-known as an abortion provider, particularly of partial-birth abortions.
Among the leaders of faith groups and anti-abortion organizations around the country sharing their comments is an Oklahoma Roman Catholic leader, the Most Rev. Edward Slattery, bishop of the Tulsa Diocese. Slattery, like many of the leaders, condemned Tiller’s slaying.
“Dr. Tiller was one of three doctors in America who was willing to perform late-term abortions. The news of his murder saddens all the members of the pro-life movement in America since it is just such violence that we deplore,” Slattery said.
“For this reason, I want to be among the many in the pro-life movement to publicly condemn this violent action against life,” he wrote in a prepared statement.
“Such violence does nothing to further the cause of life. Rather, it sullies our effort and allows others to dismiss us as terrorists.”
Here are a few other comments from leaders across the country:
Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberties Commission: “Murdering someone is a grotesque and bizarre way to emphasize one’s commitment to the sanctity of human life. People who truly believe in the sanctity of human life believe in the sanctity of the lives of abortion providers as well as the unborn babies who are aborted. … Clearly the killing of abortion profiders is unbiblical, unchristian and un-American. Such callous disregard for human beings brutalizes everyone.”
Melinda Delahoyde, president of Care Net, which runs a network of more than 1,100 pregnancy centers providing help and support to those facing unplanned pregnancies: “Care Net strongly condemns the brutal act of violence that ended the life of Dr. George Tiller on Sunday. It is never consistent with the pro-life ethic to take the life of another human being made in the image of God.”
Rick Scarborough, president of Vision America, part of the “Values Voter” movement: Our hearts go out to his family and friends. May they find comfort in their hour of grief. We condemn this heinous crime in the strongest possible terms and hope the person responsible for Dr. Tiller’s death is brought to justice speedily.”
Andrea Lafferty, executive director of the Traditional Values Coalition: “The pro-life movement is non-violent and does not encouage vigilante justice against abortionists. We seek to bring an end to abortion through peaceful and legal means. As evil as Tiller was in killing late-term babies for profit, he did not deserve to be executived by a vigilante.”
The Rev. Galen Guengerich, board chairman of the Interfaith Alliance, a group which celebrates religious freedom by championing individual rights: “The abortion issue evokes deep passion from people on all sides, but resorting to murder should never be an option. The fact that it happened at a church is all the more distressing.”
The Rev. Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life: “I am saddened to hear of the killing of George Tiller this morning. … Whatever the motives, we at Priests for Life continue to insist on a culture in which violence is never seen as the solution to any problem. Every life has to be protected, without regard to their age or views or actions.”
Shaun Kenney, executive director of the American Life League: “Leaders within the pro-life movement often discuss justice in connection with our mission to end the tragedy of abortion. Today, Dr. George Tiller’s life ended in an act defying those principles.”
(AP PHOTO above: Kip Bloss, of Wichita, Kan., prays outside Women’s Health Care Services in Wichita, Kan., today. Bloss, an anti-abortion demonstrator, was making his regular weekly appearance at the clinic which was owned by Dr. George Tiller who was gunned down during church services Sunday. )
Carla Hinton
Religion Editor
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