The National Day of Prayer: What are The Non-Theists Really Afraid of?

Warnings:

1. This post is quite long. Pee first, maybe get something to eat.

2. This post is an opinion piece, and may ebb a little more progressive than you're used to (because I'm just not your typical Conservative Christian) but I hope you'll hang with me 'til the end before formulating a scathing new opinion of me and my kooky politics ;]

US District Court Judge Barbara Crabb recently handed down a ruling stating that government sponsored prayer, ie. The National Day of Prayer, violates the Constitution. On the surface, I am as appalled as anyone, mainly because that’s simply not true. But I believe that this entire upheaval speaks to a deeper issue in this country that is worth addressing.

For now, let’s start with the basics. Why should anyone be upset about a government-endorsed National Day of Prayer? There’s no good reason, really.

First of all, acknowledging a National Day of Prayer does not endorse any one particular religion. We’re all welcome to pray to whomever we choose – it’s the not the “National Day of Prayer to the God of the Judeo-Christian Tradition”. Perhaps they’re abstractly promoting “spirituality” or “faith” in a general sense by encouraging prayer, but it’s quite a stretch to call that a Constitutional violation, and it certainly is not discriminatory against non-theists.

Second of all, the government’s endorsement of a holiday does not mandate any individual’s participation in said holiday. Every citizen maintains his or her freedom to completely disregard ANY holiday they choose, on any given day of the year. We are all free to choose NOT to pray at all on the National Day of Prayer! The government endorses a lot of holidays, and a lot of people for whom those holidays don’t mean much SIMPLY IGNORE THEM. If Presidents’ Day means nothing to you, you don’t even have to acknowledge it except to enjoy your paid day off of work if you’re on a government holiday schedule. Simple as that. If it irritates you, pretend it didn’t even happen. The bottom line is, no one is grabbing your hand and thrusting you into a prayer circle – just go about your business, people!

You know, I’ve never met a Jewish person who was personally offended at the government’s recognition of Christmas as a holiday. Perhaps you have met such an individual, but have you ever seen a coalition of Jewish people file a lawsuit and spark a media frenzy over it? NO! Do you know why? Because they just choose not to celebrate Christmas. And I’d venture to say that that Christmas is a much larger inconvenience to Jews than the National Day of Prayer is to non-theists, what with the mall traffic, school closings, and all that Christmas music playing everywhere you go for three months. Of course I don’t mean to be cheeky about Christmas itself, but practically speaking, am I right or am I right?

The main point of contention for the non-theists, as best I can tell, is based in the apparent “evolution” of our country toward a far more secular state of affairs than ever before in its history. Given this secularization, they apparently perceive such “official” acknowledgements of prayer and spirituality along a continuum from simply antiquated to outright discriminatory. It seems that they would prefer it if our government failed to recognize or address religion at all in any official capacity, as if we should just let the religious roots of our history slowly fall by the wayside until they’ve been long forgotten. Somehow “progress” should be gradually pushing religion “out of vogue”.

I disagree with them for two reasons; (1) religion is and always will be a majority sentiment – it’s not going anywhere anytime soon; and (2) Our history is important and it has already been written – it is what it is – and simply recognizing the religious component of that history should never be considered “unconstitutional”. That’s just baloney.

That said, I think that there’s more to this story and that there is a valid broader message to be gleaned from this upheaval amongst non-theists. This is the part where I start losing friends along the other end of the political spectrum and am left with… well, no friends. But I hope you’ll hear me out. While I certainly believe that the government’s promotion of “spirituality” and recognition of the Christian roots of our country’s founding are entirely defensible, there is a larger movement out there that seeks to broaden the influence of those “Christian roots” in government. And that, my friends, is where the non-theists have a point.

I believe that it is our Constitutional freedoms that set America apart and make us who we are as a nation, and that includes Freedom of Religion.  I will never refer to America as a “Christian Nation” because I believe that that statement undermines those very freedoms that give me such pride in my country. The fact that our founding fathers were of Judeo-Christian faith themselves does not make us an intrinsically “Christian Nation”, in my humble opinion. In fact, I’ll even venture to say that the founding fathers just might agree with me, given the literal blood, sweat and tears that they poured into securing that very Freedom (of Religion) that we enjoy today. The American Revolution wasn’t about establishing a “Christian Nation”, it was about establishing a nation in which any religion (or lack thereof) could be practiced freely without threat of imprisonment or worse – where all citizens would be afforded “certain unalienable rights” without discrimination.

I certainly won’t deny that the God of the Constitution was intended as the Judeo-Christian God, but I simply don’t accept the idea that this fact somehow trumps the clear intent of the founding fathers to ensure equality of all religions under the law. I believe that this is where Conservative politics have steered our country wrong.  The non-theists do not necessarily feel threatened by the National Day of Prayer itself, but rather the larger “Christianization” of our nation that it represents to them. Their response to this specific issue is a backlash against the larger Conservative agenda. The National Day of Prayer has never been a problem (on this scale) in the past. It has become a problem because non-Christians in our country are beginning to feel that their way of life is being threatened.

Let’s be a little more concrete about this. I am all for the criminalization of abortion, for example, but I am not “for” any law that is based purely on Biblical teachings. Yes, I’m serious. I am a Christian (and so I choose to live my life by Biblical teachings) but I live in a country that does not legislate based purely on religious principles, because our forefathers fought and died to ensure that our freedom to practice any religion that we choose would be upheld. Sure, many laws happen to coincide with a variety of religious teachings which is just fine and dandy, but legislation based purely on the teachings of any religion is unconstitutional in my book. I am for the legal criminalization of abortion because I believe that abortion constitutes infanticide, which is already a crime in this country. I believe that, scientifically, the definition of “life” (and in turn the spectrum of what constitutes murder) as beginning at any point other than conception is a bogus and arbitrary definition, and I believe that any legislation concerning abortion should be based in that reality – not on Biblical teachings, dear as those may be to my own heart.

But it’s not about what’s dear to my heart – that’s not how America works. The beauty of how America does work, so long as the Constitution is upheld, is that no matter what the religious majority may become in the future, the rest of us will never be forced to live our lives by its teachings. Just as we Christians would be appalled if Muslims became the majority and forced us to stop and pray toward Mecca on a daily basis, Muslim Americans (or Hindu Americans, or Buddhist Americans, or Non-theist Americans) should be appalled at the prospect of any purely “Christian” teaching being forced upon them as law. An American citizen is an American citizen, like it or not, and being a Judeo-Christian Anglo-Saxon white person doesn’t afford me any extra right to legislate my personal religious beliefs – I don’t get to claim any more “ownership” of this country than anyone else, because we are a country of immigrants. That’s just our reality (again, like it or not).

The point that I’m trying to make is this: Just as many Conservatives are in a state of backlash and upheaval over what they perceive as a new set of ideals being forced upon them by a new administration of which they do not approve, non-theists feel similarly toward the Conservative Christian movement. They feel that their Constitutional right to live their lives outside the scope of religious influence (as far as the law is concerned) is being threatened, not by the National Day of Prayer itself, but by the larger movement that it represents.

In my opinion, they have a point. I see our country headed in that direction if the Conservatives regain power, and while the ensuing course of events might appease my personal Christian values in many ways, it saddens my heart as an American. Of course my Christian values come first in my own life, but those values should NOT be imposed on any non-Christian American. Selfishly invoking our majority status to impose our beliefs is not the way to win others for Christ, it’s just a way to get what we want, and what we think is best. Given the Constitutional provision against religious influence of that nature, that simply is not the Constitutional way to govern. 

See Jane Bake ...quite possibly the cutest cookies you'll ever eat

So, remember how I said that my friend Laura is multi-talented? Remember when I said "you name it, she's mastered the art"? Well, that was even before she unveiled this little treat...

It's SEE JANE BAKE 
...and it's Laura's newest venture. You can enjoy these delectable little creations in the comfort of your own home... if you can bring yourself to eat them, that is. You can visit on Facebook or Etsy! 

How adorable are these?!?! Baby showers... bridal showers... birthday parties... the possibilities are endless. I just can't get over it!

Oh Laura. You just blow my mind, girl.

Laura's Brilliant New Series, "A Life Apart"

For those of you who don't know my friend Laura, she is a gifted writer - a woman of many talents, in fact. Decorator, re-finisher, baker, adorable-little-girl-dress-maker... you name it, Laura's perfected the art. She also happens to be a tirelessly devoted wife and mother (to two of the most adorable little red heads you've ever seen!), and a faithful Catholic. She has recently begun a new blog series entitled "A Life Apart", and I think it's gonna knock your socks off. What is "A Life Apart", you ask?

"What is A Life Apart? It's freedom from the Culture of Death, and the decline of marriage and the family. It's a call to rise above the mainstream ideals of sex, love and the human condition. A Life Apart is the belief that anyone can reclaim their faith, find spectacular love and live an authentic life. Through a series of guest posts, crazy ideas and fabulous resources, we'll introduce you to a way of living that'll leave you thinking harder and making changes."


You're intrigued. Go ahead, read on. You'll be glad you did. The link will take you to an introduction to the series. You'll also find a side-bar listing of any series-related posts she has published to date, including a guest post from yours truly, chronicling my whirlwind journey from the Pill to Natural Family Planning. This series is bound to bless you in ways you never thought possible - I highly recommend it. 

"The Pill as an Abortifacient": Appendix A, on IUDs

It has come to my attention that my previous post on the Pill as an abortifacient may have been a little narrow. Certainly the Pill is the most common of the chemical contraceptives, but I would be remiss if I didn't include a section on hormonal IUDs (or Intra-Uterine Devices, like Mirena), another commonly misunderstood form of chemical contraception.


Many women are under the impression that an IUD is simply an implantable, more permanent version of the Pill. Well, semi-permanent anyway - they can usually be implanted and left for up to 5 years. The misconception there is that the chemical composition of an IUD is distinct from that of the common Pill, in that IUDs release only progestins while most common oral contraceptives contain both estrogen and a progestin (there are "progestin-only oral contraceptives", but these are usually prescribed for specific medical reasons related to gynecological health and are not the same as the estrogen-progestin oral contraceptives commonly referred to as "the Pill"). The role of progestins in contraceptive devices is two-fold as you may remember from the main post:

1. They thicken the cervical fluid to help prevent the entrance of sperm into the cervix and shorten its lifespan within the female reproductive tract, and
2. They dramatically thin the lining of the uterine wall that normally builds up and sheds cyclically in preparation for physical implantation and nutritional support of a fertilized embryo, making it very difficult for a fertilized embryo to implant successfully - it is instead "washed out" with the monthly menstrual flow. 

Unrelated to the hormonal effects of progestin, the IUD also attempts to physically interfere with entry of the sperm into the fallopian tube by its placement location (though the IUD can and will shift over time, and we're talking about microscopic sperm and eggs that would have to squeeze by... take that for what it's worth).

You may also recall from the main post on this issue that it is the estrogen component of oral contraceptives that prevents follicle maturation and ovulation from occurring monthly. Directly from the Mirena (a popular brand name IUD) website, this means that an IUD "may stop the release of your egg from your ovary, but this is not the way it works in most cases" (emphasis mine). 

What does it all mean, in practical terms, for IUD users? It means that you can assume that during most months, you will ovulate. Given the disruption of the normal cyclical patterns of progesterone circulation induced by the IUD, your normal fertility signs will also be disrupted (such as patterns in basal body temperature and cervical fluid consistency, which could normally be used to determine when ovulation is occurring). Bottom line: you have little hope of being able to determine when or if you've ovulated. At this point, all that's standing between your egg and fertilization is the thickened cervical fluid and the rather weak "physical barrier" of the IUD itself to sperm travel. 

Here in lies the main difference between the Pill and IUDs, as far as abortifacient properties are concerned: the IUD does comparatively little to prevent fertilization (relative to the Pill, which is designed to prevent ovulation altogether, however imperfectly that may work). Once a successful fertilization has occurred, you (as an IUD user) are now relying on the IUD to ensure that your body rejects that conception (as a result of the thinned uterine lining). If you happen to be a woman who is pro-life and defines life as beginning at conception, you have put yourself in a terrible position. You are using a birth control method that allows for ovulation to occur, and loosely attempts to prevent fertilization, but primarily functions to create an inhospitable uterine environment that will reject a fertilized egg. 

I won't venture to call one chemical contraception method "worse" than the other, because that really isn't the point here - that would be splitting hairs. I make this point because many IUD users may not fully understand the mechanism behind their chosen form of birth control (I've mentioned how I feel about the tragic dearth of patient education going on in OB/GYN offices these days) - they may believe, as most women on the Pill do, that they are not ovulating. Pro-life IUD users really need this information, so that they may carefully consider the facts: that they most likely are ovulating, and are therefore risking a lot of fertilization. It is precisely this risk of fertilization that lends chemical contraceptives their classification as "abortifacients". 

The Pill as an Abortifacient: Science Meets Morality

To many, this debate may seem trivial – a tired argument from right-wing conservatives that like to split hairs over abortion. I once shared this view, to be honest. It was a convenient stance to take, but at the end of the day it was not grounded in science or logic, but in fear and naivete.

Starting on the Pill was liberating. I was young (younger than I care to admit), in love and having sex, but the agonizing wait for my monthly reassurance was wearing on both our nerves. The Pill was a simple solution to a serious potential “problem”. Within a month’s time I was finally able to put that pesky issue of fertility behind me, and go on enjoying my sexual freedom without a care.

While I have quite a bit more to say about the Pill – the recklessness with which it is distributed, the defeminization that it imposes upon unsuspecting young women, and the cavalier disregard for its concomitant health risks perpetrated by health care professionals (check out my guest post on Laura’s blog, on my journey from the Pill to Natural Family Planning) – this post will focus on an issue even closer to my own heart than any of these. Closer to my own heart because it made a liar out of me, and I will never know the extent of my own guilt.

I will never know how many conceptions I unknowingly aborted in my seven years on the Pill. I will never know the fruit of those conceptions – never count their tiny fingers and toes, never hear their precious giggles, never feel the warmth and weight of their bodies on my chest. Granted, I was never ready to be a mother in those seven years. But had my chosen behavior resulted in a pregnancy, I certainly would have kept the baby and become a mom. More importantly, had I known that my chosen method of birth control was an abortifacient, I would have thrown it out long ago.

Not unlike many other young women in my situation, I was provided very little “education” surrounding the Pill when it was prescribed. I was told to take it at the same time every day, and to be extra cautious if I missed a pill or two in a row. That was about it. No one explained how the Pill works. I was aware of the general gist of the story – that the Pill “prevents” ovulation by regulating the level of circulating estrogen such that it

(a)    suppresses secretion of Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) – which would fuel the maturation of an egg-containing ovarian follicle

and

(b)   never reaches the threshold level at which it would trigger a monthly surge in Leuteinizing Hormone (LH) – the hormonal event that triggers ovulation.

Seemed logical and effective enough to me! No ovulation, no egg, no pregnancy. Got it.

The next logical question, which apparently never occurred to me, is “How on Earth do women get pregnant on the Pill, then?” Good question.

The answer? They ovulate.

I suppose I always assumed that women who got pregnant on the Pill must have screwed up somehow. They missed a few pills, they took antibiotics that interfered with its efficacy… who knows. Certainly that is often the case. It really is tough to get pregnant on the Pill though, even under such confounding circumstances. This difficulty arises from the fact that the Pill also acts to thin the lining of the uterus so dramatically that it becomes very difficult for a fertilized egg to implant. In addition, its progesterone component thickens the cervical fluid such that it significantly reduces the survival time of sperm, and hinders the ability of sperm to enter the cervix at all, much less “swim” to the fallopian tubes where fertilization occurs.  Yet somehow, 1 woman in 1,000 who use the Pill “perfectly” still gets pregnant.

Now, let’s take that statistic a step further. Given the considerable obstacle to implantation presented by the thinned uterine lining, statistically speaking most successful fertilizations will not result in successful pregnancies. This implies, then, that there is a lot more fertilization going on in the background that simply isn’t resulting in successful implantation and pregnancy (which in turn implies a lot of ovulation).

What’s more, let’s take into account the fact that a woman is only fertile for a few days per month (assuming that she has ovulated), surrounding ovulation. That fertility window is even smaller in a woman on the Pill, because the pre-ovulatory window of fertility assumes survival of sperm for several days in fertile cervical fluid while they await the arrival of an egg. We have already established that sperm cannot survive in the thick, sticky cervical fluid produced by women on the Pill. If we allow for a generous window of survival, say 48 hours, then intercourse must occur 48 hours prior to ovulation at most, and within 24 hours after (the lifespan of the average ovulated egg). 

This gives a 3-day window that a woman who has had a so-called “breakthrough ovulation” on the Pill could physically get pregnant. What are the odds that (a) intercourse occurred during the appropriate 3-day window, (b) the sperm penetrated the thick, sticky cervical fluid barrier within the cervix to enter the uterus and “swam” to the fallopian tubes, (c) fertilization was successful, and (d) that fertilized egg managed to successfully implant in the harsh uterine environment, resulting in a pregnancy?

After considering all of these obstacles, it becomes clear that each breakthrough ovulation on the Pill practically requires an “alignment of the stars”, so to speak, to result in a pregnancy. This simple fact implies that, statistically, there must be an awful lot of breakthrough ovulation occurring in women taking the Pill, just to result in one pregnancy in 1,000.

Great, Jenna. But what does it all mean? Well, the most important point in all this (in my humble opinion) is that breakthrough ovulation on the Pill is not the extraordinary event that women are led to believe. It happens. For many women this phenomenon is of no consequence, so long as it does not result in a pregnancy. A problem arises, however, if you happen to be a woman who is firmly opposed to abortion and who fundamentally defines life as beginning at fertilization. The Pill is designed with a back-up plan – if fertilization occurs, it ensures that the uterine environment is as hostile as possible to the embryo as it attempts to implant, so that it will most likely be rejected and flushed out with menstruation. Call it splitting hairs if you want to, but the reality is that so long as a woman is taking the Pill, she is passively facilitating the possibility of aborting a conception.

No one ever told me. As a naïve young woman, I took the advice and guidance of my healthcare providers at face value, just like so many other young Christian women have done and will continue to do. None of this absolves me of responsibility – ignorance is no defense in the information age – but it speaks to a disturbing and disheartening trend in women’s healthcare. The Pill is dispensed like candy, with complete disregard for the religious and ethical ramifications of its use and with very little (if any) emphasis on patient education.

As a patient, I feel betrayed. I will never know how many breakthrough ovulations I experienced or how many unborn children my chemicalized body rejected. How many times was my integrity undermined? The truth is, I was undermining my own integrity for seven years – every night before bed when I popped that tiny little pill. Chances are, I may have had a few breakthrough ovulations in that time. Chances are none of them were fertilized successfully. But I’ll never know, and whether or not a conception ever occurred is neither here nor there. The point is that I unwittingly failed my own moral values by allowing that process to occur within my own body.

Take home message: The Pill made a liar out of me. Don’t let it make a liar out of you.


***A Note to IUD Users: Please see the Appendix on IUDs for more information on how all this applies to you. I assure you, it does, but in a slightly different way.

My iPod's Got the Holy Spirit!

Five minutes after finishing that last "poor pitiful me" post, I hopped in the shower after setting my iPod to shuffle a random mix of Christian music. This is what I got.

Song #1: Let The Waters Rise by Mikeschair

Don't know where to begin
Its like my world's caving in
And I try but I can't control my fear
Where do I go from here?

Sometimes its so hard to pray
When You feel so far away
But I am willing to go
Where you want me to
God, I trust You

[Chorus]

There's a raging sea
Right in front of me
Wants to pull me in
Bring me to my knees
So let the waters rise
If You want them to
I will follow You
I will follow You

I will swim in the deep
'Cuz You'll be next to me
You're in the eye of the storm
And the calm of the sea
You're never out of reach

God, You know where I've been
You were there with me then
You were faithful before
You'll be faithful again
I'm holding Your hand

[Chorus]

God Your love is enough
You will pull me through
I'm holding onto You
God Your love is enough
I will follow You
I will follow You

[Chorus]

Song #2: You Never Let Go by Matt Redman

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
Your perfect love is casting out fear
And even when I’m caught in the middle of the storms of this life
I won’t turn back
I know You are near

And I will fear no evil
For my God is with me
And if my God is with me
Whom then shall I fear?
Whom then shall I fear?

[Chorus]
Oh no, You never let go
Through the calm and through the storm
Oh no, You never let go
In every high and every low
Oh no, You never let go
Lord, You never let go of me

And I can see a light that is coming for the heart that holds on
A glorious light beyond all compare
And there will be an end to these troubles
But until that day comes
We’ll live to know You here on the earth

[Chorus]

Yes, I can see a light that is coming for the heart that holds on
And there will be an end to these troubles
But until that day comes
Still I will praise You, still I will praise You

[Chorus]

It was a quick shower (time is exam points, people!). But the point is, God is faithful even in the smallest ways... encouraging me with some lyrics that I REALLY needed to hear in these particular moments. He is always faithful, always near, always guiding, always listening, always casting out fear, always holding tight to His children. 

So "Let The Waters Rise", Neuroscience. BRING IT. "If our God is for us, then who could ever stop us? And if our God is with us, then what could stand against?" (Yeah. That song just came on. Thanks, Chris Tomlin.)


And now, I will join Philips, Craig and Dean in a chorus of "Revelation Song" ...because God knew I'd be ready to belt out some serious praise right about now ;]

Poor Pitiful Me...

I would just like to take a moment to complain. So consider yourself warned...

I HATE THIS CLASS. I HATE NEUROSCIENCE. NEUROANATOMY IS IMPOSSIBLE. SCHOOL IS RUINING MY LIFE. (oohhhhhhhhhh the drama!)

I MISS MY HUSBAND. When I have an exam on a Monday (and they are almost without exception ALWAYS on Mondays), I encourage him to go spend time with his friends and our family for the weekend, since I'm stuck in the house and (a) am no fun to be around, and (b) study better when he's not here. But I miss him :'( Our quality time is reduced to kisses goodbye and kisses goodnight. Then all my friends at school wonder why I don't go out to the "post-exam party" on Monday night... I haven't seen my husband in four days, that's why! And being the hard-working, faithful provider that he is, he isn't going out partying with me on a Monday night, because SOMEONE's gotta get up at 6am and go to work around here. 

MY HEAD IS POUNDING. It has been pounding for two days. There is a biological reason for this, apart from the three-day study marathon (I'll spare you, but you ladies get it), but it makes focusing on a bright computer screen for hours on end QUITE unpleasant. I tried Excedrin. I tried a nap. I tried a Starbucks triple. Nuthin'. Faaaaaaaantastic.

I'm clearly feeling very sorry for myself. Sorry enough that I felt it necessary to take a break from studying JUST to complain into cyberspace. But I know that "this too shall pass"... in less than 24 hours in fact, this exam will be behind me, and I'll be at the salon enjoying a MUCH-needed haircut :] And then I'll be enjoying a nice dinner out with my long-lost husband, my dad and my grandmother. Ahhhh... normalcy. 

And in just 18 short days, I'll be taking my last exam of the semester and kissing medical school GOODBYE FOREVER!!! Or maybe just for the summer. Definitely just for the summer. Unless I decide to quit and become a professional blogger. HA! THAT will surely pay off my student loans. Riiiiiiiiiight. 

Alright, enough chit-chat. I'd better get back to it. But before I go, just FYI... once this exam is over I've got a great idea for my next "real" post: The Pill as an Abortifacient. Stay tuned... and thanks for listening ;]