A startling new study by a Christian group found that a majority of women who have abortions are Christians, and they tend to distrust their church’s guidance on abortion.
LifeWay Research, a Christian-base group “Enlightening Today’s Church with Relevant Insights,” and Care Net, “,” conducted a survey of 1,038 women who have had abortions.
The survey found that “70 percent claim a Christian religious preference, and 43 percent report attending church monthly or more at the time of an abortion.”
The survey also determined that “more than 4 in 10 women who have had an abortion were churchgoers when they ended a pregnancy… but only 7 percent of women discussed their abortion decision with anyone at church. Three-fourths (76 percent) say the church had no influence on their decision to terminate a pregnancy.”
Among women who have had an abortion, key findings concluded that:
- Two-thirds (65 percent) say church members judge single women who are pregnant.
- Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) believe church members are more likely to gossip about a woman considering abortion than to help her understand options.
- A majority (54 percent) thinks churches oversimplify decisions about pregnancy options.
- Fewer than half (41 percent) believe churches are prepared to help with decisions about unwanted pregnancies.
- Only 38 percent of women who have had an abortion consider church a safe place to discuss pregnancy options including parenting, abortion, and adoption.
- 26 percent expected or experienced condemnation from church.
- While 25 percent say they would recommend a friend or family member discuss an unplanned pregnancy with someone at church, more than twice as many (54 percent) say they would not recommend it.
- Only 16 percent expected or experienced caring and only 14 percent [experienced] helpfulness.
- Only 7 percent said they discussed their decision with anyone at church.
- Only 3 in 10 think churches give accurate advice about pregnancy options.
The survey also found that “more than half of churchgoers who have had an abortion (52 percent) say no one at church knows it,” and “nearly half of women who have had an abortion (49 percent) say pastors’ teachings on forgiveness don’t seem to apply to terminated pregnancies.”
The majority of the women surveyed (irrespective of their religious affiliation) discussed their decision to terminate the pregnancy with the father of the unborn child.
Asked “With whom did you discuss this pregnancy termination/abortion decision?” 61 percent responded “the father of the child,” 48 percent “a medical professional,” 29 percent “friend(s)” and only 7 percent responded they had discussed the decision with “someone at a local church.”
You can view highlights of the survey here, or the full report here.
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