The Empire Struck Back: Defeat Before Victory

 In the continual war against the Culture of Death, defeat is a part of the process.

In any war, there will be setbacks before final victory.  In fact, JRR Tolkien saw history as one long defeat followed by victory in the end.

During the Revolution, after the magnificent retaking of Boston, Washington was dealt a savage defeat at the Battle of Brooklyn.  

I've written before about how the Pro-Life cause was always going to lose ground in the coming years.  Since 1973, the focus of victory for the Culture of Life has been the overturning of Roe v. Wade.  With this as the end goal, many felt like final victory had been achieved.  But the Culture of Death is crafty.  As it became more and more apparent that the Supreme Court would overturn the decision, they began to work in the popular culture and in local legislatures.  

Even today someone asked, "How can abortion be legalized if Roe v. Wade was overturned?"  There was a general misunderstanding that if Roe was overturned, that abortion would become illegal.  That was not the case.  Instead, the law reverted to what it was before Roe, which is that each state made its own abortion laws.  

When Roe ended, the Culture of Death was ready, but I don't think the Culture of Life was.  That is why we lost so much ground yesterday, particularly in my state.

Mother Teresa said that a land with legalized abortion is a land without hope.  My state has abandoned hope.

I am disheartened and disgusted, but I am not despairing.

Defeat always comes before final victory.

Please forgive the following analogy, but it is the most concrete way I can explain it.

When the rebels destroyed the Death Star, that was a major win against the evil Empire.  But that single major victory was not the end.  The Empire retaliated with its full might.  The Rebellion lost the Battle of Hoth, Bespin was lost, Han was taken, and Luke was broken.  The Rebels lost so much ground after that great victory.  But they didn't give up.  They pushed forward.  They took the lessons they learned from their defeat and overcame the forces of darkness.

Now, you may think it silly or trite to compare the struggle for the unborn with a series of space movies.  But George Lucas created an enduring tale because he tapped into the mythic truths about life.  The story of Star Wars teaches us something true: defeat comes before victory.

If you are saddened by the Culture of Death's victory, I understand.  I am too.

But do not despair.

We are on the winning side, because God is Pro-Life.

It took almost half a century for the Culture of Life to overturn Roe v. Wade.  Perhaps it will take another 50 years to gain back the ground we lost.  

But we will never give up, we will never give in.  

As long as we stand strong in Him, then even through every defeat we can be assured that we are on the road to final victory.