I told my roommate’s boyfriend that I was going to Washington, D.C. with a group of religious and pro-choice students for a conference, and after laughing like I was joking, he asked, “Isn’t that kind of an oxymoron?” Or, in other words, he was asking if those two terms belonged next to each other in the same sentence.

I suppose we—religious, pro-choice folks—are kind of…rare.

I came to care deeply about the issue of abortion when a 15-year-old girl I knew became pregnant. I was very young at the time, but I remember listening to my mother explain why an abortion could be the best choice in her situation. The girl was young. Childbirth could put her health in danger, and becoming a young mother would almost certainly delay her dream of becoming a doctor. Should one mistake change her future forever?

My mother’s argument seemed simple, but for me it was the first time I had ever heard anyone, let alone my mother, disagree with the church. Born and raised United Methodist in very conservative part of Dallas, Texas, I had no idea disagreeing was even allowed! I realized that there was much more to the issue of abortion.

I began obsessing over the topic as I grew older. I pored through feminist literature and religious teachings alike, looking for middle ground. Some of my Christian friends became angry, accusing me of looking for a way to rationalize what they considered murder. Even the pro-choice Democrats I met would not fully accept me. They called me a “closet-Christian” and argued that I was fighting for a cause I didn’t believe in. And they were right; I did disagree with abortion. But why was something telling me that keeping the option open for women was a good thing?

My youth minister asked me during the 2004 presidential elections why I supported a Democratic candidate on the issue of abortion. “Honestly, Lindsay,” he began, “how can you stand in this church right now believing what you believe?” Before I had time to register how shocked and offended I was, I heard myself say it:

“My God is the God of free will.”

There it was—the answer I had been looking for!

“Jesus told us to love others, not fix them,” I said. “Just because you and I have made the choice that abortion is wrong for us doesn’t mean that we should force that belief on everyone. God gave us free will, and who are you to limit that in me or anyone else?”

Speechless, he stared at me for a moment before excusing himself to another table. We have not discussed the issue since.

Now, this was a little over a year ago, and since then I’ve met many Christians who support a woman’s right to choose. After leaving Texas to study at the University of Missouri, I stumbled across a group called Spiritual Youth for Reproductive Freedom (SYRF) at an activity fair. SYRF empowers young adults ages 16 to 30 to put their faith in action and advocate for pro-choice social justice.

This summer, I attended my first big SYRF event—the 2006 SYRF Student Summit in Washington D.C. I couldn’t believe there were so many of us. The Summit brought together about 80 students, religious leaders and political activists to examine and express what reproductive freedom means to us as Christians, Jews, pagans, Unitarian Universalists, Hindus and even people without a specific religion.

Conversations flowed easily during the conference as most of us realized that we related to this group more than we ever had with our own religious communities. We may have disagreed over the nature of the divine, but each of us believed that God guides our actions and gives us the answers and faith needed to make a difference. We left united under this idea, if not under one God.

As I continue with SYRF, I hope to challenge the idea that persons of faith cannot support a woman’s right to choose. While being Christian and pro-choice has been difficult at times, I now believe I can use my faith to communicate my beliefs to those who think differently. Following my mother’s example of “stickin’ to yer guns” no matter what, I hope to stand strong with the religiously pro-choice community to fight on Capitol Hill and in communities nationwide to keep abortion legal. And with God’s help, we will succeed.

To find out more about Spiritual Youth for Reproductive Freedom, a program of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, visit their Web site at www.syrf.org, or call them at 1-202- 628-7700.

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