The Golden Rule, Revisited

January 2001

Dear Friends,

Greetings and Happy New Year to you all.

On March 6, 1857, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in the Dred Scott case that "Negroes" were less than human in the eyes of the law.1 It was one of the most shameful moments in the history of this great nation, whose Founding Fathers had declared in the Declaration of Independence that we are endowed by our Creator with certain inalienable rights, among them life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The failure to assure these promised "blessings of liberty" for all our citizens kept millions of blacks in bondage for another 87 years and contributed ultimately to a horrible Civil War during which more than 600,000 men died on the battlefield.2

Unfortunately, there were lessons we failed to learn from the tragedy of that era. On January 22, 1973, another shameful decision was handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court that stains our hands with blood to this day. It was called Roe vs. Wade, and has resulted in the deaths of nearly 40 million preborn babies.3 This month, we mark the 27th anniversary of that terrible decision and pause to reflect on what it has done to us as a nation.

The value of human life has been cheapened, not only, for those still in their mothers’ wombs, but for all of humanity. Radical feminists promised us in the 70s that abortion on demand would result in every child being a wanted child. They were dead wrong. More children are abandoned, abused and neglected today than ever before.4 Indeed, a misguided professor of bioethics at Princeton University has argued for the legalized murder of unwanted newborns at the whim of their parents. They are no more valuable, he said, "than the life of a pig, a dog or a chimpanzee."5

During the 1999 Senate debate on partial-birth abortion, Senator Rick Santorum (R-Penn) asked Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif), "[Do y]ou agree, once the child is born, [and] separated from the mother, that that child is protected by the Constitution and cannot be killed[?] Do you agree with that?" Senator Boxer replied, "I think when you bring your baby home, when your baby is born . . . the baby belongs to your family and has rights."6 According to this outrageous view, babies are not even human until we decide we want to keep them. The elderly are expendable, too. The prospect of "mercy killing" (known euphemistically as "physician-assisted suicide") has been legalized in the state of Oregon and is gaining acceptance elsewhere.7

This assault on our humanness has led to an annual emphasis called "The Sanctity of Human Life Week." The designated dates for this year’s event are January 21-28. It is a time of remembering the babies who have died, some of whom were viable infants just moments from final delivery. It is also a time to reflect on the value of life at all ages and in every circumstance—rich, poor, gifted, disabled, beautiful, homely, white, red, brown, yellow, old, sick, healthy, productive or unproductive. They are all equal under the law and endowed by the Creator with certain inalienable rights.

The Sanctity of Human Life Week here in the United States coincides, every fourth year, with the inauguration of our presidents, which occurs on January 20. This was the case in 1993, when President Bill Clinton chose that very weekend to issue several Executive Orders extending the assault on the unborn child. Pro-life marchers paraded outside the White House that morning, pleading for the lives of innocent babies. It was only his third day in office.8 What an ominous beginning that was for the man who will now be remembered as "The Abortion President."9 (I’ll have more to say about the outgoing Chief Executive in my letter next month.)

I am thankful that our new president, George W. Bush, professes to be pro-life and promises to work for an end to partial-birth abortions.10 This being the case, I was mindful during the latter days of the campaign that much more was riding on the outcome at the polls than tax cuts and Social Security. There had to be many thousands of unborn babies nestled securely within their mothers’ wombs, who were (and remain) in mortal jeopardy. Al Gore declared his support for all forms of abortion during the campaign.11 If he had been elected, therefore, many babies would certainly have been subjected to the horrors of partial birth abortion,12 also known as "murder during delivery." But now, there is at least a possibility that they may escape. Admittedly, many will die by other methods, but late-term abortions are problematic, and some mothers might let their children live. Let’s remind our new president of his campaign promise and flood Congress with our petitions. We need to tell our representatives that partial-birth abortion MUST be banned, and the sooner they get it done, the better. We will accept nothing less.

To help us focus on the pro-life issues before us, let me share a short article, provided below, that will touch your heart. It was written by an emergency room physician, Dr. Edwin Leap, with whom I have recently become acquainted. If you have children or grandchildren, or if you have an older parent or grandparent, you must read these stirring words:

"The Golden Rule, Revisited"

They lie there, breathing heavy gasps, contracted into a fetal position. Ironic, that they should live 80 or 90 years, then return to the posture of their childhood. But they do. Sometimes their voices are mumbles and whispers like those of infants or toddlers. I have seen them, unaware of anything for decades, crying out for parents long since passed away.

I recall one who had begun to sleep excessively, and told her daughter that a little girl slept with her each night. I don’t know what she saw. Maybe an infant she lost, or a sibling, cousin or friend from years long gone. But I do know what I see when I stand by the bedside of the infirm aged. Though their bodies are skin-covered sticks and their minds an inescapable labyrinth, I see something surprising. I see something beautiful and horrible, hopeful and hopeless. What I see is my children, long after I leave them, as they end their days.

This vision comes to me sometimes when I stand by the bedside in my emergency department, and look over the ancient form that lies before me, barely aware of anything. Usually the feeling comes in those times when I am weary and frustrated from making too many decisions too fast, in the middle of the night. Into the midst of this comes a patient from a local nursing home, sent for reasons I can seldom discern.

I walk into the room and roll my cynical eyes at the nurse. She hands me the minimal data sent with the patient, and I begin the detective work. And just when I’m most annoyed, just when I want to do nothing and send them back, I look at them. And then I touch them. And then, as I imagine my sons, tears well up and I see the error of my thoughts. For one day, it may be.

One day, my little boys, still young enough to kiss me and think me heroic, may lie before another cynical doctor, in the middle of the night of their dementia, and need care. More than medicine, they will need compassion. They will need someone to have the insight to look at them, and say, "Here was once a child, cherished and loved, who played games in the nursery with his mother and father. Here was a child who put teeth under pillows, and loved bedtime stories, crayons and stuffed animals. Here was a treasure of love to a man and a woman long gone. How can I honor them? By treating their child with love and gentility. By seeing that their child has come full circle to infancy once more, and will soon be born once more into forever."

This vision is frightful because I will not be there to comfort them, or to say, "I am here" when they call out, unless God grants me the gift of speaking across forever. It is painful because I will not be there to serve them as I did in life, and see that they are treated as what they are: unique and wonderful, made in the image of the Creator, and of their mother and me. It is terrible because our society treats the aged as worse than a burden; it treats them as tragedies of time. It seems hopeless because when they contract and lie motionless, no one will touch them with the love I have for them, or know the history of their scars, visible and invisible. I am the walking library of their lives, and I will be unavailable. All I can do is ask, while I live, for God’s mercy on them as they grow older.

And yet, the image has beauty and hope as well. Because if I see my little boys as aged and infirm, I can dream that their lives were long and rich. I can dream that they filled their lucid years with greatness and love, that they knew God and served Him well, and were men of honor and gentility. I can imagine that even if they live in their shadowland alone, somewhere children and grandchildren, even great-grandchildren thrive. I can hope that their heirs come to see them, and care, and harass the staff of the nursing home to treat Grandpa better. I can hope that they dare not allow my boys to suffer, but that they hold no illusions about physical immortality, and will let them come to their mother and me when the time arrives. And best, I can know that their age and illness will only bring the day of that reunion closer.

My career as an emergency physician has taught me something very important about dealing with the sick and injured, whether young or old. It has taught me that the Golden Rule also can be stated this way: "Do unto others as you would have others do unto your children." I think that this is a powerful way to improve our interactions with others, not just in medicine but in every action of our lives. And it is certainly a unique way to view our treatment of the elderly. For one day all our children will be old. And only if this lesson has been applied will they be treated with anything approaching the love that only we, their parents, hope for them to always have.13

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Did Dr. Leap’s touching message bring to mind your own loved ones? It resonated within my soul. I can’t bear the thought of my wife or my precious son and daughter growing old and feeble in years to come, and my not being there to assist or comfort them. Just thinking about the possibility that they might be mistreated or neglected someday makes me sensitive to the plight of elderly men and women today who lie helpless and destitute in nursing homes. Some have no caring family members or friends to look out for them. They "celebrated" Christmas alone in a dreary hospital room. How comforting it would have been for a loved one to sit at the bedside and soothe his or her face with a cool cloth. The concern for the well-being of those lonely and needy people should be on our minds during this year’s Sanctity of Human Life Week. Jesus would have us not only address their plight, but also be a caring person who brings solace and comfort to someone who is in need.

Returning to the pro-life issue, let me pose a question of utmost importance. Are you tired of the battle to save the unborn child? Do you wish it would just go away? I can understand why that might be the case. The struggle has continued for nearly 30 years, and we have experienced one disappointing loss after another. The pro-abortion forces "own" the media, the entertainment industry and the judiciary. They hold all the cards, so to speak. That has led some Christian writers, and even some respected pastors, to suggest that we give up—that our lack of success legislatively and legally is evidence that we can’t win and we are wasting our energies. Do you secretly feel that way?

If so, I beg you to stay the course. Those tiny babies for whom we crusade have no voices but ours. Each one of them is worth more than the possessions of the entire world. Remember the words of King David who wrote, "I praise you [Lord] because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be" (Psalm 139:14-16, NIV). How can we abandon those precious babies in whom the Creator Himself is investing such loving care?

Let me conclude by citing two quotes from former British prime minister, Winston Churchill, that seem appropriate to my theme. He said:

When you feel you cannot continue in your position for another minute, and all that is in human power has been done, that is the moment when the enemy is most exhausted, and when one step forward will give you the fruits of the struggle you have borne.14

There are signs that we are winning the battle for the hearts and minds of the people. Seventy-one percent favor some restrictions on abortion and 55 percent say they oppose the procedure except in the cases of rape, incest and the life of the mother.15 One or two more pro-life justices on the Supreme Court could turn the tide. But the confirmation hearings in the Senate will be pivotal, given the 50-50 makeup of the Senate. The only hope for a favorable outcome is massive public response. In other words, you and I must be prepared to expend the energy to win the battle. Can we count on you?

Churchill also said, You ask, ‘what is our aim?’ I can answer in one word: Victory—victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no survival.16

Though old Winston didn’t say it, we also need to add the dimension of prayer to all of our efforts. Therein lies the key to success. We must pray specifically for our new president. The media and his foes in Congress will hammer him. His desire to reconcile, and thereby please his critics, could make him ripe for compromise on the moral issues. Ask the Lord to give him the conviction to do what is right, whether popular or not. This is what made Abraham Lincoln our greatest president.

Our sincere appreciation is expressed to those who contributed to this ministry at the end of the year. Although we have not yet seen the final accounting, it appears that Focus on the Family will be short of its budget this year. But God knows our need, and He will provide. God’s blessings to you and your family.

Please do come see us sometime during this year.

Your friend in Christ,

James C. Dobson, Ph.D.
President

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