Numerous pro-life organizations exist. This list contains a few that I’m familiar with. I lack familiarity with the Catholic and secular pro-life organizations.
Immediate Help
If you need immediate help with an unplanned pregnancy, use one of the following 24/7 crisis lines:
- 800-848-LOVE
- OptionLine: go to this website to chat or email or text HELPLINE to 313131.
- Search for Abortion Alternatives online (or the Yellow Pages) for local pregnancy centers.
News, Action, and Educational Sources
National Right to Life
“Founded in 1968, National Right to Life is the nation’s oldest and largest pro-life organization. National Right to Life is the federation of 50 state right-to-life affiliates and more than 3,000 local chapters. Through education and legislation, National Right to Life is working to restore legal protection to the most defenseless members of our society who are threatened by abortion, infanticide, assisted suicide and euthanasia.”
For quick facts on the sanctity of life, see their Factsheet page for free downloads.
Not just a political action committee, but National Right to Life also offers direct care. They have 24/7 phone line for people with crisis pregnancies.
800-848-LOVE
Students for Life (SFL)
Mission statement: “We exist to transform culture by helping young people make abortion unthinkable and obsolete on their campus, in their community, and in our nation.”
SFL forms chapters on university, college, high school, and middle school campuses to educate students about the dangers of abortion and to encourage students to become activists for life.
March for Life
Each January, March for Life organizes a march in Washington, DC, and other places around the nation calling for the government to overturn Roe v. Wade. They educate people about protecting the lives of all human beings, from the unborn to natural death.
Susan B. Anthony List
“SBA List’s mission is to end abortion by electing national leaders and advocating for laws that save lives, with a special calling to promote pro-life women leaders.”
In addition to political action, they also have links for women to find a pregnancy center, abortion healing retreats, and other crisis pregnancy services.
NIFLA: National Institute of Family and Life Advocates
“The National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) exists to protect life-affirming pregnancy centers that empower abortion-vulnerable women and families to choose life for their unborn children.
“By providing legal counsel, education and training, NIFLA helps member centers more effectively reach and serve their communities. NIFLA now represents more than 1,400 pro-life pregnancy centers across the country. Of that number, over 1,100 operate as licensed medical clinics.”
Family Research Council
Family Research Council’s mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a Christian worldview. Legally protecting life is one of their main issues. See their website for articles and opinion pieces on life issues.
Focus on the Family: Pro-Life
Focus on the Family, a Christian organization founded to support the family, has been involved in the pro-life movement for many years. They educate and inform through articles, brochures, and podcasts. They support crisis pregnancy centers by supplying ultrasound machines through Option Ultrasound Program, and they encourage people to adopt children from the foster care system through their Wait No More ministry.
Unplanned Pregnancy Support
Heartbeat International
“Heartbeat International is the first network of pro-life pregnancy resource centers founded in the U.S. (1971), and it is now the most expansive network in the world. Heartbeat has over 2,500 affiliated pregnancy help locations including pregnancy help medical clinics (with ultrasound), resource centers, maternity homes, and adoption agencies in around 62 countries around the world to provide alternatives to abortion.”
They help people 24/7 through their OptionLine: phone, online chat, or email. Text HELPLINE to 313131 for help. Through this site, women can get information about pregnancy options, information about emergency contraception, and post-abortion support.
CareNet
CareNet is one of the largest networks of pregnancy centers in North America. The pregnancy centers provide education, aid, and support to those with an unplanned pregnancy and those who seek post-abortion emotional healing.
Stand Up Girl
I saw this referenced on another site and found it interesting: A website where young men and women share their unplanned pregnancy stories and abortion experiences. In a friendly, teen-geared way, the site provides information on pregnancy symptoms and fetal development. The site also has links to various websites on many issues concerning relationships, pregnancy, and pro-life issues.
Books on Pro-Life Issues
ProLife Answers to ProChoice Arguments, expanded and updated edition (2000) by Randy Alcorn
Although this book is nearly 20 years old (so the statistics are out of date), it still offers convincing answers to the arguments that pro-abortion activists still use today. This book can be read cover to cover, but its encyclopedic design makes it a helpful reference work as well.
Randy Alcorn divides the text into six parts under which he lists several arguments that the pro-abortion crowd uses.
- Arguments Concerning Life, Humanity, and Personhood
- Arguments Concerning Rights and Fairness
- Arguments Concerning Social Issues
- Arguments Concerning Health and Safety
- Arguments Concerning Hard Cases
- Arguments Against the Character of Prolifers
For example, listed under Part 2 is pro-choice argument number 9: “Even if the unborn are human beings, they have fewer rights than the woman. No one should be expected to donate her body as a life-support system for someone else.” Below this statement, Alcorn provides four arguments against it. The summary of each argument is listed in the table of contents, making it easy for a person to find the information he may need quickly. The author supports his arguments and demonstrates his extensive research by citing numerous references. His endnotes total 789.
The book closes with a section of Final Appeals to various audiences, numerous appendices, notes, and a subject index.
Alcorn writes in an easy-to-read, unemotional style from a Christian point of view. However, at times specific topics can make the reader uncomfortable. In the Health and Safety section, he describes the processes abortionists use to remove babies from the womb, which is disturbing. He also shares a few photographs of miscarried and aborted babies in the center of the book.
I recommend this book for anyone who wants a better understanding of the abortion issue and needs knowledge as to how to answer those who support the so-called “woman’s right to choose.”
Gianna: Aborted…and Lived to Tell About It by Jessica Shaver (1995 hardcover)
I read this book shortly after it was released. A new edition of this amazing story was published in 2011 by Focus on the Family. The first edition was written when Gianna was only 17 years old.
This biography tells the story of a strong baby girl who survived a saline abortion at 29 weeks gestation, was whisked to a hospital as a hopeless ward of the state, then adopted by a loving family.
Although the abortion process caused Gianna to have cerebral palsy, she remained a fighter. She wrestled with thoughts about her birth mother: why did she choose to abort her and give her away to be adopted? Through God’s grace, she forgave her birth mother, and over time, Gianna developed her own testimony to encourage others to reject abortion and chose life.
Today, Gianna Jessen continues to fight for the lives of the unborn and travels the world to tell her story. See giannajessen.com for more information.
Photo credit for main image: Photo by Wayne Evans from Pexels
Lorinda's Ponderings 