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Although the Supreme Court has yet to render its decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade, the Parliament of the European Union has decided to adopt a resolution condemning the expected decision. The vote was 364 to 154 (37 abstentions) and was intended to “remind” the United States that it is “vital” to respect Roe vs. Wade. In doing so, the European Parliament condemned itself, sticking its nose where it did not belong while opposing the rights of innocent babies in the womb.
This, of course, is not surprising, given the degree to which most of Europe has become post-Christian.
Post-Christian Europe
As noted in a 2018 article in The Guardian“Europe’s march towards a post-Christian society has been clearly illustrated by research showing that a majority of young people in a dozen countries do not practice religion.
The survey of 16-29 year olds found the Czech Republic to be the least religious country in Europe, with 91% of this age group saying they have no religious affiliation. Between 70% and 80% of young adults in Estonia, Sweden and the Netherlands also consider themselves non-religious.
In the UK, where The Guardian is based, 70 percent of young people identify with no religion and 59 percent never attend religious services.
In the words of professor of theology and religion Stephen Bullivant, “Christianity by default, as the norm, is gone, and probably gone for good – or at least for the next 100 years.” (I would add that this would be true barring a new wave of renewal; this is not a fait accompli.)
Not only that, but in much of Europe, where there are is a profession of Christian faith, especially among the older generation, it is often so mired in dead tradition or progressive liberalism that it is hardly Christian at all. (This is my own observation, not that of the The Guardian.)
This means that, despite the rapid rise of “noes” in America (speaking of those with no religious affiliation), we still have many more hardy, Bible-believing Christians than Europe. That’s why we continue to fight for the lives of unborn children and fight against LGBTQ+ extremism. And that’s why these European lawmakers felt the need to condemn the court’s expected pro-life ruling.
To quote them directly, the “MEPs [Members of the European Parliament] condemn the backsliding of women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights around the world, including in the US and some EU countries, calling for safe access to abortion.
In the words of Croatian Socialist MEP Predrag Matić, “The US Supreme Court’s draft opinion is a shock and a nightmare”.
The resolution even condemned states that passed bills to protect pro-life legislation, such as bills banning abortion after 6 weeks.
Who asked for your opinion?
All this leads me to ask the European Parliament: who asked you for your opinion? Who made you judge of America? And who put you in charge of the decisions of our individual states?
As German MEP Christine Anderson, a right-wing MP who voted against the resolution, put it: “The United States is no longer a colony ruled from Europe. You did not know it ?
Well said!
Childless Leaders
Is it any wonder, then, that a growing number of European leaders do not themselves have children? Is this unrelated to the decline of a Christian culture that values life and sees children as a gift from God?
A 2017 article by Darrell Delamaide posed the question: “Are childless leaders the death of Europe?
He wrote: “The election of Emmanuel Macron as the new French president now means that the leaders of the four European countries of the largest G-7 economies – Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, British Prime Minister Theresa May and the Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni – are all childless.
“Other prominent European leaders are also childless – Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven, Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon and Commission President European Jean-Claude Juncker.
“Does that mean anything?”
He continued: “Those drawing attention to this seem to mean it. George Weigel, writing this week on the First Things website, talks about “Catholic Lite and Europe’s demographic suicide.” Earlier this month, James McPherson headlined his comment in the Washington Examiner “Emmanuel Macron and the barren elite of a changing continent.” And at the end of last month, even before Macron’s victory, Britain Sunday time carried a long excerpt from a book by Douglas Murray entitled “Europe signs its own death warrant”.
While Delamaide himself has downplayed these concerns, I agree with those who have drawn attention to the rising infertility of many European leaders.
Without children, they can hardly grasp the full significance of bringing a child into the world. Without the gospel, they can hardly grasp the importance of fighting for that child’s life while it is still in its mother’s womb. And with a declining birth rate, well below the 2.1 rate needed to sustain a society, Europe will continue to decline, not only spiritually and morally, but also in numbers.
May a culture of life, based on biblical principles, be reborn in Europe!
Dr. Michael Brown (www.askdrbrown.org) is hosting the national broadcast line of fire radio program. His latest book is Revival or We Die: A Great Revival Is Our Only Hope. Connect with him on Facebook, Twitter or Youtube.
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