Category Archives: Pro-Life

The Greatest Pro-Life Story Ever Told

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Bible stories, Tradition, and Christmas carols tell the story something like this:
Joseph leads a very pregnant Mary on a donkey into Bethlehem where he had trouble finding a room. An innkeeper suggests a vacant stable nearby, so they take up residence there. Jesus is born and Mary places Him in a hay-filled manger where he’s warmed by the breath of a cow and Mary’s donkey.

christmas crib figurinesLuke is the only evangelist that presents the story of Jesus’ birth. The Greek word he uses for the setting of Jesus’ birth is kataluma. In Luke 2:7 “kataluma” is translated as “inn” but the same word is used in Luke 22:11 for what seems to be a guest room. So it could have been that a hospitable innkeeper invited them to stay in his own house for several days or weeks and never mentioned his stable. I’d really like to believe it happened this way. But does “how” matter?

What does matter is that Christ was born as Isaiah 9:6 prophesied 700 years earlier when he proclaimed a “child is born to us, a son is given to us…and his name will be called Wonder Counsellor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.”

The birth of Christ is especially meaningful for the Stewardship Foundation. The birth of the Christ child is the greatest pro-life story ever told. Mary’s story is told each time the life of a young mother with an uncertain future is interrupted by an unexpected pregnancy. And whenever a hesitant young father, like Joseph, is unsure he really wants to get involved. They both said “yes” and changed the world for all mankind.

To all the pro-life supporters and pregnancy crises center volunteers and staff we have had the privilege to help train in 2016, and for all the donors whose generosity has helped fund these centers through the Stewardship Foundation, thank you. May everyone have a blessed Christmas.

Lives Matter Less in DC

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Euthanasia is the intentional killing of a human in order to relieve their suffering. When life-sustaining treatments are withheld from a patient with a terminal condition, it’s called “passive” or non-voluntary euthanasia. When a suffering patient asks for their life to be terminated, it’s voluntary. The moral, ethical, and legal issues surrounding the practice are divisive around the globe. On one side, those that uphold the sanctity of human life; on the other, those that argue for self-determination and personal choice.

On November 1, the District of Columbia City Council voted 11-2 to pass the “Death with Dignity Act” that allows a physician to legally prescribe drugs to mentally competent people who have a terminal diagnosis of 6 months or less. You can read the article here.

Ironically, shouldn’t this decision spark a whole new discussion from the Blacks Lives Matter groups? This is, after all, Washington D.C., our nation’s capital with a 50.7% black or African-American population! Why is legalizing murder/suicide not opening another can of worms—could the District also use a suicide option to remove the suffering of the most marginal citizens?

syringeFor example, take a hopelessly down-on-his-luck drug-dependent homeless man on the street who walks into a doctor’s office to demand assisted suicide. He has no future, no hope, and no means to overcome his dependence on a drug that will eventually kill him anyway. He complains that he is suffering, probably more so than anyone dying from cancer or another fatal disease. His lifestyle is his fatal disease. He demands to be put out of his misery and appears to be mentally competent in his demand.

The terms of the euthanasia law that just passed is fairly narrow now, but many social justice laws were narrow at their first passing (like abortion) and became more lenient over time as society grew used to new norms. By passing this law on assisted suicide, are they not emphatically declaring that some lives do not matter?

Transforming Right To Life

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When you hear the words “right to life” you almost immediately think of courageous nonprofits like pregnancy resource centers where women who may be pregnant can make an informed choice. These centers are staffed by compassionate professional nurses and trained client consultants, usually faith-filled volunteers willing to advocate for both the woman and her unborn child, as well as for fathers and their families. Their loving concern is evident in situations that are often strained and confusing for the women experiencing an unplanned pregnancy.

Birthright Columbus on Skidmore Street is one of those centers. They are always free for clients, and rely solely on donations. They look to generous supporters to provide the all important material goods that fly out the door daily—boxes of disposable diapers, maternity clothing for moms, and every conceivable product for newborns from onesies to fuzzy blankets. Outright gifts of cash and goods to Birthright are crucial to their survival.

On East Dublin Granville Road in Columbus there’s another organization, the Greater Columbus Right to Life, whose mission is to promote a culture that protects human life (not just pre-born babies) from conception until natural death. In addition to their work to end abortion, embryonic stem cell research, euthanasia, and physician-assisted suicide, they also work to protect religious freedom and rights of conscience.

Both nonprofit organizations rely on donations to sustain their mission, and both are effective at reaching out to like-minded donors who give what they can to help keep doors open. What is more difficult to attract, but have larger impact, are the large transformational gifts needed for long-term planning, growth, and director salaries. For those donors with unique wealth, tax, income, and/or estate issues, giving can become truly transformational for both the giver and receiver, but also more complex.

There are life income gifts like the charitable gift annuity (CGA), the charitable remainder trust (CRT), the charitable lead trust (CLT), and the pooled income fund. When properly executed, these methods often satisfy estate and tax issues for donors.

Bequests can be as simple as placing a paragraph of instructions in a will, or adding a specific charity to their IRA or life insurance policy. Family foundations allow donors to keep their gifted capital intact while they make smaller annual charitable distributions.

These methods for charitable giving require a level of sophistication to fully understand and implement. Some require the help of an accountant, tax advisor, wealth planner advisor, and others. We recommend that if you are seeking, or merely curious, about methods for transformational charitable gifts, that you seek independent, objective advice about the legal, tax, and financial implications appropriate to your situation.

Should you consider Birthright of Columbus or The Greater Columbus Right to Life organizations for your gift, we hope that you will look to the Stewardship Foundation to lead the conversation.

NOTE: Stewardship Foundation is an underwriting sponsor for the Annual Banquet benefitting the work of Greater Columbus Right to Life taking place on Monday, June 13, 2016, at the Lausche Building, Ohio Expo Center, Columbus. You can learn more here.