Start a Local Society

Abolitionists are people committed to the ideology that the Gospel must be applied in all areas of life and who have stopped to ask ourselves, “What does following Jesus look like in a culture that murders its children?”

Abolitionism is an ideology, and ideologies fuel movements. We are not interested in micromanaging a massive organization that spreads across the expanse of the United States. Organizations do not change the world. Ideas change the world. But ideas do need legs, and that is why we are beseeching those that are interested to establish societies in their local communities.

Realize that there will be no true grassroots abolitionist movement if some large organization tries to manage its creation and tell all the local chapters and branches what they must do. We believe that you are the key to getting a group up and running where you are. We do not want to own you; each abolitionist society will be self-governed and autonomous. We don’t want to tell you how to run an abolitionist society in your city. We do want all abolitionist societies to share the same vision and ideology and to be unified as a movement, determined to put the pro-life movement under the lordship of Jesus Christ, while believing the radical notion that the Gospel is the answer to abortion.

So what does that mean for you?

It means: Get to work. It means: Understand the principles and “do it to it.” Don’t sit around waiting for commands. Apply the principles/tenets and simply ask yourself, “What does following Jesus look like in a culture that murders its children?” And then live it! It may not be that simple, but this is something we want people to understand that seek to start abolitionist societies. We are not looking for people to babysit. We are not looking for the timid. We are looking for those who regard the fear of man as a snare and seek to put that sin to death every day. This does not mean we won’t converse with folks running societies. It does not mean we won’t counsel them and guide them in their endeavors. It does not mean that we won’t be sending them materials and resources. It does mean we are not looking for the faint of heart. It does mean we are seeking individuals who have taken up their cross and want to obey Jesuslike nothing else matters.

Be ready to read and study a little bit. William Wilberforce (of the abolition of the slave trade in Great Britain) spent months studying what his Christianity would require of him before he began the work. He also continued reading throughout his life because he understood that proper thinking/meditation leads to impactful/effective action. At the very least, be ready to rethink some ideas you assume to be true and good. We don’t expect you to have everything figured out; neither do we. So what are we saying you should do?

1) Examine yourself. Seek the Lord in prayer. Study the Scriptures. Only those with a sure foundation of obedience and trust in God will last in this fight, so you must count the cost. Will you take up your cross? You will be maligned. You will be scorned. You will be opposed by “good” people. Only those with a sure trust in the Lord will endure.

2) Acquaint yourself with abolitionism. Get to know the material that sets abolition apart from mere pro-lifery. Get to know our website, our distinctives and our the FAQ, the blog.

Watch videos of abolitionists doing what they do at http://www.youtube.com/abolishhumanabortion

Check out this collection of videos about our ideology 

Abolitionists are not a “pro-life” organization. We differ greatly from most current and past pro-life groups.

3) Pray, definitely. Pray for more people, for ideas, for creativity. Recruit friends and family, church, other churches if possible, etc.

4) Begin spreading the message and idea of abolition with your friends, family, church, or anyone else you may have in your sphere of influence. (It’s a good idea to start a closed group on Facebook for your society and add your friends to it to educate them about abolition and see if you can gain some recruits.)

5) Gather those people together to talk about abolitionism and brainstorm how you can impact your local community by engaging in the work of agitation (exposing people to the evil of abortion) and assistance (helping those who are caught up in its destructive power). You could set a date to meet and discuss for an hour or so some things you can do to start cutting down abortion in your area and spreading the word about abolition. You can dream up all sorts of things to do that others who are not living in your city will not.

Think of ways to help young moms facing crisis pregnancies that go beyond just pointing them to the clinics that won’t encourage them to kill their babies. Begin letting your culture know that there is a group ready, waiting, and willing to help women who choose life and then to minister to those who did not and are now suffering under the guilt of killing their child.

6) Let the community know you are there to combat this evil, protect the unborn, and care for their abandoned mothers. Be prepared to agitate and not just do things the community will approve of, such as protesting, putting up posters, holding signs, giving public lectures, passing out abolitionist pamphlets, etc, all designed to expose the evil of abortion and put it on display before the watching world.

If there is an abortion facility or Planned Parenthood in your town or something like that, you might consider spending significant time (if possible, of course) praying out there and talking to people that go in and come out.

7) Let us know about your society by contacting us, sharing photos and videos of your activities, starting a website or Facebook group, and let us know about it so we can help attract more interest to what you are up to.

If you get through steps 1 and 2, please contact us again for any counsel or help you may need. We recognize that this is a difficult task and that you will need support in this work. We trust that in God’s good providence, He is raising people up across the country to fight this good fight. And we believe that though we can do nothing apart from Him, with Him all things are possible.

If you are interested in starting an abolitionist society in your area, please contact us.