San Diego State University, March 2025
I’ve done several events at Cal State San Marcos in the past year. Here are two stories I want to share with you:
You don’t have to be afraid.
“Rachel” described her pro-choice view by saying she thought abortion should be legal through 12 weeks because the unborn didn’t look human earlier in pregnancy. We spent time discussing the value of humans in the womb, and I made the case that the appearance of the unborn does not negate the innate value she has from the beginning, in virtue of the kind of thing she is—human.
As we talked, Rachel told me she agreed abortion kills a human being, and she didn’t care. When people say they don't care that abortion kills real human beings I typically shift the conversation from abortion to a larger worldview conversation, and I try to understand what might be causing that indifference toward the killing of humans.
We started talking about God and when the topic of Jesus’ return came up, she told me she would be scared if Jesus came back right now. I asked her why, and she said if that happened, she would wonder what she did wrong. I asked her if she was interested in hearing about a way where she didn’t have to be afraid of Jesus’ return. We talked about Jesus and what He did for us on the cross and how that allows us to have hope and confidence in the return of Christ.
“I think abortion is murder, and I’m okay with that.”
I am often reminded that I can’t assume too much about what someone believes in the beginning of a conversation. I saw “Matt” looking at our pictures of humans in the womb, and I asked him what he thought about abortion. He paused and then said, “I think abortion is murder, and I’m ok with that.” I stood there for a moment thinking about how I wanted to respond to him. I was taken back by his seemingly cavalier attitude towards killing other humans. I started asking him questions to get a better understanding of his view, and as I did, I was surprised to find out that he would actually support banning abortion after eight weeks of pregnancy. I think he cared more than he had let on in the beginning.
Justice For All’s dialogue training involves teaching people to listen to understand, ask questions with an open heart, and find common ground whenever possible. Time and time again, using these skills has enabled me to understand people better and to have productive conversations with people who say really extreme things and may not initially sound open.