Arkansas Ranked Most Pro-Life State in America For Second Year In A Row

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, November 15, 2021

On Monday Americans United for Life announced that Arkansas is the most pro-life state in America for the second year in a row. The pro-life organization ranks each state based on state laws protecting the unborn, the elderly, the disabled, and the terminally ill.

Family Council President Jerry Cox released a statement saying, “This is incredible news. Arkansans should be proud of their state legislators for enacting the best laws in the nation when it comes to protecting innocent human life. That’s something to celebrate.”

Cox said that making Arkansas the most pro-life state in America has taken years of work by many different people. “A little over a decade ago Family Council joined with others in setting out to make Arkansas the most pro-life state in America. By working together, we have done that. Becoming the most pro-life state in America didn’t happen overnight. It was the result of many years of hard work. Keeping Arkansas the most pro-life state will take constant effort. Arkansas Right to Life has been fighting abortion for over forty years, and Family Council has been at it for more than thirty years. Arkansas’ General Assembly has passed at least forty-seven good, pro-life laws since 2011. Governor Hutchinson has signed into law every pro-life bill that came across his desk, and Attorney General Rutledge has defended those laws in court. Ministers, churches, pregnancy resource centers, and everyday Arkansans all have worked very hard to make Arkansas the pro-life state that it is today.”

Cox pointed out that abortion has declined significantly in Arkansas, and most Arkansans do not support abortion on demand. “It’s great to be the nation’s most pro-life state, but it’s even more important that abortion is declining. Abortion in Arkansas has plummeted to levels we haven’t seen since the 1970s. Teen abortion in Arkansas sits at record lows today. Public opinion polling shows the overwhelming majority of Arkansans believe abortion ought to be either completely illegal or legal only in certain circumstances. More than forty pregnancy resource centers around the state help women and girls with unplanned pregnancies. So far this year eighteen counties and cities across Arkansas have passed resolutions affirming they are pro-life. It isn’t just that lawmakers are passing anti-abortion laws. Arkansans themselves are incredibly pro-life.”

Cox said Arkansas has proven to be a leader in the effort to end abortion. “As a pro-life leader, Arkansas has done vital work, but we can’t stand still.  Court cases are in play right now in Arkansas and elsewhere that could dismantle pro-abortion rulings like Roe v. Wade. Arkansas has an important role in that process and in showing other states how they can build a culture of life.”

Cox said even though Arkansas is the most pro-life state in the country, pro-life efforts are far from over. “Being the most pro-life state in America two years in a row is something Arkansans can be proud of. It shows Arkansas is committed to defending innocent human life. But there is still a lot of work to do. The ultimate goal is to end abortion and protect every innocent life from conception until natural death. We look forward to continuing to defend the sanctity of human life and working to end abortion in Arkansas.”

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Prairie County Quorum Court Adopts Pro-Life Resolution, Resolves to Protect Life “From Conception Until Natural Death”

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Photo Credit Justice Rick Stallings, Prairie County.

On Tuesday night the Prairie County Quorum Court adopted a resolution affirming that the county is Pro-Life.

Prairie County is Arkansas’ seventeenth Pro-Life Community.

Earlier this year the Arkansas Legislature passed Act 392 of 2021 by Rep. Kendon Underwood (R – Cave Springs) and Sen. Gary Stubblefield (R – Branch). Act 392 is a good law that affirms that municipalities can designate themselves as Pro-Life.

Act 392 also makes it clear that Pro-Life Communities can install signs or banners announcing that they are Pro-Life.

Since Act 392 was enacted over the summer, Arkansas has seen a rapid expansion of Pro-Life Cities and Counties across the state.

Washington, Benton, Crawford, Cleburne, Pope, Jackson, Saline, Faulkner, Perry, Sebastian, Lee, and White counties have adopted Pro-Life resolutions. So have the cities of Marianna, Russellville, and Springdale as well as the Town of LaGrange.

As public opinion polling has shown time and again, Arkansans are overwhelmingly pro-life. It should not come as any surprise that communities in Arkansas would vote to adopt resolutions affirming that they support the sanctity of human life.

If you would like to learn how you can pass a pro-life resolution in your community, give us a call at (501) 375-7000 or click here.

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Arkansas Baptist State Convention Adopts Pro-Life Resolution

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The Arkansas Baptist State Convention adopted a strong, pro-life resolution at its recent meeting in Cabot.

The resolution reads,

Whereas, from the moment of fertilization, all humans are created in God’s image by, through and for Jesus to the glory of God, and all souls belonging to him (Genesis 1:27, 4:1, 21:2; Isaiah 7:14; Colossians 1:16; Romans 11:36; Ezekiel 18:4); and

Whereas, as God’s image-bearers all humans both display His divine worth, power, and attributes, and possess the same objective worth before God, not varying on the basis of incidental characters such ethnicity, age, size, means of conception, mental development, physical development, gender, potential, or contribution to society (Romans 1:19-20; Genesis 1:27, 9:6; Matthew 18:6); and

Whereas, to murder any preborn image-bearer is a sin, violating both the natural law of retributive justice as set forth in the Noahic covenant, as well as the sixth commandment forbidding murder, and as such, is ultimately an assault on God’s image, seeking to usurp God’s sovereignty as Creator (Genesis 9:5-6; Exodus 20:13; Proverbs 6:17); and

Whereas, God’s Word clearly declares that all human life is a sacred gift and that His Law is supreme over man’s life and man’s law (Psalm 127:3-5, 139:13-16: Romans 2:15-16; Acts 10:42, 17:31; 1 Corinthians 4:5): and

Whereas, God commands His own people to “rescue those who are being taken away to death” and holds them responsible and without excuse when they fail to do so (Proverbs 24:11-12); and

Whereas, in 1973, the Supreme Court of the United States rendered an iniquitous decision on Roe v. Wade, and in doing so deprive the innocent of their rights and usurped God, who sovereignly ordained their authority (Isaiah 5:23, 10:1-2; Psalm 2; Matthew 22:21; John 19:11; Acts 4:19, 5:29; Romans 13:1); and

Whereas, in the Roe v. Wade decision, the Supreme Court of the United States subverted the U.S. Constitution namely, the Preamble, as well as the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments without any legal authority (Article 6, Clause 2 “Supremacy Clause”); and

Whereas, our confessional statement, The Baptist Faith and Message 2000, according to Article XV, affirms that children “from the moment of conception, are a blessing and heritage from the Lord,” and further affirms that Southern Baptists are mandated by Scripture to “speak on behalf of the unborn and contend for the sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death,” therefore, be it

Resolved, that we, the messengers to the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, meeting at First Baptist Church, Cabot, Arkansas, October 26-27, 2021, do state unequivocally that abortion without justification is murder and we reject any position that allows for any exceptions, other than one necessary to save the life of the mother in a genuine life-threatening health emergency, to the legal protection of our preborn neighbors compromises God’s holy standard of justice, or promotes any God-hating partiality (Psalm 82:1-4, 94:6; Isaiah 10:1-2; Proverbs 24:11); and, be it further

Resolved, that because abolishing abortion is a gospel issue, we will call upon governing authorities at all levels to continue to faithfully execute their responsibilities as God’s servants of justice, and working with all urgency to enact legislation using the full weight of their office to interpose on behalf of the preborn, abolishing abortion immediately, without compromise, as was done in the 2021 session of the Arkansas General Assembly where fourteen pro-life laws were enacted, one of which makes all abortions illegal in the state of Arkansas, with the only exception being when the mother’s life is in jeopardy due to a genuinely serious life-threatening health condition (Mark 6:18; Matthew 28-18-20; Romans 13:4-6); and be it finally

Resolved, that as Arkansas Baptists, we will engage, with God’s help, in establishing equal justice and protection for the preborn according to the authority of God’s Word as well as local and federal law and call upon pastors and entity leaders to use their God-given gifts of preaching, teaching, and leading with one unified, principled, prophetic voice to abolish abortion.

The resolution is very similar to one that the national convention adopted earlier this year calling for an end to abortion.

The Southern Baptist Convention is the largest denomination in Arkansas, and it has opposed abortion in Arkansas for many years.

It’s great to see the Arkansas Southern Baptist Convention continuing to take a decidedly pro-life position against abortion.

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