Can abortion be a question of religious liberty? These faiths say yes.
Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg says there are situations in which it would be her religious duty to help a woman get an abortion.
And for her, as for many who follow the traditions of Judaism and other faiths, states that now ban or severely restrict access to abortion services are placing burdens on her own sincerely held religious beliefs and her ability to exercise her faith freely.
“Religious freedom is meant to be a shield to protect, not a sword to harm,” says Rabbi Ruttenberg, scholar-in-residence for the National Council of Jewish Women. “Abortion bans absolutely impose one theology onto the nation, on people who hold other theologies and on people who are not religious, in a way that is deeply problematic.”
It is a mitzvah, or religious duty in her tradition, she says, to preserve the life, health, and well-being of a pregnant woman, regardless of the timing. And even though every state law that currently bans abortion contains language allowing for exceptions when a woman’s life. This not only does harm to women, the rabbi says, but it also constrains the free exercise of her religion when it comes to protecting women.
