Consistent Life Ethic Quotes

“To have a consistent ethic of life is to be comprehensive in our advocacy for life and to refuse to think of issues in isolation from each other. It is a fundamental conviction that every person is sacred and made in the image of God. It requires pursuing whatever allows people to flourish and fighting everything that crushes life. That means that all these difficult issues -- the military, guns, racism, the death penalty, poverty, and abortion -- are connected, and we need a moral framework that integrates them. That's what it means to be pro-life for the whole life.”
― Shane Claiborne, Rethinking Life: Embracing the Sacredness of Every Person

“As I see it, there are two major problems with the way moral issues are deliberated and acted upon in modern Christian (and especially Protestant) circles. First, a strange phenomenon has occurred in which Christians have generally subordinated or ceased asking entirely the vital questions “Which course of action is most consistent with my identity as a disciple of Jesus Christ?” and “What does God require of me?” These questions have been replaced with “What is the most effective way to achieve the ends I desire?” Or, put less cynically, “How can we most efficiently transform the world for God?” In other words, many modern Christians have tended to prioritize effectiveness over faithfulness.”
― Rob Arner, Consistently Pro-Life: The Ethics of Bloodshed in Ancient Christianity

“The consistent ethic of life of the gospel of Jesus is, I contend, neither “liberal” nor “conservative,” for it cuts across all human ideological distinctions, challenging all to uphold the dignity and value of each human person from conception to death.”
― Rob Arner, Consistently Pro-Life: The Ethics of Bloodshed in Ancient Christianity

“The consistent life ethic, when used by people who actually mean it, does not water down opposition to abortion, but strengthens it. It puts it in the category of violence, where it belongs.”
― Rachel M. MacNair, Consistently Opposing Killing: From Abortion to Assisted Suicide, the Death Penalty, and War

“We are moved by what pro-life feminists call the "consistency thing" -- the belief that respect for human life demands opposition to abortion, capital punishment, euthanasia, and war. We don't think we have the luxury or the right to choose some types of killing and say that they are all right, while others are not. A human life is a human life; and if equality means anything, it means that society may not value some human lives over others.”
― Rachel M. MacNair, Consistently Opposing Killing: From Abortion to Assisted Suicide, the Death Penalty, and War