LOCALIZE IT: Sharp differences over abortion among U.S. faith leaders and denominations

Abortion Religious Divide (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

EDITORS/NEWS DIRECTORS:

America’s religious leaders and denominations have responded in strikingly diverse ways to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision — nearly one year ago — to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision and end the nationwide right to legal abortion.

National polls show that most Americans support abortion access, including a majority of religious groups which believe it should be legal in most cases. A major exception: white evangelical Protestants. More than two-thirds of them say abortion should be outlawed in most or all cases.

To varying degrees, a majority of other Protestants and of Catholics say abortion should be widely available.

Here are some tips on localizing the story:

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AP’S LATEST COVERAGE

America’s religious leaders sharply divided over abortion, a year after Roe v. Wade’s reversal.

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PUBLISHABLE CONTEXT

No major faith group in the U.S. is monolithic on abortion. Among U.S. Catholics, for example, there is a gap between the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which staunchly opposes abortion, and the majority of lay Catholics who say abortion should be legal in many cases.

Many followers of faiths that don’t prohibit abortion are troubled that a view held by a minority of Americans could supersede their individual rights and religious beliefs.

In Judaism, for example, many authorities say abortion is permitted or even required in cases where the woman’s life is in danger. Some Jews have filed lawsuits contending that sweeping state-level abortion bans infringe on their religious beliefs. In Islam, Buddhism and Sikhism, there also is widespread acceptance of abortion in some circumstances.

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POSSIBLE REPORTING AVENUES

Reach out to clergy in your region, and members of their congregations, to gauge whether abortion has been a divisive issue for them over the past year. Have any of these houses of worship been engaged in abortion-related activities — for example, helping raise funds for low-income women who want abortions, or supporting anti-abortion centers which try to convince women not to terminate their pregnancy? If your state legislature considered bills banning or restricting abortion, did faith leaders testify for or against those measures? Have religiously affiliated colleges in your region confronted the issue in newsworthy ways?

As reference points, here are statements on abortion from several major denominations:

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops: https://tinyurl.com/5et4w29f

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: https://tinyurl.com/bd6x3kdz

United Methodist Church’s Council of Bishops: https://tinyurl.com/bdh4yfve

Episcopal Church: https://tinyurl.com/5aar8m3d

Southern Baptist Convention resolution of 2022: https://tinyurl.com/29uws8yc

Recent polls on the issue:

AP-NORC Poll: https://tinyurl.com/4stzbz2u

Pew Research Center: https://tinyurl.com/2458v77m

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STYLE GUIDANCE

Find tips on coverage and terminology in the AP Stylebook’s sections on religion and abortion.

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ADDITIONAL AP COVERAGE

— Assessment of religious views about abortion ahead of Roe’s repeal: https://bit.ly/3Iul9hS

— Non-religious voters wield clout, tilt heavily Democratic: https://bit.ly/43fxwGA

— Midterms reinforce Christian voter trends on abortion, GOP: https://bit.ly/3oi1J9h

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Localize It is an occasional feature produced by The Associated Press for its customers’ use. Questions can be directed to Katie Oyan at koyan@ap.org.