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Victoria Labor’s promise to fund free abortions has drawn a forceful response from Presbyterian leaders, raising profound questions about unborn life, government priorities and Australia’s moral direction.

If there is still anyone left in Australia who doesn’t recognise the current cultural crisis we are in, then just consider this. One of the key election policies of the Labor Party in Victoria leading up to the state election is a promise to provide free abortions. This includes travel expenses and accommodation for those from rural areas, as well as the waiver of approximately $1,000 medical fee for the procedure.

To be fair, though, the Labour Party in Victoria already effectively killed the state economically over their past twelve years they’ve been in office, and so the provision of government funding to murder the unborn should come as no surprise. I mean, you’ve got to hand it to them, at least they are consistent!

An Open Letter to Ben Carroll

The Presbyterian Church of Victoria has been one of the Christian denominations to come out publicly against the issue. The Rev. Dr John Wilson, Moderator for the Presbyterian Church of Victoria, has published the following open letter to Labour’s leader:

The Hon. Ben Carroll MP
Premier of Victoria
Level 1, 1 Treasury Place,
East Melbourne VIC 3002

October 15, 2026.

Dear Mr Carroll,

Re: Abortion is not ‘care’, either for the baby or for the mother

On behalf of the Presbyterian Church of Victoria, of which I am currently Moderator, I write today with profound dismay following this morning’s announcement concerning your government’s policy to fund abortions through the public purse, and to promote this as an advance in “women’s health”.

Members of our church, of course, believe that women should receive every proper provision for their health and well-being. And women who become pregnant deserve thoughtful, compassionate and practical support. That should be a given in any decent and caring society.

But what about the life of the unborn child?

There are two lives to consider: the well-being and health of the mother, and the developing life of the child within her womb. Why should the one be recognised and protected, while the other is disregarded, and disposed of in the medical waste bin?

We are speaking, after all, of a developing human life which, if pregnancy continues to birth, will ordinarily enter this world as a little girl or boy — with a life to live, birthdays to celebrate, and a future to unfold.

Surely that life deserves consideration, too?

I understand that governing Victoria is complex. There are countless competing demands upon a government, and I would never judge the record of a premier and his (or her) party by a single issue alone.

But the protection of women and the protection of unborn children are both profoundly precious to me. This conviction is the view of my church, the Presbyterian Church of Victoria, and of countless other Christians, Catholic and Protestant alike.

We believe that the deliberate taking of unborn human life is a grave moral wrong. And to have that practice further encouraged and funded by the State is deeply distressing.

I find it extraordinarily difficult to support a government that takes this position.

Who will speak for the unborn child, who has no voice, no vote, and no means of defence?

I would genuinely welcome your response.

With my prayer and best wishes, but with profound sadness over this announcement,

Rev Dr John P Wilson

Moderator, Presbyterian Church of Victoria,
PCV Assembly Hall,
156 Collins St,
Melbourne, VIC 3000

Abortion and Paganism

Significantly, this is not just a matter of Victorian Labour playing politics with the lives of the unborn, but is nothing less than the reintroduction of paganism. As Ginette Paris wrote in his book The Sacrament of Abortion (1992):

I have drawn inspiration throughout this book from a guiding image, the Artemis of Greek mythology [the goddess of childbirth]… It is not immoral to choose abortion; it is simply another kind of morality, a pagan one. It is time to stop being defensive about it, time to point an accusatory finger at the other camp and denounce its own immoral stance. Abortion is a sacrifice to Artemis. Abortion is a sacrament for the gift of life to remain pure. Our culture needs new rituals as well as laws to restore abortion to its sacred dimension, which is both terrible and necessary.

The Christian church cannot be silent. As we are commanded in Proverbs 31:8, “Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute.”

___

Image courtesy of Adobe.