There are few issues on which Republicans and Democrats agree not only on the goal, but on the means of achieving the goal. While everyone agrees on fighting poverty, for instance, Republicans and Democrats generally take very different approaches.
One such point of unity, however, may be the issue of adoption. Pro-life Republicans have strong motivation to foster a culture of adoption. And the 2004 Democratic platform pointed to creating adoption incentives to ensure that abortion becomes “safe, legal, and rare.”
Christians, however, who take seriously our own adoption as sons of God have theological grounding for promoting the practice of adoption. The act of adoption is an image of our own relationship with the Father; it is a covenant that parents make to a child, a covenant that is as binding–or more–than biological ties.
As Christy Lynn Wilson has pointed out recently, November is National Adoption Month. Justin Taylor has put together a good list of resources for people who may not want to adopt themselves, but who wish to support those who do adopt. The money that we give exemplifies–and deepens–our values, so I would encourage you to consider carefully donating. Justin also has other ideas to support those who adopt in his article at Boundless.
With so many issues between us, it is refreshing to step back and point to where we can agree. Adoption is a tie that binds us together in our common humanity and falleness, by allowing us to exercise the virtue of compassion in acknowledging the dignity of all human lives.
Matthew Lee Anderson
Matthew Lee Anderson is an Associate Professor of Ethics and Theology in Baylor University's Honors College. He has a D.Phil. in Christian Ethics from Oxford University, and is a Perpetual Member of Biola University's Torrey Honors College. In 2005, he founded Mere Orthodoxy.
