Russian Pro-Life Activists Launch Abortion Ban Drive

This past fall, the public pro-life movement in Russia known as “For Life” launched a petition drive to completely ban abortion in Russia. According to RT.com and other media reports, this petition has the backing of more than 300,000 people including the children’s rights ombudsman. In addition, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church addressed the country’s parliament urging passage of the ban. Interestingly, Patriarch Kirill’s press service said in a special statement that Kirill did so only as an “ordinary citizen.” 

Russia’s largest evangelical church fellowship—the Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists—has long been on record opposing abortion. In InSight last year, we also reported on SGA’s assistance in the start-up of the first crisis pregnancy center ministry in Russia’s huge capital city of Moscow. The earnest desire of the Russian Bible Church is for women and teen girls to choose life for their babies and be won to Christ. Russia has one of the highest abortion rates in the world according to the UN. In 2010, there were 37.4 abortions per 1000 women aged 15-44 years—a truly tragic figure. Please pray as the churches continue to develop ministries to reach these women with the love of Jesus.