Photo: Moment RF
Austin-area Democratic state Representative James Talarico has become one of the left's favorite rising stars, and now he's making headlines for his appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience. While speaking with Rogan, he made some shocking claims about abortion and Christianity.
Talarico attempted to push the idea that the Bible, and even Jesus himself, were actually pro-abortion. His justification for this centered around a number of well-known biblical stories, including the creation of Adam in the book of Genesis, as well as the story of Jesus' conversation with a Samaritan woman at a well.
Talarico said to Rogan, "The longest conversation Jesus has with anyone in the Bible is with the Samaritan woman at the well. And so this affirmation of women as full and equal people is a huge part of the Jesus Movement."
He went on to say that the story of an angel visiting Mary to inform her that she would bear the Son of God is actually God asking Mary for consent. He says that implies that consent is essential to the creation of life and that somehow means abortion is biblically justified.
If this isn't all adding up to you, you aren't alone. Evangelical pastors are calling out Talarico's theology, including Grace Family Baptist Church's Pastor Aaron Wright, who says the Bible pretty clearly makes the opposite of Talarico's point.
He said, "You see a recognition of the sanctity of life in the book of Luke. Mary is declared to be 'blessed among women' because of the fruit of her womb. This is a consistent theme in the scriptures." Wright went on to point to a number of other examples that seem to point to fetal personhood throughout the Bible and then pointed to the 6th Commandment, given in the book of Exodus, which clearly reads, "You shall not murder."
Wright says Talarico's points on Rogan were more political than theological in nature and explained that, "These statements are not going to stand up to any kind of cross-examination or legitimate theological scrutiny. He's not expecting anyone to do the homework; he's just throwing these ideas out."
He then says that truly biblically based abortion laws would be much stricter than what Texas currently has on the books. Texas law still allows for mothers to use abortion pills, and the state's abortion ban has a number of exceptions, something Wright lamented and called out the Texas GOP for allowing.