The Italian government has introduced a financial incentive of 1,000 euros per month to encourage women who are considering abortion to choose Life for their babies.
Italian Senator Maurizio Gasparri proposed this “Maternity Income Bill” as a solution to the nation’s population crisis. Italy’s birth rate has declined to a record low of 1.2 children per woman, a level that will be unable to sustain the economy. This marks the 15th consecutive year that Italy’s population has dropped, according to the Italian National Institute of Statistics, or Istat.
Women making less than 15,000 euros per year who refuse abortion would qualify for Senator Gasparri’s incentive. These mothers would receive 1,000 euros a month during the first 5 years of the child’s life.
Financial hardship has always been one of the primary factors that drive women to abortion clinics. If Gasparri’s bill is passed, many mothers who would otherwise choose death for their children due to financial instability would now do the opposite. Many babies who would have lost their lives prematurely to the horror of abortion would now live, grow, and thrive.
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The tragedy is that it took a national economic crisis to discourage the killing of children, which should never have been authorized at all. Babies are not items that can be replaced and restocked on demand. Their value is not in their contribution to a nation’s economy, and a decreasing population should never need to serve as the catalyst for a Pro-Life policy.
However, this policy has the potential to save babies who would otherwise die through abortion. Italy’s “Law 194” permits abortions during the first 90 days of pregnancy. Abortions are allowed beyond the 90-day mark to protect the mother’s life or health or when the baby has been diagnosed with a fetal abnormality. This law has victimized Italian babies since its enactment in 1978.
We applaud Gasparri’s bill and rejoice over the number of children who will live to see and change the world if the bill is successful. But we also pray for the day when those same babies are protected not for their contribution to society, but for their intrinsic value as the smallest image-bearers of God.
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