A ten year old girl was walking down the road in her neighborhood in Ohio when she encountered a rapist who stripped her naked, beat her, and raped her. When the family of the child discovered she was pregnant six weeks and three days later, they sought to end the pregnancy as quickly as possible.

Now it just so happened that six weeks and three days later a priest was also going down the same road and saw the family, but when the family asked the priest to help them get access to medical care to end the pregnancy, he told them abortion was a sin and he crossed over to the other side of the road and went on his way.

Likewise, the governor of the state of Ohio came by that same spot six weeks and three days later, saw the girl and her the family, but when they asked him for help in ending the child’s pregnancy, the governor said that the law of the state of Ohio prohibits all abortions after six weeks regardless of the circumstances, and he crossed over to the other side of the road and went on his way.

A doctor with Planned Parenthood from Indiana, who was on a journey, came to where the family was, and when she saw the family and listened to them, she was moved with compassion. She agreed to help the girl and her family, tending to them with great care. Then she arranged for the family and the 10 year old girl who had been raped to travel to Indiana to take the girl to a clinic where the doctor provided medical care for the 10 year old girl so that she would not have to remain pregnant. The next day, the doctor worked with the staff of planned parenthood to find funds for the travel, lodging, and any additional costs for the family.

What do you think? Which one of these three was a neighbor to the raped ten year old child and her family?*

*This is a parable based on current Ohio law, but it could apply to a number of other states that are banning access to abortions even in the cases of rape, incest, or threats to the health of women and girls.