To the editor:
Spring returns.
As the season changes, nature awakens — and so do many of our community’s activities. One meaningful cause this time of year is WALK 4 LIFE, sponsored by the Pregnancy Care Centers of Aroostook.
Unfortunately, the work of the centers often becomes a subject of political polarization, forcing people into an either/or mindset. But it doesn’t have to be that way. It can be both/and. Or, sometimes, neither/nor. What if we began from a place of empathy, not ideology?
When I reflect on the sanctity of life, I think of “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy — a post-apocalyptic novel in which a father wrestles with the agonizing decision of whether to kill his young son to save him from being tortured and eaten by cannibals. Ultimately, he chooses to preserve his son’s life, even as he dies and leaves the boy alone in a cold, brutal world. By the story’s end, the boy is found by a kind family, and hope quietly flickers on.
Throughout the novel, the father continually weighs impossible decisions with deep love and moral anguish. In our world, many face difficult, deeply personal choices as well. We can only imagine what they are going through.
What we can do is walk alongside them — with compassion, not condemnation — listening to their stories, offering support, and reminding them they are not alone.
I believe that’s what the faith community is called to do. I believe that’s also the heart of the Pregnancy Care Centers: to help young mothers feel embraced by community in times of trouble, so they may find strength for wise decisions, or healing from past pain.
Every stage of life — from conception to the deathbed — is sacred. Life is worth living. So let us walk together.
Victor Han, Pastor
Houlton, Hodgdon, and Mars Hill United Methodist Churches
