In a land that suffers from having the highest abortion rates in the world, good news is really good news. And I am happy to report two pieces of very good news for the advancement of righteousness in Russia.

First is that I have learned that it is now law that before a hospital performs an abortion, they have to perform an ultrasound on the woman. The significance of this one factor is only lost on those not familiar with the dynamics of the abortion industry. Abortion clinics in the US actively do NOT want to perform ultrasounds, knowing what impact it has on the woman’s decision. Hence the relatively new trend in Pregnancy Resource Centers to acquire expensive “4-D” ultrasound technology to offer each woman who comes to them contemplating termination. The results are fabulous: only a tiny percentage proceed with an abortion.

St. John of Kronstadt Hospital

My second piece of news is from a nearby state hospital. In a headline article in the city’s main free daily newspaper, the words blast out: “Hospital no longer does Abortions.” As the article describes, an Orthodox group called “Wars of Peace” was able to influence the outcome, reasoning that a hospital named after a saint (John of Kronstadt) should not be involved in “inner-uterine infant homicide.

Not only is this good news for abortion rates, it also supports the direction we are taking as a ministry, under Nastya’s leadership, to focus on post-abortion healing. In our research on present pro-life ministries, we have found very few in general, but all of these are focused on prevention, and none on the needs of women and those close to them who have experienced abortion.