University of Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh spoke about his pro-life views during a charity event on Sunday, discussing how the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide will impact conversations about the issue.
The 58-year-old Catholic was one of the keynote speakers at a dinner and auction for Plymouth Area Right to Life held at the Inn at St. John’s in Plymouth, Michigan. The pro-life organization advocates against abortion through prayer and supporting local pregnancy resource centers.
As the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit’s news service reported Monday, Harbaugh shared the stage with Fr. John Riccardo, founder of ACTS XXIX, a group seeking to bring about the “transformation of the Church.”
The sold-out event raised an estimated $44,000 for pro-life initiatives in the area.
Plymouth Right to Life also received an estimated $100,000 from donors and an additional $2,300 from a donor who paid to catch a pass from Harbaugh.
“I believe in having the courage to let the unborn be born,” Harbaugh said. “I love life. I believe in having a loving care and respect for life and death.”
The football coach pointed to his Catholic faith and science as the reasons for his pro-life beliefs. He also quoted Jeremiah 1:5, which reads: “‘Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born, I set you apart. I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.’”
Harbaugh said his parents brought him up with pro-life values, which he has passed on to his own children. The former San Francisco 49ers coach acknowledged that not everyone shares these values and that the recent overturning of Roe has likely added tension to conversations about abortion.
“Passions can make the process messy, but when combined with respect, it ultimately produces the best outcomes,” he was quoted as saying.
“This process has been passionate and messy, but I have faith in the American people to ultimately develop the right policies and laws for all lives involved,” he added. “I recognize one’s personal thinking regarding morality of a particular action may differ from their thinking on whether government should make that action illegal.”
Harbaugh reportedly maintained that “there are many things one may hold to be immoral, but the government appropriately allows because of some greater good or personal or constitutional right.” But he doesn’t believe “that is the case with abortion.”
Harbaugh acknowledged there are “conflicts between the legitimate rights of the mother and the rights of the unborn child.”
“One resolution might involve incredible hardship for the mother, family, and society. Another results in the death of an unborn person,” he asserted.
According to The Detroit Catholic, Harbaugh concluded that neither outcome is ideal but stressed that the right to life of the unborn outweighs the alternative. He said “each unborn human truly has a future filled with potential, talent, dreams and love.”
The coach concluded that being pro-life means supporting women and families needing assistance.
“I have living proof in my family, my children, and the many thousands that I’ve coached that the unborn are amazing gifts from God to make this world a better place,” he said. “To me, the right choice is to have the courage to let the unborn be born.”
