From a reader:
I find myself in agreement with a lot of your article. However, let me just say how I believe liberal Democrats would rebut your argument: They would say that opposition to abortion, particularly opposition to abortion during the very early stages of pregnancy, is based entirely on faith — that is, that the vast majority of pro-lifers view the unborn child as having a soul, while others look at scientific evidence and ponder whether the unborn child should constitute life in a legal sense.
Anti-slavery, anti-poverty measures, and equal rights, on the other hand, are not just based on Christianity or other religious beliefs; they’re part of an appeal to “social justice” (abstract, I know) and are universally accepted as good. I would take issue with this type of argument, because I don’t think you can just say something is “morally right” if you don’t acknowledge where that morality came from (God.) But it is the distinction that Democrats like Kerry would draw between abortion and the other issues you mentioned.