A study conducted by Lifeway Research shows that many women with unplanned pregnancies go silently from the church pew to the abortion clinic, convinced the church would gossip rather than help. Researchers found that more than 4 in 10 women who have had an abortion were churchgoers when they ended a pregnancy. But only 7 percent of women discussed their abortion decision with anyone at church. Three-fourths (76 percent) say the church had no influence on their decision to terminate a pregnancy. Also, among women who have had an abortion:

• Two-thirds (65 percent) say church members judge single women who are pregnant.
• A majority (54 percent) thinks churches oversimplify decisions about pregnancy options.
• Fewer than half (41 percent) believe churches are prepared to help with decisions about unwanted pregnancies.
• Only 38 percent of women who have had an abortion consider church a safe place to discuss pregnancy options including parenting, abortion, and adoption. More than half of churchgoers who have had an abortion (52 percent) say no one at church knows it. Nearly half of women who have had an abortion (49 percent) say pastors' teachings on forgiveness don't seem to apply to terminated pregnancies.