Mennonite Church USA delegates voted by a broad majority yesterday to approve a statement on abortion, affirming the sacredness of life and calling on the church to act with compassion on the issue.

With 847 ballots cast, 687 delegates voted for the statement, 160 voted against and 13 abstained. The statement, which required a two-thirds majority to carry, passed with 81 percent approval.

“I’m glad that it passed,” the Mennonite Church USA moderator, Ervin Stutzman, said after the final tally. Though the statement generated substantial discussion in the minutes before the final vote, Stutzman said he believes more delegates will come to a clearer understanding of the statement as they discuss it in their table groups in coming days.

The afternoon delegate session concluded before the ballot results were announced. During the morning session, the assembly’s resolutions committee presented a proposal to amend the statement. The amendment would have deleted language discouraging the pursuit of anti-abortion legislation.

Sharon Waltner of the resolutions committee said the amendment had been called for by several delegates. Because the committee felt the deletion would not substantially change the intent of the statement, it was brought to the entire assembly.

Leah Ann Alcazar, who worked on the statement as part of a committee appointed by the church’s Constituency Leadership Council, said the committee knew it would be impossible to draft an abortion statement satisfactory to all. Instead, they focused on remaining consistent with Anabaptist values. She said there was no call for anti-abortion legislation because abortion is an individual choice and because outlawing abortion would not eliminate the issue.

“Illegalizing abortion places additional burdens on people, especially women,” Alcazar said, noting that illegal abortions potentially could lead to even greater harm for the women and children involved.

Alcazar said it is the place of the church to encourage dialogue on the issue, especially by educating young people and helping place sexuality in its proper marital context.

The proposed amendment failed on a paper ballot, 486 votes to 356, with 16 abstaining — a 58 percent majority.

The approved document states in part that abortion should not be used to interrupt unwanted pregnancies, and calls for a commitment to caring for infants who are brought to term. The statement also calls for the church to act with compassion toward those who choose to have an abortion and to find ways to “walk with individuals seeking guidance as they deal with unexpected and unwanted pregnancies.”

A last-minute proposal to delay a final vote on the statement until July 7 failed.