The Christian Attitude Toward Abortion
Abortion is defined as the deliberate termination of a foetus, or the
ending of a pregnancy through medical means. In society today
abortions are common and no justified reason has to be presented. The
topic of abortion is quite a controversial issue and people today have
a range of opinions and ideas on the matter. Some may argue it is the
murdering of a child but others in defence to this may say that the
foetus is not yet a child as before 24 weeks (this is the latest stage
of pregnancy where a termination is permitted) of pregnancy all the
features of the baby are not yet formed consequently making the foetus
not a human being. This all depends on the time in which one believes
life begins.
There are many pro-abortion organisations such as the abortion reform
group. Groups such as this believe that a woman should have the right
to choose what happens to her body because in any case it is her body.
They would also claim that it is not only wrong but also unfair to
bring an unwanted child into the world. If the parents of the child
had prior knowledge that the child would be in some way physically or
mentally disabled then abortion is the right path not only for the
parents but the child too as the child may suffer rejection and become
a problem in society. A pro-abortion group would also allege that
abortion is not an act of murder as it only destroys a collection of
cells, which would be unable to survive external to the womb before 24
weeks of pregnancy. Another scenario in which abortion may be looked
upon as acceptable is if as a result of giving birth the woman is at
risk of dying p...
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... and a sin,
completely disregarding such Christian principles as the sixth
commandment of "thou shall not kill". Although there is no direct
reference to abortion given in the bible there are many quotes that
can be taken, with underlying messages, which could be referred to in
the case of abortion. Although not all Christians express disapproval
of the act completely, such as certain Protestants, a vast number do
condemn the act regardless of the circumstances.
As a Muslim I strongly agree with the majority of Christians, I
believe life has been given by Allah (God) and who are we to take this
life away with such a horrific act, life is such a precious gift, a
blessing and no one on earth has the right to end another human life
even in the case of an unborn foetus, in my opinion this right is only
that of God's.
...or equitable treatment in some regions and cultures. Another convoluting factor for legislature involves pregnancy. Fetal rights are still undefined, and must be considered in direct relation to the rights of the parents, particularly the mother’s health rights.
Christian Responses to Abortion and Euthanasia Different Christians have different viewpoints on the issues of Abortion and Euthanasia. The Church of England states that life is god given and is to be; ‘Nurtured, supported and protected. ’ It views ending a human life at the beginning or end as; ‘A great moral evil.’ Also they have stated a case for ‘The rights of humans to be valued.’
However, we have reverted back to the case of rape. If a fetus conceived voluntarily has the right not to be aborted due to how it was conceived, then the fetus conceived from rape should also have that same right. Instead of creating a distinction of cases where the fetus has a right to use the body of a pregnant person, Thomson instead makes a distinction of when abortion would be morally wrong.
they go through with the pregnancy. Would it be fair to let the mother of two
embryo or foetus, and life is a gift from god that is not yours to
“Any American born after 1973 is a survivor of legalized abortion” (“Abortion”). This quote struck me because of its frankness. After it was legalized, many women had an option to abort their pregnancy against the Catholic Church’s wishes. Any child that was born after that year could have been aborted. This shows that many of the people that are living today could have been killed simply because the mother did not want them and they were considered to not be living in the womb. Being here today, many people survived the mass murder that is abortion and still continues today. The Church urges every mother to think about the morals and laws that God has sent to us. “You shall not kill” (Exodus 20:13). This includes the fetus in the womb that has been alive since conception. The views of the Church and the views of society fight against each other constantly. Abortion is the killing of a human being and is accepted by modern society despite it being against the teachings of the Church and moral good.
The Divine command theory states that morally right actions are those commanded by God, and any action going against it is morally wrong. People that accept this theory can only consider an act to be right or wrong if God commanded it to be so. Therefore, supporters of this theory have a moral obligation to do and obey whatever God considered to be right without questioning his judgment. Those in favor of this theory should fulfill his will without any hesitation, regardless of its consequences to society. So if God had claimed abortion to be morally right, everyone supporting this theory were to happily accept it. Moreover, this theory suggests that those who act on a moral sense God desires will be rewarded at the end, perhaps in the afterlife;
Another issue that arises is the potential personhood of the fetus. Many would argue that its poten...
foetus or an embryo, an infant or an adult, an old person, or one suffering from an incurable
...to have an abortion because of her own specific reasons due to health reasons, or unable to support her baby that is her reasons and her reasons alone, that right should not be taken from her.
...ther’s sovereignty over her body outweigh the right of an unborn child to live. The answers to these questions are very diverse as a result of the diversity of the American society. With the issue of abortion, one’s attitude toward it is going to be based on many things such as religious background and personal morals. There is no black and white answer to the abortion issue. Luckily we live in a country where we are able to decide for ourselves whether something is morally right or wrong. Thus, ultimately, the choice is ours. As with the many other ethical issues which we are faced with in our society, it is hard to come to a concrete answer until we are personally faced with that issue. All we can do is make an effort to know all of the aspects which are involved so that we may be able to make a sound decision if we were faced with this problem in our own lives.
Some women have accepted the definition that a woman’s prime role as wife and mother is to have control of one’s own body and mind (Reardon 3) .Once they had choices about life roles, they felt that they had the right to choose abortion or not. Any and every woman should have the ability to choose when to have a child in their lives. Many women feel that if they did not have the right to choose an abortion, they would have passed by many opportunities to create a better life for themselves. Some people might not agree with their decisions, but in the ends it is theirs.
Bodily autonomy is a concept that is considered to be a human right. Bodily autonomy means that a person has control over who or what uses their body, for what, and for how long. Bodily autonomy is why you cannot be forced to donate your blood, tissue, or organs, even if you’re dead, even in the circumstance that your blood, tissue, and organs would save fifteen lives. Bodily autonomy is why someone cannot touch you, have sex with you, or use your body in any way without your continuous consent. A fetus is using and surviving from somebody else’s body parts. Therefore, under bodily autonomy, the fetus is in that person’s body by permission, not by right, and requires a person’s continuous consent to remain in that position. If the person
life is sacred and was given by God. It is a gift from God. To have an
to her body, and if she decides that she is not capable of bringing a child