But whilst many Christians believe life begins at conception and ‘thou shalt not kill’ some still believe that under certain circumstances abortion is the right thing to do. Some women may want an abortion if their child is going to be born with a deformity or hereditary terminal illness but many Christians would still say that the baby deserves the chance to lead a normal fulfilling life. However if a child is born and is need of constant care, life wouldn’t be enjoyable and the parents would also find it hard spending all their time caring for their child. No-body wants to see a child grow up suffering so it would be considered compassionate to go through with an abortion.
One other case in which Christians may see an abortion as acceptable is for example if the mother will die through continuing her pregnancy. Christians believe ‘thou shalt not kill’ from the ten commandments and if a woman was denied the right to have an abortion despite the fact she was going to die that would be going against the beliefs of many. So in retrospect an abortion would be the right thing to do.
Although there a lots of Christians who believe abortion can be considered justified and the right thing to do, many still believe that under no circumstance should a woman be granted the permission to have an abortion. This is a confusion issue for some people because there is a lot of debate about when exactly life begins. All Christians have different opinions for example some believe that life begins at conception in which case the termination of a pregnancy would be the murder of a living being. Others believe that full life doesn’t begin until the baby is out of the mother’s womb and surviving on its own. This means it is part of the mother until birth, so she has the right to decide what to do with her body. Also there are people who believe that life begins when the foetus has a heartbeat or has brainwaves and a central nervous system. Christians believe it is not up to us to take life away.
Roman Catholic’s believe strongly that abortion is murder as life begins at conception, they do not believe in the use of contraception, if you are to have sex it should be because you want to have a baby. They see no exceptions for abortion. While The Church of England also have a strong opposition towards abortion they recognise that there are strictly limited conditions in which abortion may be preferable.
Christians may be divided on their opinions of this issue because of the bible and what they have been taught to believe. The bible is a contradiction. While the Ten Commandments teach that ‘thou shalt not kill’ Jesus preached compassion and forgiveness. So abortion seen as murder is obviously wrong but to show compassion for the mother of the child and forgiveness should she go through with an abortion as put many Christians in two minds about what is right or wrong and what they personally believe. Jesus never preached about abortion; he never told anyone it was acceptable nor did he say it was totally out of the question. So what Christians believe is their own opinion it cannot be proved true.
However if a woman is considering an abortion she should consider every option she has in great detail, abortion is not a subject that can be taken light heartedly. Other factors to consider in the controversial issue of abortion are for example that women would still have abortions if the procedure were illegal. However it would be dangerous and in some cases life threatening as they would rely on back street clinics were the operation would be performed illegally. Although this is true, there as been research into whether or not a foetus can feel pain as it is about to die, and women may suffer from guilt for years afterwards.
If thinking about abortion every option should be considered, all points of view must be taken into account. Which choice would bring more good than bad. Is an abortion really the right thing to do?
Euthanasia is another controversial issue in which the opinions of Christians are very divided. Euthanasia means easy painless death. There are different types of Euthanasia, known as passive, positive and voluntary. Voluntary is a patient requesting to die when life is becoming unbearable, passive is allowing someone to die due to the lack of prevention of death. Positive is to deliberately cause the death of somebody for example in the case of Harold Shipman. Suicide is a sin and assisting someone in dying is also wrong therefore voluntary Euthanasia is wrong under all circumstances right? In the UK the law stands that anyone who helps a person die no matter what the circumstances is an accessory to murder, so yes you would say that it was wrong. Voluntary Euthanasia is known by several names such as; assisted suicide; mercy killing and gentle easy death. Assisted suicide is when a person helps a patient to die, those who believe voluntary euthanasia is acceptable do not believe this to be suicide. Suicide is when one person kills themselves for a reason other than a terminal illness, people who try to commit suicide are often seeking attention and/or trying to escape problems such as failed relationships, abuse and stress caused from exams for example.
Many Christians believe that Euthanasia is wrong under all circumstances, although one in which some Christians may see voluntary Euthanasia as acceptable is for example if a patient is in severe pain and are dying. Christians are taught to be compassionate human beings so it would be wrong to watch another person suffering. A patient shouldn’t have to wake up everyday thinking ‘well I’m alive today’. Also a patients family although they’d want to keep their relative alive they wouldn’t want to watch them suffering, left to die painfully with each day a miracle that they’re still alive. It isn’t natural to be breathing and alive thanks to a machine.
Another circumstance, which may be accepted, is if a person couldn’t enjoy life because of a permanent and severe disability. Some people would say that the person had the right to choose whether or not they wanted to carry on their life. If they were suffering from a disease such a Parkinsons and were totally dependent on other people they may feel humiliated and life might end up been more of a chore than something to enjoy. It can’t be seen as acceptable to watch them suffering.
A third circumstance in which some Christians may see voluntary Euthanasia as acceptable is for example if a person’s existence is more like a ‘vegetable’. If a person is so badly injured from an accident that they are permanently brain damaged or in a coma in which it is unlikely that they’ll wake up, it would be an act of compassion to end their lives. So that the suffering of the patient and their family can be taken away. Although some people disagree with this and believe that God has mapped out our lives and that he decides when life is created and he decides when it is taken away. It can not be considered the right thing to do to watch a patient and their family to sit and wait for death to happen. If we are all special to God then surely in these circumstances Voluntary euthanasia must be acceptable.
In Genesis 1:26-7 we are told that we are all special to God and that it is not up to us to take life away, even in circumstances such as mentioned above. I disagree with this because it shows no love or compassion however a very relevant argument against voluntary Euthanasia is that a patient may be in an unfit state to make such an important decision, for example if the patient is heavily medicated. They wouldn’t be in the right frame of mind to make the decision whether or not they wanted to die. Also it wouldn’t be right to permit Voluntary Euthanasia if a patients family don’t agree that it is the right choice.
Another really important factor to consider which Christians argue is whether or not people’s moral conscience would change, If Voluntary Euthanasia becomes legal doctors who help patients to die will start to feel less guilty the more times they assist someone in dying. In 1 Corinthians 6: 18-20 (body as a temple) we are told that our body is a temple that should be looked after, and no one else nor ourselves should harm it. As in voluntary euthanasia which is killing our own human body which is the most harm we can actually do. Christians are worried as to where it will lead us if voluntary euthanasia is acceptable. Babies born with certain conditions. Will they be allowed to die? Another question on the mind’s of many is ‘ If Abortion is legal should Euthanasia also be legal?’. If Abortion is seen as compassionate towards the mother, in cases such as the baby been born with a terminal illness in which case it wouldn’t enjoy life. Then clearly Voluntary Euthanasia should be seen as an act of compassion towards a patient who has a terminal illness and no longer can enjoy life.
But the Roman Catholic view states that Voluntary Euthanasia is wrong. Only God has the right to make decisions over death. Jeremiah 1: 5 says that God has mapped out our lives even before conception, we cannot end life as God may have something special for them to do even if it seems there’s nothing left they can do. While The Church Of England believe that people who become ill need special care as they become vulnerable however the C.O.E also states that a person has the right to refuse treatment but under no circumstances do they have the right to choose when they die.
I believe that Christians shouldn’t try to make others accept their views, what they believe about life is up to them. God created people to be different therefore we all have different opinions. Everybody in the world has a different opinion on everything; even Christians have mixed views about all different controversial issues such as Abortion and Euthanasia. God created us in his own image, and God is seen as perfect and so there should be nothing wrong with Christians having their opinions, people from different religions will also have their opinions. However Christians believe that their opinions are right in all cases. They think that they aren’t just telling you an opinion and trying to make it your opinion also, they are telling what is right and what should be.
Some children are sent to religious school such as catholic schools, they may not be religious children and in some cases may not come from religious families but still are taught about religion, have to follow the rules, say prayers and are very often told what to believe.
I think non-religious people make up the majority of the people who believe Christians should keep their views and opinions to themselves. Non religious people still have consciences and no what’s morally right when it comes to abortions and euthanasia, however they can see circumstances in which these can be accepted. Whereas most Christians are adamant about their opinions and see no situations that should be solved by Voluntary Euthanasia or the death of innocent baby.
Christians and their opinions have a big affect on people’s actions even those who are not religious. For example; Support groups for people unsure about abortion and families and patients considering Euthanasia are often run by Christians, if this is the case advice would be biased as they would want you to make the decision they would if they were in that position. Somebody who is contemplating Abortion or Euthanasia would need an unbiased opinion and advice from an unbiased person, as they would most likely already be in a vulnerable state of mind. Christians make a person feel like it is wrong for them to make their own decision about abortion and euthanasia but there is no right or wrong decision just a decision that is morally right for a particular person and what feels right for them and their family.
