Mainly churches are united in their condemnation of abortion but there are many Christians in the more liberal Churches, and indeed in some of the hard line Churches, that have taken a different view. Some Christians hold their views based on the 1983 general synod (Government of the Anglican Church). Usually Protestants believe that Abortions is generally wrong but there are extreme cases when abortion is morally acceptable. This leaves members of The Church of England with very little in the way of guide lines; there is no real rule towards abortion. Some Christians in The Church of England who are pro-life might say that killing an innocent foetus is immoral and wrong in all circumstances; others might say that is it immoral but there are severe cases when it could be considered acceptable, these people are considering the rights of the mother as well as the foetus. Joanna Cleave, the writer of Christianity: behaviour, attitudes and lifestyles. States that “no woman should be forced to carry a child that isn’t wanted.” This supports the point made that it is the mother’s choice in the matter. The Church of England’s opinion, from what I can see, is that during formation the foetus starts to become a human with rights but at fertilization it is only a gathered amount of cells.
The Catholic Church holds a slightly more uniform view on abortion. They believe that life begins at the moment of conception, from then on that egg is a person with rights and morally is it wrong to destroy life. Because Catholics look to the bible in every aspect of life they take the rule given indirectly by God “thou shalt not kill” as a literal interpretation of abortion. This clearly states that abortion is an undisputable sin with the only exception being if the mother’s life is in danger as well as the foetus’ life.
In The catechism of the Catholic Church it is put across that “since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion.” Right away we can see the strict approach of The Roman Catholic Church on abortion.
Another example of a Christian, specifically Catholic, view on the sanctity of life is outlined in The Catholic Encyclopaedia: “Abortion is morally sinful and may incur further penalty of excommunication.” We can see the hard line approach The Catholic Church has on abortion.
It seems unloving to kill an unborn and defenceless infant. The second Vatican council goes as far as describing abortion as “an unspeakable crime.” Most Catholics follow these examples and uphold the approach to abortion.
Joe Jenkins book Contemporary moral issue asserts that “Although all Christians believe that life is a sacred gift from God, disagreement exists between the churches over whether abortion is morally acceptable.”
As I have previously stated one of the differentiations between The Catholic Church and The Church of England is the variance in attitude towards abortion. Christianity, both Protestants and Catholics, have respectable opinions on the sanctity of life, although different the action of Christians are compassionate and loving. It seems that even though the views are different Christians can agree to be caring towards the unborn child, the parents and everyone involved.
Sources used:
- “Catechism of the Catholic Church”
- “Christianity: Behaviour, Attitudes and Lifestyles” –Joanna Cleave.
- “Contemporary Moral Issues”- Joe Jenkins
- “Catholic Encyclopaedia”
- “Today’s Issues”- Simon and Christopher Danes