Others consider it murder to abort the baby even though it is still a foetus, as they believe it to be a life on the day of fertilisation; every sperm is sacred, therefore showing that God is the giver and taker of life so why should we decide whether to let someone live or not? Alternative Christian writings, such as the “Didache” (Teachings of the Twelve Apostles), state their views against the matter - "You shall not procure abortion, nor destroy a newborn child". Also, the idea of agape might support the view that all should be loved, even if they are but a potential life. God would want all of his creations to be treated equally and fairly.
The Bible never mentions abortion directly, though it does often refer to the sanctity of life. However, there is one quote from Exodus (21:22-25) that seems to touch on the subject specifically: “If men who are fighting hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman's husband demands and the court allows. But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise”. It seems here that only if the woman dies it is considered to be murder, for which the man should be punished. The abortion of the baby isn’t seen to be the central argument here. However, it could be argued that the mention of “no serious injury” could refer to the baby, meaning it lived in which case the tables turn completely.
It simply depends upon the opinion of the individual as to how they view the matter. Some may not wish to take a potential life as they see it a religious and social crime whereas others may not believe it to be a life until the pregnancy reaches a certain stage e.g. 22 weeks. Christians may argue that if the person cannot cope with keeping the baby then as another option, they could put it up for adoption after its birth. Some mothers might see this as a rejection of their child and would not want to put their offspring through this heartache. However, although they are not keeping their child, at least they have not taken the life, which is a sin. On the other hand, family life is considered very special and it’s important for family members to cherish each other so if someone is “given up” then it would seem that there was a lack of love in the relationship. Though it is acknowledged that families have always felt competitive or felt tension among themselves. Even though the mother would be killing her child, it could be considered kinder for her to do so, as a) the child would not have to suffer the rejection and b) the child would be unaware. It is still, however, a breach of the Ten Commandments, but could be forgiven if the person was being genuine or “cruel to be kind”.
The Anglican Church has quite a different view from the Roman Catholics, who believe that abortion should be outlawed well and truly, as they see it that life begins at the moment of conception. The Church of England, however, is slightly more flexible, “…although the foetus is to be specially respected and protected, nonetheless the life of the foetus is not absolutely sacrosanct if it endangers the life of its mother.” The Roman Catholics might use the following quote, from Psalms 82:4, to argue that babies need the help of the able in order to have a fair chance, “Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” The psalm shows how people should treat everyone as an equal and not assume that the life is worth nothing simply because that person cannot speak for them self.
1b) Explain how Christians might put their beliefs about abortion into action.
Roman Catholics have slightly different views to other denominations of Christianity as they feel very strongly that abortion should be made illegal and that the mother should put her baby up for adoption as an alternative. This therefore “preserves innocent lives”, for example if the pregnancy was a result of rape, why should the child have to pay or someone else’s crime? Other people may find this offensive as the mother would have to bring up a child on her own, knowing the father was a criminal and this was his offspring; it would be a constant reminder. However, Catholics deem abortion a great sin. A quote from Pope Paul VI in 1970 outlines how strongly the Catholic church feels, “Abortion has been considered murder since the first centuries of the Church, and nothing permits it to be considered otherwise.” In order to put their beliefs into action they have the chance to join organisations such as “Life” or “SPUC” (the Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child). These groups campaign against abortion as well as other controversial issues such as euthanasia (the process of “helping someone die” so they don’t suffer as much as they may do if they continued to live) and embryo experimentation (such as cloning etc.). They believe that abortion denies innocent humans of rights. They say that abortions that are decided on whether the foetus is healthy or not, or abnormal in some way are discriminative against disabled people as it suggests that the world would be a better place without them as their lives are supposedly “not worth living”.
The people within this organisation are not from any particular religion, race or political party but Roman Catholics may support or join them as they share the same points of view on the matter(s). The party members have the chance to produce material such as posters and leaflets to explain their views on abortion in order to justify their reasons and clarify their thoughts for the public. They organise protests in an attempt to sway political decisions and write letters to MP’s to influence decisions when debating in Parliament.
Another way in which Roman Catholics could act is by praying to their God for help to be given to women who are considering abortion. They may also construct talks and information booklets for children and young women so that they obtain a proper sex education to prevent the problem in the first place. They feel also that they cannot simply persuade people against abortion and then leave them to raise the child. They may offer support via an organisation or they may offer to baby-sit so the mother can have some time to herself. Some Christians work as foster carers, to care for children whose parents are finding it difficult to cope. This is however, on a more long-term basis.
Other denominations have less extreme views on the matter. For example, Anglicans and Methodists might say that although the sanctity of unborn life is important, the well being of the mother is also of paramount importance and so this must be carefully considered too. They might suggest counselling or join organisations much the same as Roman Catholics. Sometimes, Christians vote in accordance to what they believe about a certain topic, which in this case is abortion. Some candidates that are up for election may make statements about how they feel about particular topics in order to “attract” such people.
If Christians are in favour of women being able to make their own decision as to whether they should have an abortion or not they might also put their beliefs into action. There are groups who campaign for the right to choose abortion, such as “The All-Party Parliamentary Pro-Choice Group”. They believe that the woman should be able to have an abortion without having to prove her reasons to doctors, until the 14th week of pregnancy. The “PCA”, as it is commonly called, say that it is wrong for a woman to have to explain their personal grounds for wanting a termination of the pregnancy to doctors, who then decide whether the abortion can be carried out or not. It is important to remember, however, that doctors have no special training that makes them more apt than a pregnant woman to make such a decision.
Christians might also offer counselling or support an organisation that provides this for people who have had abortions, as it can be a traumatic experience. Also, despite their beliefs that abortion can be acceptable, they may say that proper sex education should be provided, which is also how Roman Catholics might respond. Alternatively people take part in peaceful protests. They make placards with headings such as “Abortion kills children” and, if they are pro-choice, “My body, my choice,” or “Keep abortion legal”. Some free churches and extreme groups oppose Roman Catholics and other Christians for wanting abortion to be illegal. They protest, as Christians do, for their voices to be heard. Also, some Roman Catholics believe that abortion is not always morally unacceptable. The CFFC, or “Catholics For Free Choice” believes that couples should have the right to choose, as every circumstance is different. It depends upon the opinion of the person
1c) “Abortion is never justified.” Do you agree? Give reasons to support your answer and show that you have thought about different points of view. You must refer to Christianity in your answer.
I severely disagree with this statement. I believe that whoever wishes to have an abortion should be able to without judgement and without having to persuade two other people before it can go through. I do, however, believe it to be a very serious subject and should be thought through and discussed thoroughly with, perhaps, an unbiased third party i.e. a counsellor. Unless of course the mother is 100% certain of her decision and feels it unnecessary to do so though it would be advisable to inform the father of the child. My beliefs are very similar to those of the Pro-choice group as I agree that it should be easier for women to have abortions but I don’t wish to encourage this as the subject may not be taken as seriously as an abortion could be seen as “an easy way out”.
I also think that those under the age of 16 should be able to have abortions carried out without parental consent because although the young woman is under the age of consent to have sex, she is still capable of making decisions in her life. Also, if she were to tell her parents, they may not forgive her and might refuse her the option of having an abortion so she would have to suffer an unwanted pregnancy and might feel suicidal herself. If her parents were Roman Catholic for example, they may encourage her to give the baby up for adoption or offer to care for it themselves but the woman may wish otherwise, depending on career path, social stability and other key factors in her life, but what one must keep in mind is that “All life is sacred” and, Roman Catholics especially, would teach this when making such a decision.
I do understand that Christians believe abortion to be a form of murder because effectively it is taking a life, though the person is not developed enough to be recognised as a human and if it is to cause so much grief and trauma to the mother, surely abortion is the better option, for her at least? Abortion may benefit the person anyway as the health of the baby may be at risk during birth and the mother might suffer from depression (as a long-term effect) or health problems surrounding the pregnancy (short-term effects). It could also be argued that by making abortion illegal, as it is in Ireland due to the Catholic majority, it could encourage “back-street abortions”. This is dangerous for the mother, as the help she employs may be unsuitable or under trained and it would be illegal anyway so she could be charged. Is this right? Judgement cannot be passed for all circumstances and what would happen if it was detrimental to her health?
The Roman Catholic Church would disagree with me and argue by referring to the sixth of the Ten Commandments “Thou Shalt not murder”, which is of course a valid point. Also, Catholics believe that life begins from the moment of conception and this has been a key reason as to why they feel abortion should not be overlooked. However, Saint Thomas Aquinas, who was a Catholic philosopher, once claimed that “the soul of girls was implanted by God at 90 days and the soul of boys at 40 days”. This would cause controversy, as Roman Catholics usually impress upon their opposition to abortion. The Anglican Church, for example, might say that if this is true then surely it means that the life is not “present” until such a time. Roman Catholics may overlook this claim though, as they are strong believers that life begins at the moment of conception, as has been previously stated. Another argument is that “Natural Law” is being disregarded, as Catholics take the view that the natural consequence of pregnancy is childbirth! This is why they oppose the idea of using contraception and abortion is simply an extreme case of this, as it supports the same idea. Roman Catholics obviously want to preserve life in any way possible and this is why they see pregnancy as a privilege as opposed to a “burden”. The Church of England deems abortion to be acceptable in “few circumstances”. This means that if the mother is incapable of giving birth without endangering her life in the long or short term, then compassion should be shown in order to respect her wishes. By no means does it support abortion; it is described as “undesirable”, but the Anglican Church does not view it as “wrong”, like the Catholics may do.
The Quakers are pacifists and as a result they don’t actively support abortion though they feel that there is no easy answer. The biggest problem, they feel, is “whose life is more valuable?” That of the mother or of the infant? This group, along with other Protestant denominations such as Anglicans and Methodists, might support a form of what are called “Situation Ethics”. This is where the personal circumstances are taken into account and it is the most loving thing that is done, despite controversy. Christians might find this more appropriate than one overall “rule” because they may recognise the fact that society and social attitude has changed somewhat since the writing of the Bible and as a result some situations may need to be handled differently. For example, euthanasia, divorce, homosexuality etc are viewed differently to how they would have been in Biblical times.