This topic invites us to explore what biblical principles might guide our understanding of life and its sanctity. #BiblicalViewOnAbortion#ChristianPerspectiveOnLife#SanctityOfLife#FaithAndLifeIssues#ScriptureOnLife
Abortion is a deeply personal and complex issue that raises many questions for people of faith. While the Bible doesn’t directly mention abortion, there are various verses and themes throughout Scripture that touch on the value of life, God’s design for humanity, and His care for the vulnerable.
What Scriptures or principles come to mind when you think about this topic? How can we approach such a challenging issue with wisdom and compassion?
It is certainly true that the sanctity of life and the idea of life beginning in the womb have support in the Bible. It is also certainly true that both the Jews and early Christians would have been extremely “pro-life” in today’s jargon, in contrast to literally every other culture of the time.
That being said, the sanctity of life is flexible in other contexts - war, capital punishment, self-defense and others. These contexts recognize there are nuances to this sanctity. I believe a Christian view of abortion must at least consider and address the nuances on which the “pro-choice” folks rely.
The mistake, I believe, is what we see today and what we DIDN’T see in the evangelical community in the 1960s and 1970s when the abortion debate was likewise raging and Roe v. Wade came down: Abortion is MURDER, God HATES it, there are no nuances, and NO TRUE CHRISTIAN could POSSIBLY hold any contrary view under any circumstances.
IMHO, the abortion issue should be dealt with in terms of intelligent, nuanced discussions that seek to minimize the need for this ghastly procedure, not by taking inflexible (somewhat dubious) “biblical” positions or screaming “Jesus is Lord” at pro-choice rallies.
Not just being snide here, but simply making a point about nuance. (Which also raises the age-old question, “Is God exempt from his own morality?” If God suddenly commanded abortion, would supporting it become the obligation of every True Christian?)
"Now go and smite Amalek and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.” 1 Samuel 15:3.
“Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.” Ezekiel 9:6.
“Their infants will be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses will be looted and their wives violated.” Isaiah 13:16.
It’s easy to label abortion as a sin and think about it as a black and white issue, but this viewpoint often causes us to neglect loving our neighbors. And as this Christianity.com article reminds us, we likely come into contact with women who had an abortion regularly–possibly every Sunday.
How do we take a biblical stand and condemn sin while not failing to love those for whom Christ died–yes, even those who have had an abortion?
I contribute to Mission Pre-Born, which has a high success rate of simply showing abortion candidates an ultrasound of their fetus in the womb. Something like 80% decide not to have the abortion.
I don’t really think discussions in terms of “murder” or even “sin” are helpful. I believe the effort should be entirely educational, with a focus on (1) what a fetus actually is, as Mission Pre-Born is doing; (2) the ghastliness of the abortion procedure and the abortion industry; and (3) the many alternatives to not getting pregnant in the first place or placing an unwanted child with an adoptive family. Abortion will never be completely eliminated, but it seems to me a civilized society should do everything it can to minimize the need and frequency - which can be done without off-putting religious fanaticism.
Abortion is a medical procedure. Like any other medical procedure, the decision should be left to the patient and the physician. The government should not dictate medical care.
Abortion is a medical procedure with a moral dimension. Would you likewise say the government should stay out of assisted suicide, gender-altering surgery and other procedures with a moral dimension? Your position would equate an abortion with an appendectomy or nose job. Is the fetus just a nuisance, of no greater significance than a faulty appendix or unflattering nose? This is certainly one position, but it’s a curious one that few people hold. Most people, be they pro-life or pro-choice, at least recognize a moral dimension to the issue.
Don’t state what my position is, as you obviously don’t understand the issue. And your going off on a bizarre tangent clearly shows this.
Clearly you have no understanding of abortion, which is a valid medical
procedure. Are you in favor of a mother dying (and the fetus also) when an abortion could save her? Should a young teenager be forced to deliver her rapist’s child?
Oh, then apparently you ARE in favor of pro-abortion government regulation, just not anti-abortion government regulation? It seems to me that you are the one who is confused. Far from a bizarre tangent, the analogies to assisted suicide and gendering-altering care are quite apt - you see no moral dimension there either? Like so many with one-dimensional positions on complex issues, it appears to me that your notions of whether the government has any business regulating abortion are selective.
I’ll leave you to whatever your “position” is, but if your position is that an abortion is “just a medical procedure” regardless of whether it occurs one nanosecond after conception or one nanosecond before birth … well, then as I said, you fail to see the moral dimension and your views are at odds with the VAST majority of both pro-choice and pro-life folks. Injecting the tired “dying mother” and “rapist’s child” scenarios is scarcely a nuanced view of abortion since they account for a minsicule percentages of abortions.
Aborting a completely viable 9-month old unborn who would be a “blessed child” one second after birth is “just a medical procedure” for you, and the government has no business being involved? Wow.
Your need to be insulting overshadows any opinion that you might write. You may think that I am confused, but that is much better than being hostile. An ad hominem attack is a clear sign that you have nothing of value to say.
Touchy, touchy, touchy,@Benny. You tell me that I “don’t understand the issue,” “clearly have no understanding of abortion,” and have “gone off on a bizarre tangent.” Fine, no ad hominem there, at least in your mind. No problem anyway - I’m a big boy.
I then suggest that “you seem to be the one who is confused” and OH, MY GOD, this is an insulting ad hominem attack and you are no longer going to put up with my “hostility.” Uh-huh, whatever.
I believe I have a rather solid grasp of the abortion issue. My opinion may or may not strongly disagree with yours, but I am having difficulty following what yours actually IS.
You stated that abortion is a medical procedure, strictly between the woman and her doctor, and the government has no business “dictating” medical care. If this is your view, then presumably an abortion one minute after conception and an abortion one minute before birth are both just “medical procedures.” An abortion of a 9-month-old unborn one minute before birth is “just a medical procedure” and the government has no business being involved.
I pointed out that this perspective isn’t shared even by most pro-choice proponents, who do see a moral dimension that is appropriate for government involvement in the case of a 9-month old unborn. If you see no moral dimension, you are in a distinct minority.
Clarify your position and perhaps you will appear less confused. You didn’t answer “You’re darn right, abortion is just a medical procedure and there is no moral dimension to a medical procedure even at 9 months.” Instead, you went directly to the knee-jerk scenarios of “Oh, yeah, what about rape and saving the life of the mother?” We could and do have extensive governmental involvement that would allow for abortion in those circumstances, so your response doesn’t really mesh with your point that government has no business being involved.
If you think that I would continue this discussion with you, you are seriously mistaken. I have ZERO interest in discussing this issue (or probably any other) with you. Have a nice life – somewhere else.
Wow, I’ve been ordered off the forum by @Benny, who’s been here even less time than I have and has a grand total of 26 posts! I’ll have to check with @Fritzpw_Admin as to why Benny has these “ordering people to leave” privileges and I don’t.
Lighten up, Benny. You never have explained what your position is, and you’ve responded with snarling hostility to posts that simply didn’t warrant it. I take it that you’re extremely pro-choice, but do you seriously think that an abortion at 9 months is “just a medical procedure” with no moral dimension and no room for governmental regulation?
