Christians' Views on Abortion and Euthanasia
Abortion is the deliberate termination of a pregnancy. Pro Life is a
belief that abortion is murder, as life begins at the moment of
conception and Pro Choice is the belief that the woman who is pregnant
should make her own decision.
The Roman Catholic Church believes that abortion is murder. “Do not
kill” Exodus 20: 1-17 is one of the Ten Commandments, in their eyes
life begins at conception and so abortion would be classed as murder.
Pope Paul IV wrote a Human Vitae in which stated that it was an
absolute rule for human’s to accept abortion and the in 1970 the Roman
Catholic Church reiterated this view. Although there is a clause in
this belief, the doctrine of double effect. This means that, if it is
the primary objective to save a mother from a life threatening disease
but she is pregnant, everything in the doctor’s power must be done to
save the mother.
Another organization with the same view as the Roman Catholic Church
is SPUC. SPUC (Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child) aims to
‘defend and promote the existence and value of human life from the
moment of conception’ it is a non-religious pro-life organization. It
is also concerned about the welfare of mothers during pregnancy and
that of the child.
The Church of England believes that the foetus is God given life and
is to be ‘nurtured, supported and protected.’ The mother is to be
shown compassion, and her feelings and wishes are to be recognized.
Abortions are to be carried out early in pregnancy. They believe that
the number of abortions should be cut and more support should be given
to pregnant mums.
Some Christians that reject abortion support alternatives. If the baby
is not wanted then it can be put up for adoption. In addition, some
Christians will never accept abortion because they believe it is
murder. Some more alternatives to Abortion would be seeking help from
different organizations such as Social Services, NSPCC and Life.
Both Islam and Catholicism can be considered two major religions in the world. Ninian Smart’s seven dimensions of religion define key element in a religion. Despite the fact that the two religions are different, there are some factors which are similar between the two religions. Catholicism and Islam can be compared and contrasted through Smart’s Doctrinal and Ethical Dimensions, the history of these faith traditions in Australia and a contemporary issue of euthanasia. Through the evaluation of the Doctrinal and Ethical dimensions of religion, history and the perspectives on euthanasia, it will become clear that Catholicism and Islam are able to be compared and contrasted.
Christian Beliefs About Sanctity of Life in Relation to Abortion Christians believe in the sanctity of human life. They believe it is sacred and should not be treated badly or discarded thoughtlessly. Christians believe that God created the world and everything in it. including a man of the same name. They also believe that God created the world for good.
Pro choice vs pro life has divided people for numerous reasons. Abortion is expected to date back to the 1800s, it is now seen as taboo and inhumane to some. Fact of the matter, whether abortion is wrong or not it is the fight for giving a woman a natural right to her own body. For decades, legislators that are full of man have created laws and regulations on abortion. Abortion ideally ought to be pro choice for women everywhere for the victims' own protection, expanding young girls life opportunities, and individual freedom.
aspect of it has to be the loving thing to do then it is possibly
that matters is that of the woman the rule "life for a life, burn for
didn't want to wake me. Then he would begin to howl, like a dog. When
A Christian Response to Abortion or Euthanasia Abortion is the death of the foetus (life) from the mother's womb whether deliberate (operation/termination) or accidental (miscarriage). Christians are divided in their views on abortion. The Roman Catholic Church does not allow abortion. They do not agree on the precise moment in human development when a human person begins to exist.
Christians' Response to Abortion Contraception: A means of stopping conception (pregnancy) taking place by chemical or mechanical means. Abortion: Stopping the development of a foetus by chemical or mechanical means. There are many viewpoints on contraception from the different Christian churches. Most couples in today’s times feel they have the need to control the amount of children they have.
For many years, the morality of abortion has been questioned by two perspectives: pro-choice and pro-life. While modern culture explains that abortion is a woman’s free choice if she does not want the unborn baby, the Catholic Church teaches the world that from the moment of conception there is a child with a soul within the womb, and to abort it would be to murder an innocent being.
On United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, It is suggested that “As Catholic leaders and moral teachers, we believe that life is the most basic gift of a loving God- a gift over which we have stewardship but not absolute dominion.” They also suggest that the God will always offer them with bearable experience and an end shows distrust and disrespect to the God. All these opinions points out the disagreement of Catholics in euthanasia. It is a fact that in some parts of the world the religion plays a big part in the society. Therefore allowing euthanasia is obviously a measure to destruct religious beliefs so that we should ban it for the religious side. Yet there is a significant and growing percentage of non-Christians and liberal Christians in North America who do not accept these arguments, the number of opponents compared to that of people holding the previous point is still
Activist say that abortion is murder, having scientist to prove human life becomes real as soon as the fermentation process beings. One of God’s commandments states “you shall not kill”, which is extended to unborn children. Church continues to teach the results or procreation from the moment of the child’s existence including body and spirit as well. Women are apparently conflicted when choosing to get an abortion, feeling psychologically forced to have an abortion, that the people who are responsible for the peer pressure fall on people who encourage the spread their attitude toward sexual permissiveness and their lack of esteem towards motherhood, and not only is the mother of the child being aborted responsible but the father as
On January 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court, in two separate decisions, Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton, declared that Congress and the states had to adopt a policy on abortion. Since then, abortion has been one of the most controversial issues in our country today. Every time the subject of abortion is raised, the same question always comes up: should people have the right to terminate an unborn child? The answer is no. No person should have the right to terminate an unborn child which has not yet had the chance to live, no matter what the reason is. Abortion is the termination of an alive, unborn child, which can experience pain through the process of an abortion. There is no need to have an abortion when these children could be put up for adoption instead of being ıaborted.ġ Abortion is the termination of alive, unborn children. How can a person decide just when an unborn fetus becomes a person with constitutional rights. Many people disagree when a fetus becomes an actual person, but the truth is that a fetus becomes a person at the time of conception. An article entitled ıPro-lofe and pro-choice? Yesġ says that, ıFrom the moment of conception, the fetus is endowed with all the genetic information that will enable its development into a full human personġ (Church 108). Technology has advanced very much in the past twenty years and now with the aid of medical technology and the science of fetology, doctors can prove that a fetus is an actual person as early as thirteen weeks of growth (Meyer 62-64). These facts only help to prove that a fetus is an actual person, who deserves the chance to be born. Contrary to belief, a fetus can actually feel pain. The observation of abortions on ultrasound have been very disturbing. So disturbing, that many abortion doctors who have seen the procedure, refuse to participate in abortions again (Meyer 62-64). An article entitled ıFetal positions: Making Abortion rareġ reports that, ıBernard Nathanson, a former director of the National Abortion Rights Action League, who performed thousands of abortions, repudiated the practice in the early 1980's after observing the apparent agony of a fetus subjected to a suction-tip abortionġ (Meyer 62-64). Modern neurology supports the claim that the fetus can experience pain, not just reflex. Reflexive reactions stimulate only the spinal column, but the more complex reactions that stimulate pain occur in the tiny portion of the brain called the thalamus.
In examining religious opinions on abortion, one must find common ground on which to form a foundation of comparison. With most of the religions to date, that common ground lies on the argument of whether or not a fetus is an actual person. Some religions protest by saying a fetus isn't a conscious being -- therefore there is no loss in doing away with it. But for those religions that do believe there is a life -- or any spiritual being -- in a fetus, it is clearly a crime to have an abortion.
Euthanasia is described by the Oxford English Dictionary as ‘The bringing about of a gentle and easy death, especially in the case of incurable and painful diseases’ .
As stated multiple times; Psalm 139:13-16, speaks of God’s active role in or creation and formation in the womb, therefore this states God makes all fetus/ people for a certain reason and this means God does not want abortion otherwise why would he make them. Exodus 21:22-25, prescribes the same penalty, death, for someone who causes the death of a baby in the womb as for someone who commits murder, this clearly indicates that God then considers a fetus/ baby in the womb as to be the same as a full-grown adult, this then means God indicates abortion is wrong. Christian’s beliefs of abortion is it not a matter of a woman’s right to choose, it is a matter of the life or death of a human being made in God’s image, Genesis 1:26-27, 9:6. The first argument that fights against the Christian stance on abortion is “What about cases of rape and/or incest?” two wrongs do not make a right. The child who is born of rape/incest could be given in adoption to a loving family and are unable to have children on their own. The baby is innocent therefore should not be punished for the acts of its father. The Roman Catholic Church says abortion is a grave moral wrong. As based on the written word of God and natural law, as they prohibit abortion under any circumstances, "You shall not kill the embryo by abortion and shall not cause the new born to perish". As