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Abortion as a religious issue
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It is quite clear from a variety of sources that abortion has been severely disapproved of in the Buddhist tradition. It is also equally clear that abortion has been tolerated in Buddhist Japan and accommodated under exceptional circumstances by some modern Buddhists in the U.S. The situation is similar to that of Roman Catholicism, where abortion, though disapproved of in the strongest terms by Church authorities, is still practiced by a large number of devoted Catholics and defended by at least a few.
As a Buddhist, I would most likely still be for abortion. Buddhism itself speaks with more than one moral voice on this issue against abortion. The core belief in Buddhism is against abortion, but there are commonly people of this religion that don’t agree with that. For the time in which I will be writing this essay, I am one of those people. Most of my fellow Buddhists believe in the point that you should not be able to choose one life over another. For this reason, abortion cannot be rightly practiced.
Although there are exceptions, Buddhism is still an antiabortion religion, it’s just somewhat lenient. Unlike Roman Catholicism, abortion isn’t just a flat out “no” in this religion. “The abortion issue usually hinges on whether the fetus is indeed a life in the relevant sense.” (Michael Barnhart) In its early stages, a fetus is not considered a human yet to Buddhists. It is alive, but not a human being. Therefore in some cases abortion can be appropriate. “One cannot say t...
Born in Lhamo Dhondrub, 6 July 1935, he was a peasant raised in a village called Takster in the northeastern of Tibet. The Dalai Lama has three main commitments that they carry out. First, their promotion of compassion, forgiveness, tolerance, contentment and self discipline around the world. Second, promoting religious peace and harmony of world religions traditions. Third, carrying the name of the ‘Dalai Lama to protect the Tibet’s peaceful Buddhist culture. For the ethical issues of abortion, the Dalai Lama creates a great impact ob Buddist adherents decisions on this case due to his teachings. Stated on the 28/11/1993, “Abortion, form a Buddhist viewpoint, is an act of killing and is negative”, is a teaching that he reiterates that came from the Buddhist teachings of five precepts. Through this promotion of the Buddhist teachings, this impacts the adherents more greatly as this is also coming from the voice of Buddhism. However, in some cases, the Dalai Lama states “If the unborn child will be retorted or if the birth will creates serious problems for the parent, these cases where there can be an exception. I thing abortion should be approved or disapproved according to each circumstance.”, simply emphasises that in some circumstances, abortion may be acceptable depending on the
Abortion is one of the most debated topics, some people believe it is immoral while others support this issue. Abortion is define as termination of pregnancy before birth. This article was published by Dennis Prager, who wrote a story that was titled, “Jews and Abortion”. I decided to review this article because most of the world religions are anti-abortion but some religions do allow it. For example, Judaism does not prohibit abortion, it’s one of the many religions that does not perceive abortion as murder, and rather they see it as a need if the mother's life becomes at risk due to the pregnancy. In Judaism an abortion can only be perform only if the child will directly cause the mother to die if it is not aborted.
Abortion has been a political, social, and personal topic for many years now. The woman’s right to choose has become a law that is still debated, argued and fought over, even though it has been passed. This paper will examine a specific example where abortion is encouraged, identify the Christian world views beliefs and resolution as well as the consequences of such, and compare them with another option.
In the mainstream Christianity, abortions are not considered in the bible, but it is not viewed as something good. However, the Catholic and Orthodox Church oppose late-term abortion in almost any situations. Hinduism has many varied views towards it, but the original and traditional text condemns elective abortions. In the Islamic faith, late-term abortion is not permissible because it is over four months of pregnancy. Sikhism interdicts late-term abortion because it states that people shall not interfere in the...
Many arguments in the abortion debate assume that the morality of abortion depends upon the moral status of the foetus. While I regard the moral status of the foetus as important, it is not the central issue that determines the moral justifiability of abortion. The foetus may be awarded a level of moral status, nevertheless, such status does not result in the prescription of a set moral judgement. As with many morally significant issues, there are competing interests and a variety of possible outcomes that need to be considered when making a moral judgement on abortion. While we need to determine the moral status of the foetus in order to establish the type of entity we are dealing with, it does not, however, exist in a moral vacuum. There are other key issues requiring attention, such as the moral status and interests of the pregnant woman who may desire an abortion, and importantly, the likely consequences of aborting or not aborting a particular foetus. Furthermore, I assert that moral status should be awarded as a matter of degree, based upon the capacities of sentience and self-consciousness an entity possesses. In a bid to reach a coherent conclusion on the issue, the moral status of both foetus and woman, along with the likely results of aborting a particular foetus, must be considered together. Given the multiple facets requiring consideration, I assert that utilitarianism (Mill 1863) offers a coherent framework for weighing and comparing the inputs across a variety of situations, which can determine whether it is ever morally justifiable to have an abortion.
Abortion may not be a personal choice but it is a grave offense against The Creator and His creation. Being pro-life has always been an issue in religion and primary in its statuses have been Catholics across the country. Church teaching on abortion is clear and unequivocal. There are no omissions or compromises. If you believe in living life, abortion should never be an option. "Pregnancy termination" stops the beating heart of a growing human being and is basically reversing the most basic principle of human nature. It leaves America out to be a country that is unable to replicate itself without the support of immigration. You were once a child that lived life breathed air. But now you are an abortionist, a person that kills babies. If you don’t feel bad about your deeds, then I will for you. You couldn’t possibly abort a child & feel like it was the 100% positive & perfect thing to do. You couldn’t possibly feel “productive” afterwards. Even though this may not...
This issue of abortion also belongs to larger issues such as religious and ethical. People with the religious background have a set of values based on the Bible and believe that pro-life should be the only stand people take into consideration in order to protect human life and keep the baby alive. The other class is ethical. From this stand people can choose whether or not they believe abortion is the right thing to do and can make their own choice based on their values, regardless of what religion they are. Because abortion is such a widespread issue, it is crucial that we come up with an agreement on what is best and what steps are necessary in getting to that agreement.
In our society, there are many ethical dilemmas that we are faced with that are virtually impossible to solve. One of the most difficult and controversial issues that we are faced with is abortion. There are many strong arguments both for and against the right to have an abortion which are so complicated that it becomes impossible to resolve. The complexity of this issue lies in the different aspects of the argument. The essence of a person, rights, and who is entitled to these rights, are a few of the many aspects which are very difficult to define. There are also issues of what circumstances would justify abortion. Because the issue of abortion is virtually impossible to solve, all one can hope to do is understand the different aspects of the argument so that if he or she is faced with that issue in their own lives, they would be able to make educated and thoughtful decisions in dealing with it.
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.
Abortion is a voluminous topic today all around the world. Differing viewpoints on abortion are recognized in politics, religion, and throughout the general population. There is a small amount of people who are nonchalant on the subject. Women have abortions for many different reasons and according to certain groups these reasons are either justified or not. Everyone tends to have their own articulated opinion, and many vocalize tenaciously what they believe. Pro-life individuals along with religion are sanguine that abortion is ethically and morally erroneous. Whereas those who are pro-choice say that abortion is inconsequential and the mother’s choice is more important than the fetus. Reasons to not get an abortion include risks involved in receiving an abortion. In some cases death can occur. However, there are other alternatives to abortion. For example, raising the child and adoption.
The Divine command theory states that morally right actions are those commanded by God, and any action going against it is morally wrong. People that accept this theory can only consider an act to be right or wrong if God commanded it to be so. Therefore, supporters of this theory have a moral obligation to do and obey whatever God considered to be right without questioning his judgment. Those in favor of this theory should fulfill his will without any hesitation, regardless of its consequences to society. So if God had claimed abortion to be morally right, everyone supporting this theory were to happily accept it. Moreover, this theory suggests that those who act on a moral sense God desires will be rewarded at the end, perhaps in the afterlife;
However after long time, abortion remains question under discussions. There are strong arguments both for and against abortion. Therapeutic abortion that is one of the most disputable topic in modern society is evident capable of generating intense passions, that lead to a great number of other social issues. In recent decades, on a global scale there is increasing pressure for changes in abortion which could lead to a various consequences.
Abortion is defined as a procedure that is done to remove an embryo or fetus from the uterus of its mother in order to prevent its birth (Roth, 2005). Abortion is categorized as a bioethical issue because it relates to the morals of biomedical advances, policies and research. Abortion is a difficult subject that can involve personal morals and beliefs, legality and religious values. The issue is often viewed from either the side of pro-life, which places emphasis on the fetus and its right to life or pro-choice, which emphasizes the rights of the mother to decide the appropriate action (Roth, 2005). This brings the ethical question of should the government have the right to outlaw abortion into debate. The two viewpoints of pro-life and pro-choice explore the two main moral issues concerning abortion (Roth, 2005).
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.
Norgren, C. A. E., ACLS Humanities E-Book (Organisation), History E-Book Project., & American Council of Learned Societies. (2001). Abortion before birth control: The politics of reproduction in postwar Japan. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press.