For people of all faiths (or not of any faith)... abortion?

Question

Someone just asked a Q relating to abortion and when exactly life begins, and I thought I'd ask some similar questions, just for clarity's sake. Are you pro-life or pro-choice? Are you that way because of your religion or some other reason? What do your religious leaders have to say on the subjects of abortion, adoption, miscarriage, birth control, when life begins, and stem-cell research?

I mean for this to be a philosophical debate, not a religious duel, OK? I hate having to put this disclaimer on here, but some nuts just can't discuss this in a civilized way, you know?

Someone said they didn't know that you could have an opinion on miscarriage. I mean, some people think that it is somehow the mother's fault as a result of her sin or something, and if anyone holds that belief, could you please explain it in more detail to me?

I said "pro-choice" not as in "pro-abortion" but as in "pro-right-to-choose". I personally don't like abortion, but I don't think I or anyone else should have the right to take that option away from a woman.

Answer 1

I'm pro-choice. While it may be wrong to kill the innocent, until you are faced with the crisis of an unwanted pregnancy, it's unfair to react with an unjust reaction.

Is it a life? Yes. As a Christian I believe that it is God's will to do what He likes. If that means a baby being aborted, then so be it. All the Bible beaters who claim that God is upset with the mothers who aborted their babies just sicken me. It's time for Christians to get off their high horse and believe that they have the right to communicate to God for everyone.

I'm also against ridding the world of legalized abortion. Making it illegal is just going to make the women go to unsantized places and risk infection and death.

Answer 2

I'll put my two cents in and get my two points too. Way before I was ever christian I believed that abortion was wrong. To judge and decide who is good enough to live or die is wrong. We do have a choice we can choose to not have sex. I wonder how many Elvis Presley's or Oprah Winfrey's we've aborted just because we could? I got pregnet when I was 18 and had my son when I was 19. I wasn't religious but I knew he was a soul and it was up to me to let him come into this world. He has been the one who saved me in a sense because I was going down the wrong path and I stopped my life and became a mother and changed my ways. He has been the biggest blessing. I went on and married and had more children. Souls are precious as is life. I can't imagine my life without him. Everyone else thought abortion was a good idea including his father that I didn't stay with. I went it alone but I am so glad he is in the world. I had to choose if I wanted to give him up for adoption and I chose to keep him. I did this without a religion, just a intution that I knew he was a life. So many people want to adopt- why not let them if you really don't want to raise a baby. but to kill -why? In this day and age there is no need. We all know about birth controll, condoms, stds, and every sex act known to man. Its all out there so why act like its the only option? Oh by the way the baby is both the man's and the woman's. Why does he get no say? Some fathers make much better parents than some mothers. Peace,

Answer 3

The way the question is asked misses the point. All of us take life routinely, for example when we swat flies and mosquitos or even when we kill germs by using mouthwash or antibiotics. Unless you think that those actions are immoral (in fact, as bad as abortion), the important moral question for you must not be whether or not the thing aborted is "life", but something else.

An embryo, fetus, fertilized, or even unfertilized egg is a living thing, and therefore it is life, but again, that's not the important question. I believe that abortion is not necessarily wrong, but I do believe that what is aborted is alive.

A slightly better question is whether or not the thing aborted is a human being, or a human life. There isn't any clear answer on that - it's a matter of definition in an area with no agreement. I certainly think that it's ridiculous to label a fertilized egg a "human being": apparently the antiabortionists do not. Underlying the antiabortionists' reasoning is almost certainly the notion of a "soul", and since there is no such thing (nor even any agreement on what a "soul" is), that reasoning is simply wrong.

A far more reasonable stance is to ask where along the development of the fetus we have a being that shares measurable characteristics that distinguish between human and nonhumans (or between things to which we have moral obligations and those to which we do not). Antiabortionists' bumper stickers read "Abortion stops a beating heart", but so does killing a mouse, fly, or mosquito. Stopping a beating heart cannot be what makes abortion wrong when it is. Similarly, antiabortionists love to claim that a fetus can feel pain at a certain early point in development. Whether or not they're right is up in the air, but again, we do not uniformly hold "feeling pain" as the standard dividing things to which we have moral obligations from those to which we do not.

I personally think that a far better standard has to do with brain development and the point at which the being has experiences. That which experiences the world is a being towards which we have moral obligations. This almost certainly includes late-term fetuses, and therefore I believe that abortion of those fetuses is wrong, and should be prevented. It almost certainly does not include embryos in the first few weeks of development, and therefore abortion of those embryos is perfectly okay morally (as is the research use of "human" fetal stem cells, and "Plan B" pills that prevent fertilized eggs from implanting). Incidentally, this standard also properly puts many animals including almost all mammals into the category of beings towards which we have moral responsibility.

Regardless of where we draw the line, the antiabortionists' ridiculous insistence that a fertilized egg is a human being completely undermines their claim to be "pro-life", and is the main reason why I don't for a moment believe that they are sincere in their efforts. As long as the antiabortion movement holds that standard, I will be convinced that they are after political power, and have no interest at all in protecting lives.

That hypocracy is also revealed in the hilariously transparent dishonesty of the antiabortionists' billboards that blare out the message "life begins at conception!"...right next to a photograph of an infant. Of course that photograph immediately undermines the message, and reveals the billboard to be simply propaganda for people simply too dense to realize that they're being shamelessly manipulated.

Answer 4

I don't have a religious leader (atheist) so I'll just answer with my views:

abortion: pro-choice and I think 'life' begins at consciousness. It is ideal that abortion never be necessary, but accidents and medical issues happen.

adoption: A respectable option for anyone who is pregnant yet not ready for kids. It would be nice if more people would adopt older children who are stuck in foster care. Also, more people should consider adoption when deciding to start a family (especially if they happen to be anti-abortion).

miscarriage: Quite often the woman will miscarry before even realizing she was pregnant (these go un-noticed and are harmless). Miscarriages later in pregnancy are quite distressful to the parents. Is it a baby? no, not unless by some odd circumstance the miscarriage occurred very late in pregnancy.

birth control: A must for anyone who doesn't want children. If everyone used birth control correctly it would greatly reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies and abortions.

stem-cell research: Any research is good and I don't find any ethical issues with the process.

Answer 5

I am pro-life, I think abortion is wrong unless the pregnancy is under severe circumstances like rape, incest, or some horrible thing like that. I don't think a woman should be forced to have a child that was forced on her. If it is a matter of life and death for the mother I would not be against the abortion to save the mother's life. I really don't feel like it is my place to tell another woman what to do with her body, but abortion isn't something I would do.

It's not so much my religion but just my own personal values that make me feel this way about abortion. I was raised Catholic and Catholics tend to be very much against abortion but they are also against birth control, pre-marital sex and all that. So I think it is just how I feel.

When life truly begins always seems to be a huge debate. I would think it begins upon conception, when you have a fertilized egg. In my opinion I think life starts when the egg becomes implanted. I know there are a lot of theories on the subject but that is what I think.

I think it is really hard to combine religion and science, there is no common ground on those two subjects. So if they can't agree on how the world began, who created man or how we got here, they will not be able to come up with a solid answer on any of those subjects either.

Answer 6

I am pro-choice. Although this is weird because I believe that abortion is morally wrong. I feel that it is murder, and there are very very limited circumstances that would ever make it ok (like if the pregnancy severely affected the health of the mother, or in the cases of rape or incest). I do not think I could ever choose abortion for myself. With that said, I am still pro-choice. I am pro-choice for two reasons: 1) who I am to impose my beliefs on another person? Although I feel abortion is wrong, it is also wrong for me to force someone else to feel the same way. And #2 (the big reason I'm pro-choice): if we don't legalize abortion, that doesn't mean no abortions will take place. It's like drugs, just because its illegal doesn't mean it goes away. I'd rather have women and girls have safe, clean abortions with a licensed professional than girls having illegal, hanger-in-an-alley type abortions that are crude, and EXTREMELY UNSAFE.

As far as birth control, I totally agree with it. I think it is a smart, safe practice, that even as a Christian, I have no problem with. Personally, I believe in abstaining from sex until marriage, so there really is no need for birth control (except I and many other women use the pill purely for menstrual control) but if you are going to have sex, in or out of wedlock, then I think if you want to use birth control, go for it. As for stem cell research, as long as they won't have to kill a fetus or cause an abortion/miscarriage, then I am all for the advancement of science and medicine.

Answer 7

I don't care what anyone in my church says or anyone else but God. I read the bible and go by it and it alone. As for being pro life or whatever, I believe when a child is conceived it should be taken to full term and if the mother does not want it, put it up for adoption but don't kill it even in the case of rape. In the case of a mother that has to make a choice between her life and the unborn baby, that should be between her and God. Miscarriage means there is something terrible wrong with the pregnancy so it is God's way of letting it go. Abortion should not be as available as it is or done as much but in rare cases, why not if that is what is the best all around for the baby and mother but only in rare occasions and it needs to be between the mother and God. Stem cell research should be done as they are going to destroy the stem cells anyway so why not make it go for something that can save lives rather than being such a prude and letting them go to waste when they could do so much good.

Answer 8

1) Pro-life
2) Before I was a Christian, scientists had determined that life begins at conception, so that was at that time the moral 'high ground'. Since becoming a Christian, I've also learned of God's hatred against the taking of innocent life, morally 'even higher ground'.
3) Men's responses mean little to me over God's responses on these issues, but most of the pastors and teachers I listen to agree with the majority of the following stands:
a) Abortion is murder. In cases of incest and rape, a government has the right to allow it as a point of "earthly justice", providing that the choice is fully informed (including other options). 'Clinical' abortions to remove a dead fetus are not murder, but the remains of the fetus should be treated with the same dignity as ANY deceased human. "The life of the mother" discussion requires a two thirds consent between father, mother, and physician, but ALL parties must be informed (can't exclude the father), and the mother MUST BE one of the 2 consenting. This is a moral decision that the parents will have to live with the rest of their lives.
b) Adoption is a culturally, societally, and Biblicly correct and acceptable alternative to abortion.
c) Miscarriage is a natural result of ill health or other medical anomally of either the mother or fetus, and if it is not medicly preventable, it is not preventable. The fetus (if possible) should be treated with the same respect as any other deceased human.
d) Birth control is a moral choice which should be dealt with individually by MARRIED COUPLES. Outside of marriage, the only proper 'birth control' is abstinence, because it is the ONLY method that is 100% successful. If you're going to take chances outside of marriage, don't complain if you get pregnant!
e) Life begins at conception. Period. If the embryo is allowed to grow and be born (the continuation of the natural process), it will be born, and if in the U.S., it will be a citizen. The U.S. Constitution requires the individual states to protect illegal immigrants from harm because through the natural course of events they MIGHT become citizens (in 3 to 7 years). The same ruling should apply to unborn children (for 9 months).
f) Stem cell research - over 40 cures / treatments have been developed from ADULT stem cells, but so far, not even a hint of cure or treatment from embryonic stem cells. The embryonic stem cell research is being pushed by companies who intend to have a future in cloning humans and harvesting embryonic body parts for sale. It's all a lie to get a foot in the door to justify activities that would have made Hitler blush!

Answer 9

Im pro life, i believe that all life is vaulable and sacred and children are a gift, not a matter of convienience. This core belief is based in my relgion but not completely it just seems right to me not to intentionally kill or make decisions that end with a death.

As for your other things you mentioned Adoption is based on love cant go wrong there, Miscarriage - who knows why terrible things happen. Birth control - seems to me like a logical choice to stop something from creating life so that people who dont want that life in there world can stop it before it even takes place, Stem Cell research i think is going to end up being next door to useless, the guy whos "findings" were published that started this push for stem cell research were bogus (this has been documented)

And no one knows when life begins.. that is the problem but i think its important to err on the side of caution then just speculation. or to say something is ok to do because no one knows (this really doesnt make sense and has been used by pro choicers alot theyll say "you dont know when life begins" when they forget the fact that they dont know either)

Answer 10

I will not pretend to have a clue as to when life begins, but I very strongly believe that pregnancies caused by rape, incest, etc., should not be forced to continue.
I remember a story several years ago about a 9 year old girl that was not allowed to have an abortion after being raped only because the judge didnt believe in it. She had the baby, then shortly thereafter was back in court because she couldnt take care of it, and the baby was taken away. Now, her life, the baby's life, and the family's life are destroyed by a violent act.
I can't really decide about other instances of abortion, I just dont know enough to make a good decision...