I believe abortion is acceptable by most people when the life of the mother would be endangered in birth?

Question

It is understandable that many people would object to killing a perfectly healthy baby by abortion. But what if a baby was to be born with severe retardation or brain damage. Or with a sireous uncorrectable physical defect. What if it would be born with its head on backwards. Would any of these reasons be justification for abortion? sireous comments please.
B.B.

Answer 1

If you have never been in any of these situations then how can you even have an oppinion on them?
My wife and I have been there and quit honestly I take offense to the way this question was presented here.Sometimes you do not have a option like this person makes it sound.

When a baby is in the womb under these conditions it is a doctor and a counselar that discuss your options with you.You do not make a decision on the spot to abort the baby.The chances of the fetuses/babies survival are laid out in front of you,The expected lifespan of the baby after it is born is presented to you.They give you COLD STRAIGHT FACTS and do not sugar coat the truth.

It is a surgical procedure that you go through to terminate the pregnancy,Not an abortion. You don't just go to some seedy abortion clinic and abort the baby like the person asking this question makes it sound !
You go into a local hospital with a gynocologist specializing with these situations and him and a proffesional medical staff terminate the pregnancy. The surgical procedure they perform does not fall under abortion laws of any state since it is not considered to be an abortion.
Abortion is such a harsh nasty,unfitting,cold hearted and biased word to use.
Until you have been there then you should not put your two cents in and attempt to make someone feel like they are less of a person for going through such a terrible decision.
Most birth defects that the question asker posted are cases of trisomy18 which is very severe case of retardation beyond what you see when you see or know a parent who is raising a child with down syndrome.
Trisomy 18 is unpreventable and is not a result of the parents bad life decisions such as drugs and alcohol. Many people are uneducated and misinformed on this subject. It is a genetic mishap that happens to 1 in every 3000 conceptions or an even lower birth rate of 1 in every 6,000 births. I provided a link for anyone who wishes to read about the facts and try to understand exactly what circumstances some unfortunate parents face when they are told that their unborn child has trisomy 18.

Answer 2

It seems to me that whenever there's a debate about abortion, Christian men always seem to be most adamant that women not get abortions. Unfortunately, these same men don't offer to care for the babies either.

However, that being said... what IF the life of the mother is endangered? What if she has 2 or 3 more children at home? Isn't is her responsibility to raise those children if she has the option? Would the other children resent this new baby because he "killed" mommy?

What IF the child is handicapped, either physically or mentally? What about the parent? What if the parent knows they can't handle a handicapped child... either monetarily or emotionally? Is it ever a good idea to put a child into a home where the parent doesn't want him?

What IF the mother has an unplanned pregnancy? I know, I know... if you don't want to be pregnant, don't get pregnant. However, what about the 12 year old who was just raped by her father? What about the 16 year old who was convinced she was in love? What about the 28 year old who is married and abusing the children she already has? What about the 32 year old who is pregnant and doesn't have two dimes to rub together? What about the 43 year old who gets pregnant during menopause and has already raised her family?

There are many, many reasons women have abortions. Although I've been fortunate enough to never have to deal with these decisions myself, someone else's religious beliefs shouldn't impose on these already difficult and heart-breaking decisions. A little compassion for the women going through the abortion process would be nice for a change.

Answer 3

Absolutely, I personally would say your examples are acceptable.

But really, the issue is not so much what is acceptable or not to everybody else, but who has permission to decide each individual case. This is at heart a decision that rests on the spiritual, religious and ethical beliefs of the people in question, especially the pregnant woman. SHE is the one who must have the religious freedom to determine what SHE believes to be correct.

Personally, I rest my position on the scientific evidence that fetuses are not capable of feeling *anything* until the portion of their brain has developed which can actually produce some measure of consciousness such as the experience of pleasure or pain. These structures in the brain do not develop until the second trimester. Until that occurs, all movement is simply a matter of nerve response without any conscious direction on the part of the fetus.

The second thing I rest my position on is that actual persons (i.e. the pregnant woman) merits more consideration than potential persons (i.e. the fetus).

So in my view, all abortions in the first trimester which are freely chosen by pregnant women are permissible. Abortions in the second trimester and beyond need very careful consideration which would include scenarios you mentioned above.

P.S. I definitely agree with Mattdriver that abortions chosen for medical reasons are heartbreaking and absolutely must be decided by the people involved. My heart goes out to all people who face such a difficult decision.

Answer 4

The mother's life if the only reason why i could see reason for a abortion. Nowadays, they are trying to make it so young teenage girls can stop by the clinic and have it done without the parents permission. Realistically, there are young women who has had more than 3 abortions by the age of 18. Not only is it killing babies, but it can be harmful to the young girl emotionally and physically.

Answer 5

A difficult question. As a Christian, I have no choice but to avoid abortion. We are corporate beings, meaning these unfortunate issues are the result of our sins. For me, abortion is like putting a sick neighbor out of his misery by poisoning him. Let the baby be born to the care of a good Christian community. In the case of danger to the mother, let the doctors try to save both without prejudice, and leave the rest to fate. Legally, however, I think the mother should have the choice.


.

Answer 6

The point is that all life is precious and of God. A deformed, retarded, brain damaged person is no less a person. It may be difficult in our society to accept such a person, but just because we feel uncomfortable or put out does not mean this life is any less a human being.

We are not in a position to say that someone is better off dead. We cannot decide that this person's life will be too difficult so we'll just kill it now. There are so many stories I've read of the blessings a deformed or retarded child has brought to their parents. This child is a blessing just as all are, and parents who lovingly accept all their children as gifts of God know this.

99% of all abortions are for convenience...it's rare that a mother's life is in danger. Understanding that we are eternal beings, here for only a short time, changes how we view life and death. Each of us is created in the image of God and given life by God's own hand. Therefore, we do not have the right to rate a person's value in this world. We do not get to decide which lives are worthwhile and which are not.

Answer 7

I'd like the to see the people who say "no abortion under any circumstances" to have their wife die in an ill-advised childbirth or care for children so disabled that they'll never even learn to talk, read or wipe their own ***. And I'd like to follow up and ask them "was it really worth it?".

I'm pro choice in that I think abortion should be allowed for whatever reason the woman feels fit. It should be their decision, not ours or politicians' or the clergy's.

Answer 8

Actually, the Bible states that if the child endangers the life of the mother, abortion is recommended. Not so sure about those other situations, as they are extremely rare, and so not really suitable for use in the argument.

Answer 9

It is not uncommon that medical professionals and people are faced with situations, where a life must be jeopardized or even sacrificed to protect and save another life. Only under these circumstances would I condone abortion. A child having a disability is not a justification for abortion.

Here are some sites worth looking at,

http://www.sbaa.org/site/c.liKWL7PLLrF/b.2642297/k.5F7C/Spina_Bifida_Association.htm

http://www.autism-society.org/site/PageServer

Answer 10

Sorry, but don't believe in abortion in any circumstance. I understand what you're saying and I felt like that at one time...that there could be exceptions. Then I realized that what I was saying is that it's okay to trust God completely that He knows what He's doing *unless*.........

Also, I think if you look at the these people born with "defects," you'd realize they DO have a quality of life and we don't really have the right to judge it as better or worse than our own.

Many things are in the eye of the beholder...not just beauty.