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There is little else sure to divide people than the issue of abortion. There are those who insist that every life is worth protecting, even the unborn. Others believe that the thing growing inside a woman is a lump of tissue, not a full human whose right to “live” supersedes a woman’s right to choose what’s done with her body. Only one can be true, so which is it?
A careful discussion
We can’t approach this topic without gentleness. Abortion is a painful subject to many, making it critical to approach it with care and love. The aim of this isn’t to shame, ridicule, or attack anyone with a connection to abortion. Instead, we will try to show the reality of what an aborted fetus truly is so that we can understand how we, as Christians, should approach the issue.
The need to dehumanize
History teaches us many things about how depraved humans are. When we look at any event with high body counts, whether war or genocide, one thing is always true: large groups of people must be seen as something less than human.
As Christians, we can understand why this must be the case. We were made in God’s image and understand that humans hold an innate value. In order for us to justify destroying an image-bearer, we must see them as something else.
Thus, it’s important to view groups of people by a dehumanizing label. With that, we aren’t killing humans, we’re killing those who are other, and therefore lesser.
- Jews had to be dehumanized before Nazi soldiers were able to imprison, torture, and kill them
- In Rwanda, Hutus had to view Tutsis as subhuman before they could try wiping them out
- The Cambodian government had to paint much of their population as something other than equal human beings before wiping out nearly 25% of the population
The idea and history of dehumanization is important to understand before we can discuss abortion. The greatest way we are able to distance ourselves from what’s really happening is to view an unborn child as something other than human. We assign them the cold term of “fetus,” and thus it softens the blow to say “Abortion just terminates a fetus” instead of “Abortion just terminates a human being.”
We will be spending 3 weeks looking at why an unborn child is nothing less than a full human being, worthy of equal protection and concern as a 2-year-old girl or 40-year-old man. Today we will look at the unborn from the perspective of science, followed by logic, then ending with viewing the unborn biblically.
Argument from science
With how the media talks, most would assume that science is on the side of labeling an unborn child a “fetus.” Yet as we’ve discussed, science simply gives us data that we must interpret. So what does science tell us about the unborn?
Let’s discuss the scientific law of biogenesis. In a nutshell, the law of biogenesis says that complex, living organisms can only come from a complex, living organism of its own kind. In other words, squirrels make squirrels and dolphins make dolphins. An elephant doesn’t spring to life from a tree, nor does a dog give birth to a toad.
God designed all living things to create a living version of themselves. So what does that have to do with a fetus?
When a sperm and egg meet, they create a complete, living organism. It is fully equipped with DNA and everything required to develop more complex features. Though it doesn’t look like much, it is nevertheless alive.
Now consider again the law of biogenesis. If a human man and woman create a living organism, science demands that it can only be one thing: a full human being. Not a fetus, not a lump of tissue, and not a potential human. At the very moment of conception, that microscopic organism is a human being.
How do we view the unborn?
This gives great significance to the phrase “life begins at conception.” Despite what it may look like, an embryo is human. The implications of that have far-reaching consequences, both for arguing against abortion and our duties as people who believe every life is worth protecting.
- If life begins at conception, then there is no ideal window for abortions. Qualifiers, like being unable to feel pain or not yet looking human, have no bearing on whether they’re actually human.
- If an embryo is fully human, even things like the “morning after pill” need to be heavily scrutinized. Some scientists believe the pill simply prevents an egg from releasing, while others argue that it’s not an abortion pill because destroying a fertilized egg doesn’t count as abortion. At the moment there’s simply no consensus on whether it outright terminates a very tiny human being.
- If all unborn are human, then we can never tell someone to “get over” a lost pregnancy any more than we can tell them to “get over” losing a 5-year-old. The attachment may be less, but a parent doesn’t need to hold their child in their arms before they’re allowed to mourn the loss.
As we discuss this issue, we need to remember that those who have had an abortion are often in lifelong pain. No matter how we may try to justify an abortion, in the end, many people are aware that they’re terminating their child.
These people, like everyone else, need Christ. Whether they’re an unbeliever in need of forgiveness of sin or a Christian who lives with daily guilt, all people must remember that Christ died for them. As we discuss abortion with others, let us never forget that we’re all broken people with a lifetime of selfish decisions. All of us need the forgiveness that Christ gives at the cross.
