Abortion, the intentional termination of pregnancy, has been practiced since ancient times all across the world. The first recorded mention of it is from Egypt dated 1550 BC. Over the centuries, governments and cultures have cyclically embraced and condemned abortion across the world.
In South Africa, abortion was fully legalized in 1997. A woman, or girl from the age of 12 (without parental consent), may freely terminate her pregnancy for any reason up until 13 weeks.
There are approximately 40-50 million abortions every year across the world (125 000 every day). This is almost double the number of people killed under Hitler and Stalin combined. In South Africa, more than 100 000 children are killed each year through abortion. Often, these will not be the mother’s first abortion, or second or third. Here are some other stats to put this in perspective:
- Approximately 450 000 people die in South Africa each year (excluding abortions)
- The alleged leading cause of death is from heart disease accounting for +- 80 000
- Unnatural deaths (including trauma, accidents, etc.) measure at about 50 000 per year
- Just under 20 000 people are murdered in South Africa per year
If we included abortion in the total number of deaths per year, it is not only the leading cause of death, but accounts for nearly 20% of all deaths in South Africa per year*.
To justify abortion, many pro-choicers seem to believe in magic fairy that sprinkles magic baby-dust on the “fetus” or “product” as it passes through the birth canal magically transforming it into a human baby.
Simply fetal tissue?
However, the science of embryology establishes that from the earliest stages of development the unborn are distinct, living and whole human beings. It is true that they are not fully developed yet, but they are whole human beings nonetheless.
Fertilisation is the exact beginning of each human being.
At 7 weeks a baby is about 1.25 centimetres long, the size of a chick pea. The baby has distinct, slightly webbed fingers and toes. He or she is like a jumping bean, moving in fits and starts. The liver is churning out large amounts of red blood cells until the bone marrow forms and takes over this role. The teeth and palate are forming, while the ears continue to develop. The baby’s skin is paper-thin, and veins are clearly visible.
For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.
Psalm 139:13-16
Many pro-choicers argue for abortion under the banner of “Women’s Health”.
I’m definitely not against women’s health, as long as “Women’s Health” is for the body of the woman in question, and does not cause the life of another pre-born body to be devoid of health.
“Safe Abortion clinics”
Marie Stopes advertises different abortion services:
“The first is the abortion pill which uses tablets to terminate a pregnancy. The first set of tablets is taken orally in the clinic and the second set is taken later at home. Early surgical abortion (4-12 weeks) involves a gentle suction method, which the nurse will use to remove the pregnancy from the uterus. This is a very quick and simple procedure that takes less than 5 minutes. The Surgical abortion (12- 20 weeks) is a surgical procedure where the pregnancy is removed vaginally; it is performed by a doctor.”
A couple of observations:
“Terminate a pregnancy” and “remove the pregnancy” are very dispassionate terms for “ending a life” or “killing a baby”.
“A gentle suction method” is obviously from the medical practitioner’s view point, not the baby’s.
“Surgical procedure” sounds more like having a mole removed than dismembering and removing a baby from the supposedly safe womb.
No magic baby-dust
Most people get very upset when babies are abused, beaten, burnt or harmed in any way.
Why is it acceptable that babies are legally killed while still in the womb?
Do some otherwise reasonable and rational adults believe in magic baby-dust?
I’m beginning to think they must.
If the unborn is not a human person, no justification for abortion is necessary. However, if the unborn is a human person, no justification for abortion is adequate.
Greg Koukl in Precious Unborn Human Persons
A person is a person no matter how small.
Dr Seuss
What about rape?
This issue is obviously very emotional to respond to. Nevertheless, fewer than 1% of abortions are motivated by rape.
Imagine a two-year-old who was conceived by rape, could we kill the two-year-old because their father is a rapist?
In principle we do not hold children responsible for the crimes of their parents. How someone is conceived does not determine their value or who or what they are – a human being.
It is the rapist who has already forced this woman to carry her child, not the pro-lifer. The pro-life advocate merely wants to prevent another innocent human being (the unborn entity) from being a victim of another violent and morally wrong reprehensible act, abortion, for two wrongs do not make a right. What makes abortion evil is the same thing that makes rape evil: an innocent human person is brutally violated and dehumanised. Unwillingness to endorse unjustified homicide is no lack of compassion.
Francis Beckwith in Defending Life
Jessica Cilliers writes, “Abortion is a complicated issue. There are many factors surrounding this issue including socioeconomic factors, privacy, basic rights, emotional and psychological trauma, etc. It is socially complex for sure; but, it is not morally complex. The heart of the matter is you should not kill a human being because they are unwanted, inconvenient and cannot defend themselves.”
Only God can create life and only He should have a say in how that life ends.
Hope
You may have had an abortion. Abortion is an offense against God, but Jesus’ death covers this sin just as all the others. Please know that with God there is forgiveness, hope and a new start.
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* A big thank you to Jessica Cilliers for the above quotes and much of the information. Jessica recently presented a paper entitled, “Abortion: How to defend the defenceless” at our church’s study group.