Abortion And Christianity: What Does The Bible Actually Say?
Broken Words: The Abuse of Science and Faith in American Politics is an eye opening book about the four issues that conservative, Evangelical Christianity has taken a tough lined stance on (abortion, environmentalism, Gay marriage, and evolution). This Christian book review will target the first issue of abortion.
Being raised in an evangelical Christian household, I was always sure that the issue of abortion was fundamentally a non-issue. Life begins at conception. Period. However , several pages into this book, I was astonished by how manipulated I was, together with millions of others. Dudley clearly outlines the history of the issue of abortion, and argues against absolutism on abortion, as well as opposition to embryonic stem-cell research. Throughout the chapter, Dudley tells us that most Christian theologians all though history, including Augustine, Aquinas, and many American evangelicals (up till the 1980s) have believed that life does not begin at conception.
This was an unmitigated shock to me. I had thought for all of my life, the issue of abortion returned to the early church, and there was a clear position on it. However , this was clearly not the case. Instead , the book provides evidence of political manipulation, and intention is to steer votes to the right. When evangelical leaders compare abortion to the Holocaust (Rick Warren), and call it a nonnegotiable issue for Christians in voting decisions, it is clear why so many Christians believe what they believe about abortion.
"The reason I think life begins at conception, is 'cause the Bible says it," declared Rick Warren in a 2008 interview. In its literature, Focus on the Family claims to provide "Scripture verses that talk to the value of pre-born life made in God's image from the moment of fertilization."
But is the Bible truly clear about this controversial issue?
In the case of Focus on the Family's claim, their cited support for this conclusion about the instant of incarnation comes from several verses including Luke 2:6-7, Luke 1:41, 44 and Genesis 9:6 (NIV Bible) :
"While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son."
"When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit...[saying] 'As shortly as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb jumped for joy."
"Whoever sheds the blood of a human by a human shall that person's blood be shed;for in his own images God made humankind
Dudley argues The implicit suggestion that this verse provides us with information on when moral life begins (with interpretations of Psalm 139 and Jeremiah 1) reflects the willingness-evidenced also in the Creationist movement-of modern, populist evangelicalism to interpret any piece of the Bible, including its poetry and narratives, as conveying exact factual information about contemporary moral and scientific issues.
Taking the last verse, Dudley explains that "there is no logical trail from the assumption that human beings are created in the image of God, to the opinion that the embryo, therefore, is a human created in the image of God." (page 29)
All of these are good points, but the Bible verse that truly made sense to me (in helping me understand that the problem's not as cut and dry as politicians and evangelical leaders would like us to believe), comes from Exodus 21:22:25:
"When men have a fight and hurt a pregnant woman, so that she suffers a miscarriage, but no further injury, the guilty one shall be fined as much as the woman's husband demands of him, and he shall pay in the presence of judges. But if injury ensues, you shall give life for life."
Essentially, this says the annihilation of fetal life needs a fine, while injury to the mother requires "life for life". This obviously suggests that there's a difference in the moral standing of a fetal verses maternal life. And throughout history, this passage has been employed by both Jewish and Christian practices, as a basis for holding the belief that the life of a mother is more important to that of the fetus.
Drawing from this passage, the Evangelical periodical Christianity Today published a special on contraception and abortion, created by a leading professor of Old Testament from famously conservative Dallas Theological Seminary's Bruce Waltke:
"God does not regard the fetus as a soul, regardless of how far gestation has progressed. The Law clearly exacts: "If a person kills any human life he's going to be put to death" (Lev. 24:17). But according to Exodus 21:22-24, the destruction of the fetus is not a capital offense.... Clearly, then, in opposition to the mother, the fetus isn't reckoned as a soul,
History (remember that the hard line on abortion started in the mid 1900s) documents Christianity's position on abortion throughout the years. The Christian theologian, Augustine states:
"If what is brought forth is unformed but at this point some kind of living, shapeless thing...then the law of homicide would not apply, for it could not be said that there had been a living soul in that body, for it lacks all sense, if it be like it isn't yet formed and thus not yet blessed with senses"
Moving to the Jewish religion, you'll see that they take a far more liberal stance on abortion:
The Mishna (a main part of the Jewish Talmud), states:
"If a woman has problem in childbirth, one dismembers the embryo inside her limb from limb, because her life takes precedence over its life. Once its head (or the bigger part has emerged, it may not be touched, for we don't set aside on life for another.
When George W. Bush came out as an adversary to human embryonic stem cell research, Orthodox Jews issued this statement that supported human embryonic stem cell research:
Our Torah [the first five books of the Christian Old Testament] places great value upon human life...each human is formed in God's image....The Torah commands us to treat and cure the ill and to conquer sickness wherever possible ' to do this is to be the Creator's partner in safeguarding the created... maximizing the potential to save and heal human lives is an integral part of valuing human life. Also, our tradition states that an embryo in-vitro does not enjoy the full status of human-hood and its attendant protections. Thus, if cloning technology research advances our capability to heal humans with larger success, it should be pursued.
To conclude, the intent of the author was not to persuade folk that abortion is OK. That is a extremely personal call that should be made with major care. Nonetheless Dudley believes in shedding light on the whole story...not just the story that a tiny group of evangelical leaders believe. Saying that the Bible clearly claims that life begins at conception, is simply wrong. There is valid evidence that supports either side of the problems. However , thanks to the political gain to be had by polarizing the American public, the issue has been distorted and made into a certain truth, that has resulted in a swing of favor for the political party that first aligned themselves with the anti-abortion movement.
If you are looking to understand why you believe what you believe, Broken Words by Jonathan Dudley, is a great book, available in this Christian book store. You may disagree with everything he asserts, but at least you will have the complete story. Explore Your Faith.
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