To Save a Life (Post 2)

            In my last post, I went over the groundwork for the Christian’s view of human life and abortion (make sure to read that post before this one!). Now what do you say to a non-Christian who doesn’t care for the Bible? This is apologetics, ladies and gentlemen.

            There are four main differences between a human life that is inside the womb and one that is outside of the womb. Let’s go through them.

1. Size
2. Level of dependency
3. Environment (inside womb vs. outside of womb)
4. Level of development

            The argument goes like this: because the life inside the womb is smaller, dependent on the mother, inside the womb, and less developed, it is not a human life. It is a lesser form of life.

            I apologize, but this simply doesn’t compute. Let’s go through each factor individually:

            1) Size. So someone who is smaller isn’t as alive as someone who is bigger? Gimli would object to that.

            2) Level of dependency. This one, at first, seems like the strongest objection. But it melts away when examined. The logic goes “because the life inside the womb can’t survive on its own, it’s not a human life.”

            Okay.

            We are all dependent on something other than ourselves. Oxygen, water, food, etc. Does that make us less human? What about the people who need feeding tubes to survive? Is that any different than the life inside the womb using the umbilical chord? What about the people that rely on pace-makers, insulin, and kidney machines to survive? Are they less human?

            Of course not. Let’s lay this argument to rest.

            3) Environment. The argument goes “due to the life in the womb’s location,  it is less human”. So where I am determines if I’m a human life or not? Are people in China as human as those in America? The answers are self-evident.

            4) Level of development. The argument goes “because the life in the womb is less developed, it is not human.” What about the humans who are born deformed? What about those who are born without limbs? Are they less human than us “normal” folks?

            Also, development continues outside the womb. Is a toddler less human than an adult? Obviously not.

            I just ran through the differences between life in the womb and life outside it. The differences do not make one human and the other not. But some might object by saying that maybe all four factors COMBINED make womb life less human. This also does not work, and I’ll dispatch it with an example.

            Is a child who is dependent on a feeding tube and a pace-maker and lives in Indonesia and was born without an arm less human than me?

            No.

            And that is all, ladies and gentlemen. Abortion apologetics. Now I’ll go on to some objections.

When Does Life Begin?

            The conventional view is life began the moment of conception. Another view is that human life begins at implantation (six days after fertilization/conception) when the zygote attaches to the uterine wall. Another view is life begins when the brain or heart starts to form. Another view is that human life begins once the umbilical chord is cut.

            And so on and so forth.

            Which is correct? As I explained in the last post, the Bible clearly teaches that life in the womb is human, and it doesn’t differentiate over development (which is silly anyways, that was dealt with above) .

            The simple answer to this question is: what is your worldview? That will determine when you think human life begins. If your view is atheistic, you will view things more narcissistically. What benefits you the most? What is the most convenient for you? Obviously, abortion is the most convenient option.

            If you are a Christian, you’ll agree with the Bible when David said that he was “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14). God is involved in the entire process and He doesn’t want His creation to die.

What About Rape?

            What about when a man rapes a woman and she becomes pregnant? She never wanted the baby. Is abortion okay then? While extremely tragic, something has to be noted objectively. This is very, very, very rare. It does not happen often.

            Also, which is worse? Murder, or rape? For if the life in the womb is human, then ending its life is murder. Must the child pay for the father’s crime?

Summary

            The bottom line is this: if life in the womb is not human, then killing it is not murder. Just like killing a plant is not murder. But if womb life is human, then killing it is murder and is wrong.
            I went over how the differences between life inside the womb and outside of it do not amount to anything drastic enough as to label womb life non-human. Therefore womb life is human, and therefore abortion is murder.
            I'm being blunt, but at the end of the day, my goal in life is not to be liked. It's to be like Jesus, and He stood for the truth in love. I have to do the same.