The Sacredness of Human Life

[Greg_McPherran]

Hi Becky,

Becky:

Like all of us, my form (i.e. body) began in my mum’s womb. As for when I actually became alive with my immortal soul, well you’ll have to ask God-for God is the one who put an immortal soul in me. God could have put my soul into my form (i.e. body) at conception, at 6 weeks, 6 months, or at birth for all I know. Life begins when this form receives an immortal soul IMO.

Becky:

We simply do not know when God ensouls us, nor can we prove when ensoulment does take place.

Becky:

I think I see where you are going with this. Since we don’t know if a fetus has a soul we should err on the side of caution. This is a very common pattern of thought, but that is not the way I think about things.

There are some issues that are best left in the hands of God Almighty. I believe abortion is one of those issues. Let’s say a women has an abortion at 6 months, and let’s say that it has an immortal soul and is a child in the eyes of God.

1. The child will be with God living in the paradise that we call Heaven. No tears, no pain, perfect understanding, etc.
2. Since God is God and knows everything then the deed will not go unpunished.

Greg_McPherran:

Suppose after the birth of her baby, a mother decides that it will be too chaotic to raise the baby. Do you think it should be legal for her to decide to end her baby’s life up to one week after the baby is born?

Becky:

No.

I agree it should not be legal.

1. Why would you think it should not be legal if you do not know when ensoulment takes place?
2. Why not just let the baby go to heaven and allow God to do any necessary punishing as you have mentioned above?
3. Why not allow the mother the choice since you think she should also have the choice for a six month old fetus?

Greg

 

[JimG]

Well, this has already been proposed by a professor at Princeton University (Peter Singer), who recommends that we not recognize the newborn as a legal person until after several days or a week. This would allow any previously unrecognized defects to become apparent, and the child could still be “terminated” up to that later point in time after birth.

With respect to ensoulment, it’s not a biological or legal issue and need not be considered. Philosophically the soul is the animating principle of any living being, so if the pre-born child is alive, it has a soul. Biologically, it is alive, human, and a distinct entity from conception.

 

[Greg_McPherran]

Hi Jim,

JimG:

Well, this has already been proposed by a professor at Princeton University (Peter Singer), who recommends that we not recognize the newborn as a legal person until after several days or a week. This would allow any previously unrecognized defects to become apparent, and the child could still be “terminated” up to that later point in time after birth.

This is terrible and I am trying to show others that their logic allows this.

JimG:

Philosophically the soul is the animating principle of any living being, so if the pre-born child is alive, it has a soul. Biologically, it is alive, human, and a distinct entity from conception.

Don’t go away from this thread.

Greg

 

[Deacon_Tony560]

Just saw a distressing article on www.newsmax.com. It seems that Holland has passed a law allowing the euthanizing of young children with certain disabilities. This is what happens when the right to life is ignored.

Deacon Tony SFO

 

[Greg_McPherran]

I shows that we need to work to promote human life. I consider human life sacred in the potential for life. That’s why contraception is also serious. We have no right to interfere even with how God creates life, let alone to destroy life.

 

[JimG]

Not so surprisingly, the general acceptance of contraception made widespread abortion inevitable.

Having divorced sex from procreation, it devalued marriage, promoted non-marital sex with abortion as the ultimate birth control, and will end with the legalization (perhaps the “constitutionalization” of gay marriage.