Is abortion intentional killing?

Nitpickerus: At the end of our last discussion I asked you whether abortion was murder.

Dionysius: What did we decide the biblical definition of murder was?

Nitpickerus: The intentional killing of an innocent human being.[1]

Dionysius: So is abortion intentional?

Nitpickerus: Well, it's a planned procedure, so I suppose so.

Dionysius: Is it killing?

Nitpickerus: It's an operation to remove tissue.

Dionysius: What sort of tissue?

Nitpickerus: A conceptus.

Dionysius: You mean a fetus.

Nitpickerus: Yes.

Dionysius: A live fetus or a dead fetus?

Nitpickerus: A live fetus.

Dionysius: And after the procedure, is the fetus still alive?

Nitpickerus: No.

Dionysius: So abortion is killing, intentional killing. Is the fetus innocent?

Is the fetus innocent?

Nitpickerus: It's unwanted.

Dionysius: That's not what I asked. Has it committed a capital offence?

Nitpickerus: No.

Dionysius: Has God declared a Holy War against fetuses?

Nitpickerus: Not to my knowledge.

Dionysius: So it's innocent.

Nitpickerus: It's invading a woman's privacy. Isn't there something in the Bible about killing in self defence?[2]

Dionysius: Yes indeed, but that was in relation to a person who had entered a building with the intent of committing a crime. Is the fetus intending to commit a crime?

Nitpickerus: No.

Dionysius: So it's innocent, which makes abortion the intentional killing of an innocent. Now is the fetus a human being?

Is the fetus a human being?

Nitpickerus: Well, that's the key question Dionysius. When does human life begin?

Dionysius: But you've already agreed it's alive! Are you then denying that it's human? Surely you're not suggesting it's a member of some other species?

Nitpickerus: No, but is a fetus really a human being in the full sense?

Dionysius: Why not?

Nitpickerus: Well it's so small for a start. It has little in the way of consciousness and rationality. How can we say it is truly in the image of God[3] when it has such limited capacities?

Dionysius: Do you believe that you're made in God's image Nitpickerus?

Nitpickerus: Of course.

Dionysius: But your size, consciousness and rationality are diminutive in relation to God's.[4]

Nitpickerus: Granted, but at least I have the capacity for relationship with God I can pray believe, trust, obey.

Dionysius: But even a new born baby lacks this capacity. Does this mean it's not a human being?

Nitpickerus: A newborn baby is a human being.

Dionysius: So being a human being doesn't depend on one's size, level of consciousness and degree of rationality. What's the difference between a new born baby and an eight to twelve week fetus?

Nitpickerus: A fetus is only a potential human being.

Dionysius: I would have said it was a human being with potential, a potential new born baby or adult; isn't it a human being at an early stage of development?

Nitpickerus: But it's dependent.

Dionysius: Aren't we all dependent on a specialised environment to live? You wouldn't survive five minutes on the surface of Mars, but that doesn't alter the fact that you're a human being. You must agree that a fetus is a human being and that therefore abortion is the intentional killing of an innocent human being or murder according to a biblical definition.

God's Word or gut-feeling?

Nitpickerus: But murder is such an emotive word Dionysius. Abortion just doesn't produce these sort of emotions in me. It doesn't square with my intuition and gut-feeling.

Dionysius: So is that your basis for deciding what's right and wrong - intuition and gut-feeling?[5]

Nitpickerus: It's not my only basis, but it's certainly a helpful guide.

Dionysius: What if your intuition and gut-feeling tell you something different than the Word of God?[6] Which do you trust then?

Nitpickerus: But if something was morally wrong in God's eyes wouldn't my conscience tell me?

Dionysius: Only if your conscience has been properly educated by God's Word,7 not if it is blunted.

Nitpickerus: But I have peace about this, my heart tells me it's right.

Dionysius: Your heart can deceive you Nitpickerus.[8] Shouldn't you rather trust God's word?[9] Of course if the fetus was just meddlesome tissue, then abortion would be no different than appendicectomy - but since the fetus is a human being, abortion is something quite different. There are 55 million abortions a year worldwide, 185,000 in UK. That's carnage on a massive scale.

Nitpickerus: But we don't regard it like that Dionysius. If we believed this was really equivalent to nine Nazi holocausts a year we'd really be kicking up a stink. Fetuses are just not functioning members of society. We don't relate to them in any meaningful sense. Even their own mothers may be unaware of their existence.

Dionysius: Not if they' re planning an abortion Nitpickerus. Anyway isn't the point rather what God thinks of them?

But abortion isn't mentioned in the Bible!

Nitpickerus: But abortion isn't mentioned in the Bible!

Dionysius: Granted, but they didn't have the technology we have to do it. Of course there is a lot about infanticide and child sacrifice[10], and killing in general which we've discussed. There's also a lot about life before birth. For a start, even though those in biblical times did not have great knowledge of reproductive physiology conception was seen as the beginning of life. The Hebrew word for conceive (harah) occurs over 40 times in the Old Testament: It is implied in some passages that what is conceived is the same person who is subsequently born. David says '...my mother conceived me'[11] In 1 Chronicles we read that 'One of Mered's wives gave birth to Miriam, Shammai and Ishbah' [12] but the word translated 'gave birth' is actually the Hebrew word harah. Virtually everywhere else it is translated 'conceived'.

Nitpickerus: But does God know the fetus?

Dionysius: Yes he is intimately involved. The Psalmist says, 'You knit me together in my mother's womb', 'your eyes saw my unformed body',[13] 'your hands made me'[14] There are many other references - look them up.[15] Isaiah[16] and Jeremiah[17] were called before birth. The Bible is quite clear that the person who is born is the same one who existed in the womb.[18] Some scriptures imply development of personality before birth, especially those relating to Jacob[19] and John the Baptist.[20] Then of course there is Jesus himself. When Elizabeth prophesied about the baby in Mary's womb, the Lord was only about two weeks post conception. His neural crests weren't even fully developed! You can verify this from the context of the passage[21] Luke being a doctor was very careful in the details of gestation.

Nitpickerus: But can a fetus at such an early stage really be in a relationship with God? - there's no awareness of him.

Dionysius: Do we cease to be in a relationship with God when we are asleep, or unconscious, or senile or when we feel he has deserted us? You forget that our relationship with God is dependent on his grace and his initiative, not on ours.[22] Clearly a fetus cannot know God in this sense; the point is that God knows it. So you see that it is not necessary for the Bible to speak specifically about abortion. It is enough for us to know that the fetus is an innocent human being and that the intentional killing of an innocent human being is wrong.

Nitpickerus: I have a problem accepting this, Dionysius.

Dionysius: You have a problem believing the Word of God, Nitpickerus.

Nitpickerus: But isn't abortion the lesser of two evils?

Dionysius: If you want to apply this principle then you must not do anything to the fetus which you wouldn't do to any other human being. Otherwise you will be guilty of discriminating on the basis of age.[23] We are to show no favouritism.[24] Nitpickerus: How does this work out in practice?

Dionysius: Well, for example, if you are contemplating abortion ask if you would kill a two year old child for the same reason - if it was unwanted, threatened career plans or was handicapped or was proving an emotional or economic burden - or more poignantly ask if you yourself would like to be killed in these circumstances.[25] Then apply the same ruling to the fetus.[26]

But what about the mother?

Nitpickerus: But what about the mother? Who is going to provide for her? Aren't we leaving her out? Shouldn't justice be tempered with mercy?[27] Dionysius: I agree. All we've established is that abortion is not an option. We should then show the same respect to the mother as we've shown to her child. Why does she want the abortion? Maybe she needs financial help, advice about adoption, somewhere to live - perhaps what she really needs most is someone to listen to her, or to be loved and forgiven.

Nitpickerus: But a doctor can 't do all these things.

Dionysius: No, but if the mother is willing the church can offer to help and the doctor can be the channel. Isn't this the essence of Christ's teaching 'what's mine is yours if you need it'[28] -the strong lay down their lives for the weak.[29] Of course this is the essence of the Christian argument against abortion too, the strong make sacrifices for the weak rather than sacrificing the weak.

Nitpickerus: There is someone else involved too, the father.

Dionysius: Yes. In the Old Testament if you had sexual intercourse with a girl then you also married her and provided for her.[30] Isn't it interesting how the man always seems to escape? - sows his wild oats and he's off. Take the story of the woman caught in adultery for example.[31] We are told that she was caught in the act. Well if that was so, where was the man? Under Old Testament law both should have been put to death.[32] Nitpickerus: Jesus forgave the woman.

Dionysius: Yes. Of course, he did tell her to leave her life of sin, but you're right. Likewise, abortion is not an unforgivable sin, neither for that matter is adultery or murder - but those who refuse to forgive others will not be forgiven.[34] That was the mistake of the Pharisees. We are all sinners Nitpickerus but this cannot be used as an excuse for going on sinning once we have been forgiven.[34] Nitpickerus: Can we get back to unwanted pregnancy and its cause?

Dionysius: But now, you're getting onto the seventh commandment, 'You shall not commit adultery'.[35] I think we should save that for the next issue.