Sunday, July 4, 2010
Posted in
Life
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Religion
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The problem with the abortion issue is that it can't be separated from religion. When viewed from a purely atheistic or ethical standpoint, halting the development of a human life could reasonably be considered a killing, especially since all it takes for the fetus to become a human being is the passage of time. However, if there is no life after death, then human life has no meaning anyway, so ending a life before it begins is inconsequential. Within the context of time -- the billions of years already passed and the billions of years to come -- the 80 years of a human life is meaningless. Life only has meaning if it endures.
I am not using the hot-button word "murder" because of its pejorative connotations. A woman who chooses an abortion is weighing her needs, her family's needs, and even the potential baby's needs, against the life of the fetus. And if she decides that an abortion is the best thing, we cannot judge her -- especially since the greater metaphysical issues are not understood.
Since humanity has no absolute proof that life endures after death, we must look to religion for our answers. Christians believe in only the one life; and although the fetus' soul is not destroyed by abortion, abortion prevents the fetus from being baptized, from developing into a full human being, and from coming to Christ and being "saved".
On the other hand, people who believe in reincarnation believe that the soul is independent of the body. If a fetus is aborted, the soul can find another fetus to occupy. Thus, no individual dies as a result of abortion, and no opportunity to live a physical life is prevented. My own belief, based on the Seth Material, is that the incoming soul is aware of the mother's intentions and will not occupy the fetus if the mother is considering an abortion. If that is true, then the Supreme Court's ruling in Roe vs. Wade (that the fetus is simply part of the mother's body in the first trimester) is correct. As you can see, there are other points of view besides the Christian one.
So what should the law say? Should we follow Christian teachings and outlaw abortion since the majority of Americans are Christian? Absolutely not. Basing a law on a religious tenet would be an establishment of religion, which is against our Constitution. Besides, a majority of the people in this country are in favor of legalized abortion. Also, a poll taken many years ago showed that a large percentage of Christians believe in reincarnation. When these things are taken into consideration, it becomes clear that there is no monolithic position among the public -- nor among Christians -- on the subject of abortion. Those Christians who interpret the Bible narrowly are actually in a minority. Basing abortion laws on conservative Christian doctrine would discriminate against non-Christians, against progressive Christians, and against non-practicing Christians -- not to mention the rest of us.
The Supreme Court, by ruling that the fetus is part of the mother's body in the first trimester, struck a reasonable balance. Since the issue of abortion hinges on religion, and since human beings cannot know what the metaphysical status of the fetus is, we must base our decision on practical matters. From a practical standpoint, it would be a disaster to return to the days of back-alley abortions performed by criminals using coat hangers. Abortion saves society from unwanted babies, and it helps to control population growth. It also allows women to have full control of their bodies. From every practical standpoint, abortion is a positive thing, and it is for this reason that it should be legal.
The Anti-Abortionists
First, let's stop saying that anti-abortionists are "pro-life". Conservative Christians, the most vocal anti-abortion group, are not particularly "pro-life" in most respects. They are more likely to own guns; they are more likely to support killing as a means of self-defense; they are more likely to support capital punishment; they are more likely to support a huge and deadly military; and they are generally opposed to government programs that promote life, such as food stamps and government-sponsored health-care. Frankly, Christ would be appalled at what his followers believe. So if conservative Christians are so ready to take life, why are they so concerned about preserving fetal life? Such people, I think, have an obsession with the concept of innocence. Psychologically, they identify with the fetus, and they imagine with horror that they could have been aborted themselves, and would have been powerless to stop it. They are consumed with anger at the mother who might have aborted them (and by extension, all mothers who might consider abortion). Believing in hell as they do, they imagine what it would be like to go to hell forever, since many of them believe that souls which are not baptized or "saved" (even fetuses) go to hell or to Limbo. Yet ironically, these same people believe that, once the fetus grows up, it is damned to hell anyway if it doesn't believe in Christ. If Christians hold life so dear, why do they believe that it can be sacrificed so easily?
Conservative Christians are strong believers in blame. For example, if a person sins and goes to hell, he has only himself to blame. More moderate people recognize that human beings are impulsive and generally create their own problems, and that casting blame serves no purpose. Conservative Christians are frightened people -- frightened of God, frightened of the chaotic world, and frightened for their security and immortality. To allay their fears, they cling to stringent rules of behavior and concepts of judgement. Their main comfort is the idea that they are "chosen" by God and thus "saved". The world, in their view, is divided between the "saved" and the "damned", and the thought of innocent fetuses being damned through no fault of their own fills them with an unbearable anxiety. It never occurs to them to question the rationality of their views, or to wonder if such a cruel god could possibly exist.
Indeed, it is precisely because the Christian god is so cruel that Christians are so insecure. If the Christian god is loving only to those who are obediently faithful and free of sin, but mercilessly mean to everyone else, then it can't be said that God is loving at all. Nor can a Christian be sure that he is in God's graces. According to the Bible, God casts into hell all non-believers, including Christians who are not religious enough to qualify as "born-again". Included in the long list of the damned are atheists, agnostics, all people of other faiths, liberal Christians, Christians who have sinned, and even people who never heard of Jesus -- and possibly children who have not yet accepted Jesus as their savior. Being a Christian must be like living in a country governed by a capricious dictator: You never know when the dictator's henchmen are going to come for you.
In my religion, everyone is "saved", and the state of grace which we enjoy cannot be sacrificed by unwise choices, wrong views or selfish actions. Each soul has many lives in which to work out its problems and to come to an understanding of right and wrong. After that, the soul moves on to other realms and challenges. If, when a soul is ready to reincarnate, the prospective mother decides to have an abortion, then the soul will find another mother, or wait for another pregnancy. No one dies. Nothing is lost. Abortion is not murder.
I am not using the hot-button word "murder" because of its pejorative connotations. A woman who chooses an abortion is weighing her needs, her family's needs, and even the potential baby's needs, against the life of the fetus. And if she decides that an abortion is the best thing, we cannot judge her -- especially since the greater metaphysical issues are not understood.
Since humanity has no absolute proof that life endures after death, we must look to religion for our answers. Christians believe in only the one life; and although the fetus' soul is not destroyed by abortion, abortion prevents the fetus from being baptized, from developing into a full human being, and from coming to Christ and being "saved".
On the other hand, people who believe in reincarnation believe that the soul is independent of the body. If a fetus is aborted, the soul can find another fetus to occupy. Thus, no individual dies as a result of abortion, and no opportunity to live a physical life is prevented. My own belief, based on the Seth Material, is that the incoming soul is aware of the mother's intentions and will not occupy the fetus if the mother is considering an abortion. If that is true, then the Supreme Court's ruling in Roe vs. Wade (that the fetus is simply part of the mother's body in the first trimester) is correct. As you can see, there are other points of view besides the Christian one.
So what should the law say? Should we follow Christian teachings and outlaw abortion since the majority of Americans are Christian? Absolutely not. Basing a law on a religious tenet would be an establishment of religion, which is against our Constitution. Besides, a majority of the people in this country are in favor of legalized abortion. Also, a poll taken many years ago showed that a large percentage of Christians believe in reincarnation. When these things are taken into consideration, it becomes clear that there is no monolithic position among the public -- nor among Christians -- on the subject of abortion. Those Christians who interpret the Bible narrowly are actually in a minority. Basing abortion laws on conservative Christian doctrine would discriminate against non-Christians, against progressive Christians, and against non-practicing Christians -- not to mention the rest of us.
The Supreme Court, by ruling that the fetus is part of the mother's body in the first trimester, struck a reasonable balance. Since the issue of abortion hinges on religion, and since human beings cannot know what the metaphysical status of the fetus is, we must base our decision on practical matters. From a practical standpoint, it would be a disaster to return to the days of back-alley abortions performed by criminals using coat hangers. Abortion saves society from unwanted babies, and it helps to control population growth. It also allows women to have full control of their bodies. From every practical standpoint, abortion is a positive thing, and it is for this reason that it should be legal.
The Anti-Abortionists
First, let's stop saying that anti-abortionists are "pro-life". Conservative Christians, the most vocal anti-abortion group, are not particularly "pro-life" in most respects. They are more likely to own guns; they are more likely to support killing as a means of self-defense; they are more likely to support capital punishment; they are more likely to support a huge and deadly military; and they are generally opposed to government programs that promote life, such as food stamps and government-sponsored health-care. Frankly, Christ would be appalled at what his followers believe. So if conservative Christians are so ready to take life, why are they so concerned about preserving fetal life? Such people, I think, have an obsession with the concept of innocence. Psychologically, they identify with the fetus, and they imagine with horror that they could have been aborted themselves, and would have been powerless to stop it. They are consumed with anger at the mother who might have aborted them (and by extension, all mothers who might consider abortion). Believing in hell as they do, they imagine what it would be like to go to hell forever, since many of them believe that souls which are not baptized or "saved" (even fetuses) go to hell or to Limbo. Yet ironically, these same people believe that, once the fetus grows up, it is damned to hell anyway if it doesn't believe in Christ. If Christians hold life so dear, why do they believe that it can be sacrificed so easily?
Conservative Christians are strong believers in blame. For example, if a person sins and goes to hell, he has only himself to blame. More moderate people recognize that human beings are impulsive and generally create their own problems, and that casting blame serves no purpose. Conservative Christians are frightened people -- frightened of God, frightened of the chaotic world, and frightened for their security and immortality. To allay their fears, they cling to stringent rules of behavior and concepts of judgement. Their main comfort is the idea that they are "chosen" by God and thus "saved". The world, in their view, is divided between the "saved" and the "damned", and the thought of innocent fetuses being damned through no fault of their own fills them with an unbearable anxiety. It never occurs to them to question the rationality of their views, or to wonder if such a cruel god could possibly exist.
Indeed, it is precisely because the Christian god is so cruel that Christians are so insecure. If the Christian god is loving only to those who are obediently faithful and free of sin, but mercilessly mean to everyone else, then it can't be said that God is loving at all. Nor can a Christian be sure that he is in God's graces. According to the Bible, God casts into hell all non-believers, including Christians who are not religious enough to qualify as "born-again". Included in the long list of the damned are atheists, agnostics, all people of other faiths, liberal Christians, Christians who have sinned, and even people who never heard of Jesus -- and possibly children who have not yet accepted Jesus as their savior. Being a Christian must be like living in a country governed by a capricious dictator: You never know when the dictator's henchmen are going to come for you.
In my religion, everyone is "saved", and the state of grace which we enjoy cannot be sacrificed by unwise choices, wrong views or selfish actions. Each soul has many lives in which to work out its problems and to come to an understanding of right and wrong. After that, the soul moves on to other realms and challenges. If, when a soul is ready to reincarnate, the prospective mother decides to have an abortion, then the soul will find another mother, or wait for another pregnancy. No one dies. Nothing is lost. Abortion is not murder.
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