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ABORTION
ABORTION: Abortion is an
operation or other intervention to
end a pregnancy by removing an
embryo or fetus from the womb. It is
the deliberate termination of
pregnancy which sometimes occurs
after an ovum (female egg) has
been fertilized by the male sperm.
Abortion may be self induced or
done with outside assistance.
WHAT CONSTITUTES A
LIVING PERSON?
Biblical Perspective
BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE
God determines life! He is the creator & life giver. He
gave us breathe to live. God determines when you live
from when you die. God determines what constitutes a
person or personality.
Gen 2:7 And the LORD God formed man [of] the dust of
the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of
life; and man became a living soul.
Gen 1:27 So God created man in his [own] image, in
the image of God created he him; male and female
created he them.
Mar 12:30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy
mind, and with all thy strength….
From a biblical perspective a human
being consists of BODY, MIND,
SOUL, HEART & PERSONALITY.
These aspects function as one unit
in one individual.
Is the fetus in the womb
a person?
Scriptural accounts of fetal activity indicate that the
fetus is a person and is recognized by God
St. Luke 1: 39-44:
“And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with
haste, into a city of Juda; And entered into the house of Zacharias,
and saluted Elisabeth. And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth
heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and
Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: And she spake out with a
loud voice, and said, Blessed [art] thou among women, and blessed
[is] the fruit of thy womb. And whence [is] this to me, that the mother
of my Lord should come to me? For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy
salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for
joy”
In St Luke 1 the Greek word for BABE is BREPHOS. The same
Greek word BREPHOS is used in Luke 2:16
“And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the
babe (BREPHOS) lying in a manger.”
BREPHOS is also used in 2 Tim. 3:15 to mean “CHILD”
“And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which
are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in
Christ Jesus.”
BREPHOS is used in St. Luke 18:15 to mean “INFANT”
“And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them:
but when [his] disciples saw [it], they rebuked them.”
BREPHOS is used in Acts 7:19 to mean “YOUNG CHILDREN”
“The same dealt subtilly with our kindred, and evil entreated our
fathers, so that they cast out their young children, to the end they
might not live.”
God recognizes & acknowledges the life in the womb
Psalm 139:13-16
“For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my
mother's womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully [and] wonderfully
made: marvellous [are] thy works; and [that] my soul knoweth right
well. My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in
secret, [and] curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine
eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book
all [my members] were written, [which] in continuance were
fashioned, when [as yet there was] none of them.”
“REIGNS”: Organs
“COVERED”: Knitted, intertwined, fenced,
“SUBSTANCE”: Might, body
“Substance yet being unperfect”: Unformed mass (GOLEM – Hebrew
word for EMBRYO)
In this passage David speaks of being under the personal watch, care and
handcrafting of the Lord from the time of his conception to birth.
Jeremiah 1: 5
“Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest
forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, [and] I ordained thee a prophet
unto the nations.”
God has a plan and purpose for each life that enters the
world even before they are born.
WHAT CONSTITUTES A LIVING PERSON?
Medical Perspective
 According to some medical experts, in order for
human life to be in existence a person must have a
functional neocortex, which is the part of the brain that
distinguishes human beings from animals. In other
words life is determined by the ability of the brain to
carry out its functions
biologically.
 Most medical experts agree that a new life is
created at the time of conception
 Most if not all medical experts agree that the time of
conception occurs when the sperm joins the ovum
(female egg)
Medical Facts concerning a Child’s Development in the Womb
(18-25 DAYS) The heart is already beating & eyes begin to develop
(28 DAYS) Arms & legs are forming
(30 DAYS) Brain develops & blood flows through the veins/ child grows
(35 DAYS) Mouth, ears, & nose are developing
(40 DAYS) Brain waves can be detected
(42 DAYS) Skeleton formed/ brain controls movement of muscles, organs
(8 WEEKS) Hands & feet are almost perfectly formed/ fingerprints develop
(9 WEEKS) Fingers move/ fingernails formed/ sucking thumb
(10 WEEKS) Child can squint, swallow, frown
(11 WEEKS) Child urinates/ makes facial expressions
(3 MONTHS) Moving limbs, opening mouth
( Remaining 6 MONTHS) Child grows and matures
Observe the developmental stages and see if it constitutes a human being!
METHODS
OF
ABORTION
Suction Method
Doctors perform a suction abortion by first
paralyzing the cervical muscle at the opening of
the womb & then it is stretched open. They then
insert a hollow plastic tube with a knife-like edge
on the tip into the womb. The suction tears the
baby into pieces & the scraps are then sucked
into a bottle & disposed.
• Basically 2 methods:
1. Uterine Evacuation (4-6 weeks of pregnancy)
2. Vacuum Aspiration (6-14 weeks of pregnancy)
Dilation & Curettage Method
A surgical instrument is inserted into the womb &
the baby is literally scraped out piece by piece. Care
is taken to remove all of the baby’s parts because of
the danger of infection if not cleaned out completely.
In order to assure that all of the baby’s parts have
been removed, a nurse is often asked to reassemble
the body & check for missing parts.
Prostaglandin Method
This method uses a special drug to induce labour &
delivery at any stage of pregnancy. Depending on
the stage of the infant it may be alive when delivered
& so the child is set aside and allowed to die.
* There are other drug-based methods where the
mother is injected with certain fluids which is then
followed by a pill to terminate the pregnancy
Induction Method
A large needle is inserted through the abdominal
wall of the mother & into the baby’s amniotic sac.
The amniotic fluid is withdrawn and a concentrated
solution is injected into the fluid that surrounds the
baby. When the baby breathes & swallows the
solution, it poisons the baby. The following day the
mother then delivers a dead baby.
Hysterotomy Method
An opening is made in the mother’s abdominal wall
& the baby is removed. The baby is then discarded.
Physical Side effects of Abortion
 Risk of infections & diseases
 Chances of miscarriage increase
 Increased complications during pregnancy
 Nausea, cramping & bleeding
 Can affect the heart or lungs
 Can sometimes result in death
Emotional effects of Abortion
 Flashbacks of the abortion experience
 Personal guilt
 Nightmares related to abortion
 Develop “Post-Abortion Syndrome” :
- Anxiety, Depression, Sleep disorder, Mood-swings,
Withdrawal, Suicidal, Unemotional, Guilt
COMMON
ARGUMENTS
FOR
ABORTION
The unborn child is only a part
of the woman’s body
Every cell of the mother’s organs shares the same
genetic code.
The unborn child has it’s own genetic code distinctly
different from the mother.
Every cell of the child’s body belongs to the child
If the unborn child was only an organ of the mother it
would not be able to function in cases where the mother
dies during child birth and the baby is delivered alive &
continues to live and grow
The unborn child is not a person
If we were to judge persons by size, shape, mental &
physical capabilities then some people who are in the
world would not be considered to be persons.
The unborn child displays emotions, responds, feeds,
sleeps, moves, etc.
Some persons who have handicaps operate at the same
level as an unborn child, but we still consider them as a
person
The mother has a right to do as she
pleases with her own body
If the unborn child could speak he/she would have that
same claim to their own life.
It is not just the mother’s body there is a second body
The mother would have denied the child the right to live if
she commits abortion.
The child will be deformed or
handicapped
The doctors diagnosis is not always correct, but even if it
is; don’t handicaps deserve a chance & choice for life.
Why is deformity a bad thing?
Some handicaps contribute to society in a more positive
way than some who claim to be normal.
“Handicapped children are not always social liabilities &
normal children are not always social assets”
The child was a result of rape/incest
Does an innocent person deserve to die for what his
father did?
Although something wrong has been done to you, do not
do something wrong to the child.
The unborn child did not choose his existence, it is no
fault of his own.
How does God tell us to react when we are persecuted,
cursed, smitten, despised, hated, etc.