Abortion

Abortion is one of those sticky topics I have set aside for a long time, unable to verbally address exactly why I believe it is wrong. One argument, that I hear time and again, is that it isn’t specifically addressed in the Bible so why is it an issue with Christians? I think I am ready to answer this, at least to my own satisfaction. Please join me, as I try to figure this out.

In my passionate youth, I was Pro-choice, not because I thought abortion was okay, but because I believed that laws would not stop abortion and would simply create law-breakers out of women and cause them to find unsavory chop-shops to do the job. I reasoned that whatever their rationale for choosing abortion, be it health, financial or emotional, women should be able to make the choice and then deal with eventual personal judgment just as any sinner would. I considered that if a woman wanted an abortion but didn’t have one only because of a law, then in her heart, she still had sinned because she desired to step outside of God's perfect will. Even so, then, as now, I did not feel it was my place to judge anyone in this regard. It was basically none of my business what another chose to do. At that point I could not have given a Biblical reason for believing abortion was a sin against moral law.

As I matured in the spirit and I became acquainted with several women who had had abortions in their teens, and dealt with life-long indefinable grief, I began to see another side to the issue; the spiritual side.

I believe humans, created in God’s image, body/soul/spirit, each with a life timeline assigned, each with purpose, have a reason to be born. There is no way for me, or anyone else, to know what these reasons are, but nevertheless, I think there is a bigger picture, one which we are too myopic to see. To say there is no great plan simply because we do not see it, is childish at best. Within minutes of conception a human fetus is, by nature, imbued with everything it needs to be human. Is a fetus viable? No. Was Christopher Reeves viable after his accident? No. So is viability the only thing that determines the value of human life, at any stage of development? Are we not continuing to develop even to our last breath?

What about potential? What about spirit and soul? What if every fetus, regardless of imperfection, deformity or intelligence has a purpose that furthers God’s will here on earth? Christ said, (Matthew 10:29-31) Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs on your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.

A fetus can have hair at the thirteenth week of development. It can’t yet live outside the womb, but God knows how many hairs it has. God also knows why it is forming.

In the worship of our advanced intelligence, we often disregard the spirit side of our three-prong existence. We seek only the "intelligent" ways to define our lives. We look to modern experimentation to make our lives better, healthier, more perfect. Unfortunately, all too often, in the process we lose true perfection. We drift farther and farther away from faith and soul-feeding connection to the Creator who, in His mysterious ways has a plan for us. A plan that often means trial by fire and tribulation. A plan that often includes unexpected, and untimely birth. It also includes miscarriage and naturally aborted humans. Regardless of our lack of understanding, these have purpose too.

We manipulate conception in the name of advanced science and for His reasons, God allows it. Men donate, anonymously, their sperm to sperm banks and father hundreds of children, increasing the odds that these offspring might one day meet, fall in love and marry each other, thus diluting the gene pool. We develop drugs and techniques that seem to prolong life under the guise of making life better, but does it? Is life really improved for all our medical meddling?

Life is a gift from the Creator and we, in our arrogance, think we can outsmart God by giving and taking life ourselves. But we are as foolish as the residents and tower builders of Babel. If we could but humble ourselves and seek to live by faith, not sight, we would find the originally intended balance in the body, the spirit, and the soul. There can be no balance as long as we choose to override God and set our jaws determined to be the masters of our own fate. It is a fool's quest.

There are many things that offend the nature of God that are not specifically outlined for us in the Bible. But they don’t have to be. The Bible is not the last spoken word of God. It is only a beginning, a starting place for seeking spiritual growth and a defined path. How can I know this? This knowledge doesn't come from doctrine or religion, it comes from spirit.

I ask Christ for guidance every day. Every day He opens the way for me. More often than not, I begin by reading Scripture to find my answers. Does it say in the Scripture what I should do today? If I wondered about abortion and went to the Bible to find an answer, would I?

Yes, in fact, I would.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6)