Opposition to abortion by Christians can be traced back
to the earliest years of Christianity. Early writings, such as the Didache (a type of
catechism, c.100 A.D.), condemn abortion. In essence, part of being a Christian is to
believe that abortion is immoral. Christians
are also to be concerned about social ills, but first one must have life. If a person does not act in accordance with the
beliefs of the organization s/he belongs, is one truly what s/he purports to
be? As citizens, one’s convictions
should be reflected in the voting booth.
The issue of abortion, however, is not merely a religious
issue. Rather it is a moral issue. This country is not a Christian country, being
composed of diverse beliefs and cultures.
However, we need to have a base standard of morality. An attitude of “if it is okay with you, then
it is acceptable” only leads to moral anarchy with everyone doing what s/he
wants, when s/he wants without regard to the consequences to others.
The Supreme Court determines what is or is not legal (in
regards to the Constitution); but legal does not necessarily equate with moral,
unless one believes that slavery and segregation, both once declared legal and Constitutional
by the Supreme Court are also moral.
Abortion is part of today’s culture. In some areas of the country, getting a gun
and shooting someone is also part of today’s culture. True, abortion is legal and shooting someone
is not, but both result in death (in the case of abortion nearly 100%). Where is the moral constant? It certainly is not in the current laws of this
country or in the prevailing attitudes of society. Consider “my freedom to choose to do what I
want ends when it infringes on your rights as a person”.
Oh, many will say that the unborn are not really
persons. Should personhood be determined
by the arbitrary timing of one’s birth? In Colorado, there is a set of twins whose
birthdays are 63 days apart. The first
boy was delivered early for medical reasons. For 63 days, one boy had legal
rights as a person, while his brother could have been legally aborted. Where is the moral constant?
This country needs, aside from the law and aside from
religion, a moral constant that every life conceived is entitled to the right
to life that is not infringed on by the prevailing whims of society or the
decisions of another individual. Every
person’s life would be cherished. Once we
begin to cherish life, we will then be able to effectively address other social
ills.
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