“All that is needed for evil to triumph is for enough good people to do nothing!”
QUESTION: “Should a human fetus be considered an unborn child and be protected by law?” MY ANSWER This is and has certainly been one of the most emotion-charged issues in our society for the past five decades, and even more so than ever with the recent New York State law. Meanwhile, as the debate has raged, approximately 60 million abortions have taken place in our country since 1973, 24 million more than the current population of Canada. Is the human fetus just a blob of tissue, or is it an unborn human being that deserves to be protected? This is a very important question, isn’t it, because if the human fetus is just a blob of tissue, it really doesn’t matter what you do with it; one can flush it down the toilet without any qualms of conscience. If, however, the human fetus is an unborn human being, a child, then it should be treated with the respect given to all human beings, and should be protected.
As a biblical Christian, I have definite moral values that shape my understanding and values on this issue. These values include:
1) The knowledge that all human beings are created in the image of God, which gives all humans, born and unborn, great value (Genesis 1:26-27).
2) God considers the fetus a human being (Psalms 139:13-16).
3) God has a profound love and concern for the helpless, and Christ identifies with “the least of these” (Matthew 25:35-40). Certainly, the unborn are the most helpless, and the least cared for in our society.
4) The good news of Christ must be demonstrated as well as proclaimed. God’s compassion and Christ’s identification with “the least” must be reflected and incarnated by His people (I John 3:16-17, James 2:14-17, 26). Proverbs 31:8 tells us to “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves.” Unborn children need our voices and protection.
5) The principle of stewardship: we are accountable to God in our use of gifts, resources, and power for the cause of justice and righteousness. This has obvious implications for our treatment of all human beings, including the unborn.
6) Scientific research confirms that the fetus is not a blob of tissue but indeed an unborn human being, quite distinct from the life of the mother. The age of viability of a fetus outside the womb is now around five months, maybe even younger; yet many try to justify killing the child up to the day of normal birth, and some even support killing fully formed babies who survive abortion.
You may be thinking, “Well, you are a Christian, and that’s what you believe, but what’s your right to tell me what I have to believe?” That’s a fair question in a pluralistic society like ours. I don’t presume to tell you what you have to believe, but let me encourage you to be really honest with yourself about what you do believe, and to ask why you believe it. Many people today think they are moral relativists, that there are no absolutes, and therefore we are all entitled to our own opinions on ethical issues. But, I have yet to find a true moral relativist on a university campus. Most who opt for moral relativism are relativistic only in selected areas, usually in areas of spirituality, sexual morality and abortion. I have never encountered a university campus, however, who would defend racism, or rape, or polluting the environment.
No, I haven’t met any who are truly relativists, but I have definitely met many who are morally confused, even morally paralyzed. I talked to some university students one day who were handing out condoms and pro-choice buttons. I asked them if they would support a woman’s right to kill a born baby, right out of the womb. They were hesitant, but didn’t think the woman should be prosecuted. I asked what they thought about 100 women dropping their one-day-old babies from a freeway bridge onto the freeway: should they be stopped, or arrested for murder? They were irritated by my question, but they didn’t feel it should be illegal or that the women should be prosecuted.
Moral paralysis! A frog will stay in a pot of water until it boils to death if the water temperature is increased gradually. Sadly, we humans, regardless of I.Q. levels, can be duped into moral paralysis and deception if we get fed deception by degrees over a period of time. How do you think Hitler captivated the German people in their holocaust of the Jews, or how about Al-Qaeda or Isis and their followers in the terrorist murders of innocent people? Are these things morally neutral, or relativistic, or insignificant?
“All that is needed for evil to triumph is for enough good people to do nothing!” Our society needs a moral compass shaped by more substantive values than political correctness and peer pressure. By all means, the human fetus should be greatly valued and protected by law.