CHOICE

Digging deeper into Abortion And Stem Cell Research

Introduction

ABORTION is a SIN. Thats it. Its a blatant reality. We can all go home now.

Its an act of murder. Its immoral. Its against Gods will; therefore it shouldnt be legalized or even
allowed in the society. However, should we end here? We know that ABORTION and its other forms is a
SIN, it was never; its never and will never be a good act in both the eyes of man and of God. But why is
this act so rampant nowadays. In fact why are there people who are in favor of it?

Are they nuts? Are they insane? Yes, only the people who are out of their minds can say that abortion
should be allowed. The bad news is this, if you take a closer look at the supporters of this ruthless act,
they are actually intelligent people, they are educated and they are not escapees from a mental
institution.

How is this happening? Whats wrong with the world?

For this talk, before we make a stand, lets look at what these people believe and stand for.

Defining Abortion

The termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of
the embryo or fetus (Merriam-Webster)

Defining Stem Cell

Stem cells are a class of undifferentiated cells that are able to differentiate into specialized cell types.
They are taken from either embryonic sources or adult tissues. Stem cells can grow into any kind of
tissue and if its controlled, scientists can actually create or regrow a certain tissue or organ which is
typically a medical advancement.

Stem Cell Research is therefore defined as a research on the applications or uses of stem cells
particularly in the field of medicine.

Where the problem starts

Lets make one thing very clear. The advancement of technology and knowledge particularly in the field
of medicine or biology in general isnt in itself bad. In fact a lot of discoveries were done by Christians,
example Gregor Mendel; the Father of Genetics was in fact an Augustinian Friar. Others would include
Isaac Newton, Francis Collins and more.

You see, theres ultimately nothing wrong with research and learning new knowledge in order to
prolong ones life through health and freedom from all sorts of illnesses. However, the problem starts
when the steps to this knowledge would involve the life of a person. This is where the conflict lies. What
can we derive from this? Its pretty simple, theres nothing wrong with Stem Cell Research as it is full of
potential when it comes regeneration or healing of tissues. However, when scientists kill or destroy
the embryo to harvest these stem cells, thats where the issue begins. Abortion on the other hand is
another thing. There are cases where physicians need to save their patients lives however they will
have to put the fetus in great danger. Heres where we draw the thin grey line. You may end up being
confused. Thats still abortion, thats still killing the child. Isnt that still a sin? Theres basically no
difference. Yes, one might fall into confusion.

According to Trent Horn, a catholic convert who is now a Pro-Life supporter and one of the best catholic
apologists says that it all focuses on the intention. Abortion can only be deemed a sin if theres a real
intention to kill the fetus. But in certain cases where a mothers life might be put in danger and theres a
need for certain medical intervention which might affect the life of the fetus (i.e., removing of the
fallopian tube, removal of tumor, chemotherapy, etc.), its generally accepted. And these cases are very
rare as most pregnancies are very much normal. You can never be pregnant if theres something wrong
with your reproductive system. Plus there are medications these days that are baby friendly so theres
no reason to intentionally terminate pregnancy because of the mothers condition.

Where the enemy stands

A battle cant be won without knowing your enemy. As painful as it may sound, we have to know what
pro-abortionists think and we have to be familiar of their stand with regards to these matters. As Ive
said before, the sad thing about this is that these people arent actually bad or stupid or insane. These
are educated people, have studied in universities and have done their homework. Lets look at some
of their arguments and then at the end I will ask you of their kind of reasoning is actually valid.

Pro-Life and Pro-Choice

In our country, theres no issue with regards to abortion because aside from the churchs stand, theres
actually no law that permits the practice of abortion. But in the US, you can only join one of the two
groups the Pro-Life and the Pro-Choice. Pro-abortion isnt the term here since it is only part of one
huge argument.

On one corner there is promotion of life and its preservation and that includes defending the unborn
children, women. These people are against methods that end the life of a being such as war, euthanasia
or assisted suicide, death penalty etc.

On the opposite corner, the Pro-Choice believe in the autonomy or total control of their reproductive
capabilities as long as they dont affect the autonomy of other people. This means that a person can be
celibate if he or she wants to, shes free to use any form of contraceptive, and she can terminate her
pregnancy if she wants to; again, total control of her reproductive system. You see, both sides seem to
have strong reasons.

The conflict begins on the issue of abortion. Pro-life followers assert that life begins upon the meeting of
the egg and the sperm cells while Pro-choice says its not. This is a vague issue so lets dig deeper. We
are pro-life as Christians and this is what we are called for. Let us look at the reasoning of the people on
the opposite side and reflect upon ourselves. Later, we will look into the ONE BIG REALITY why all these
things happen. Here are the some of the arguments according to the pro-choice people.

1. Abortion is not MURDER. Murder is the unlawful killing of another human being with malice
aforethought. In the US, abortion is legal, therefore abortion is not murder.
2. Its NOT ALIVE. Most abortions happen during the first trimester where the fetus is just an inch
in size. Its very much dependent on the mother through placenta and umbilical cord. It cant be
regarded as a separate entity because it will die outside the womb logically the fetus is part of
a womans body. It has no sense of being so it doesnt warrant being treated as a human.
3. ADOPTION is NOT AN ALTERNATIVE Its the choice of a woman to give her child up for
adoption. Once the woman has had a baby theres already a sense of duty through parental
instinct to care for that baby. But if she was given the choice of termination she would have
done this.
4. GOD DOESNT HAVE A SAY. In the US there is such a thing called freedom of religion which is
why religious ideology is not a foundation for any law. Religion should not mandate the actual
laws that are made for the citizens.
5. Bodily Autonomy is a basic human right. A fetus that is dependent on the mother for
sustenance is not autonomous and its not its own being.
6. Other Arguments include:
a pregnancy should never be mandatory
sex is a natural aspect of human life
mental health and well-being of women
it is time for men to stop dictating the actions of women
a massive financial undertaking
freedom of religion
empowerment and advancement of women

It ALL boils down to one word

SELFISHNESS This is not the way Jesus taught us. Abortion and any other form of sin is born out of our
greed and self-gratification. You end the life of a potential person just because you want to enjoy your
life and become free where in fact it was your decision to get pregnant.

Abortion is a product of mans selfishness and this is the real issue that we should really look into.

Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such
as these. Matthew 19:14