QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE

Psalm 100:3a – “Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves;” & Ephesians 1:4a – “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world,)”. God is the Author and Creator of life. God created us and the Bible says He knew us even before the “foundation of the world.” – We need to respect life; we need to respect the life of the innocent unborn children especially.

WHO CREATED HUMAN LIFE? (Genesis 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.) The Bible says He is our God even before we are born. (Psalm 22:10 – I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother’s belly.) God is our maker. He formed us. He designed us. (Isaiah 44:2a – Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb,).

WHEN DOES LIFE BEGIN? Jeremiah 1:5 answers this question. It says “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee,” So at the moment of conception God already knows us. Before anyone else even knows us, God already knows us and loves us and gave His life that we might have life eternal with Him in Heaven. If life begins at conception, then can the unborn have feelings? Can they feel emotion or pain? Do they recognize voices? (Luke 1:44 – For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.) – The answer to those questions is yes. They can feel joy, they can hear their mother’s voice, and they can feel pain.

President Reagan said “We cannot survive as a free nation when some men decide that others are not fit to live and should be abandoned to abortion or infanticide…. There is no cause more important for preserving that freedom than affirming the transcendent right to life of all human beings…”

Human Life Begins Before Birth at conception. There is a belief widely held today about the unborn, a belief not found in the Bible, that in the early stages of pregnancy, a separate human life does not exist in the womb, but rather a collection of cells that may be regarded as just a part of the mother’s body. It is wrongfully believed that the mother is free at this stage to destroy this so called tissue, because it is not yet a child or a babe, God forbid! The Bible, in the way it describes conception and pregnancy, lends no support to that belief. The Bible speaks of that which is conceived and developing in an expectant mother’s womb as a “child” or “babe”.

• Rebekah had “children…. within her” (Genesis 25:22)
• Job speaks of “the night in which it was said, There is a man child conceived” (Job 3:3).
• Elizabeth had “conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her”, and the “babe leaped in her womb” (Luke 1:36, 41).

The main reason why abortion is so common is the belief that early abortion is not killing a child, but merely preventing one from coming into being. Abortion would almost cease to exist if people could just come to understand and accept the Bible teaching that a “child” is “conceived in the womb“.

WHOSE IMAGE ARE WE CREATED IN? (Genesis 1:26-28a – And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth,) Only man was created in God’s own image. Not animals, man did not evolve over millions of years. We are not descendents of apes or monkeys. God created us in His image and God breathed the breath of life in us. All life comes from God, but human life is set apart from all other life, in that it was God Breathed. (Genesis 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.) The Bible is clear on this subject, “God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”
Can we tell the moment of each person’s creation by God? Science offers a clear answer that perfectly complements the teaching of Scripture. Dr. Alfred M. Bongiovanni, professor of obstetrics at the University of Pennsylvania, states, “I have learned from my earliest medical education that human life begins at the time of conception. I submit that human life is present throughout this entire sequence from conception to adulthood and that any interruption at any point throughout this time constitutes a termination of human life.” Speaking of the early stages of a child’s development in the womb, Professor Bongiovanni says, “I am no more prepared to say that these early stages represent an incomplete human being than I would be to say that the child prior to the dramatic effects of puberty is not a human being. This is human life at every stage.” Every scientific indication, is that at the moment of each person’s creation, is the moment of his conception. Before that moment the individual did not exist, and from that moment on he will exist for all eternity. Either alive on earth or after his death with the Lord or in an eternal Hell.

IS IT WRONG TO MURDER A PERSON? – Few people would object to the statement that murder is wrong. Murder is the unjustified and unlawful terminating of human life.(Genesis 9:6 – Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man & Matthew 19:18 – He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,)See also Mark 10:19; Luke 18:20; John 8:44; Acts 3:14.

The Bible tells us those that commit murder are worthy of death. (Romans 1:29,32 -Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.)Historically, the standard of men, even apart from knowing God, or being a Christian, is that taking the life of an innocent person is wrong and worthy of death. So by God’s commandments and word, and historically by mans laws, murdering an innocent person is wrong and worthy of death.

SO THE NEXT QUESTION IS – IS THE UNBORN A PERSON? – We have established by God and mans standards and laws, it is wrong to murder a person. So let’s look at some qualities or characteristics the Bible assigns and gives to the unborn to answer this question. The unborn possess personal attributes such as sin and joy. In Psalm 51:5, David says, “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.” and in Luke 1:44 the Bible says “For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.” The unborn baby experienced joy at hearing the voice of Mary. Unborn children experience emotions just like us. The Bible also uses personal pronouns to describe unborn children. (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.)

The Bible says regarding the conception of Jesus in Matthew 1:20 – “But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” The Angel of God, the messenger from the Sovereign of the universe, told Joseph “that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” From the very moment of conception the Angel is telling Joseph that Jesus was indeed a person at conception. “That which is conceived”, means a child that was fathered, a life being brought forth or to cause life to start.

The unborn are called “babe” or children. (Luke 1:41 & 44 – 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: For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.) The word “babe” here means either an unborn child or a new born child. The term was used interchangeably. No difference was placed on the unborn or the newly born, they were considered the same. The unborn are personally and intimately known by God, starting in the womb at conception, the same way He would know any other person. God, in the Bible, talking about the prophet Jeremiah, said in 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.” Think about this verse for awhile. God had already ordained Jeremiahs future service to Him as a prophet before he was even born. What has God had planned for you since the moment of your conception? Think about that and pray about that, and with everything you got, seek to fulfill His purpose for your life.

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SPECIFICALLY SAY ABOUT THE TAKING OF THE LIFE OF AN UNBORN PERSON? (Exodus 21:22-23 – If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life,) This passage is talking about women through the fault of a third party having a premature birth of their child. “her fruit depart from her”, means the baby comes out alive. So the person causing this pays a fine. But the part of this passage that says “if any mischief follow”, means if any injury or death occurs. According to this verse if the death of the unborn child occurs, the person who caused this to happen should pay with his life as well, “any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life” So this passage is crystal clear on the subject. It places equal value on the life of the unborn and the life of the mother. It tells us those that cause the death of the unborn should have their life taken from them as well, they are guilty of murder.

WHAT IS ABORTION? According to the Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary “abortion” is – “the termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryo or fetus….” The issue of abortion has to do with the morality of a person’s choice to “terminate” the pregnancy, not a miscarriage that happens naturally. Abortion stops the natural process of human development within the mother’s womb. The purpose of abortion is to empty the mother’s womb, which results in the death of the tiny, innocent, defenseless human being. Because the Bible recognizes the unborn as being fully human (Psalm 139:13 – For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb.) Abortion is undoubtedly murder of the worst most, wicked kind. (Jeremiah 2:34 – Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls of the poor innocents: I have not found it by secret search, but upon all these. & Deuteronomy 19:10 – That innocent blood be not shed in thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee.)

IN CONCLUSION – God is the Author and Creator of life. God controls the timing of our birth. He wanted us born when we were born, where we were born and to whom we were born. He has a reason and a purpose for everyone. At the moment of conception God already knows us. Before anyone else even knows us, God already knows us and loves us and gave His life that we might have life eternal with Him in Heaven. What is conceived in the womb is a “child” — a baby human being however very small. We should understand that destroying what has begun to form in the womb is taking the life of a child. We could not justify such action before God. Only man was created in God’s own image. Not animals, man did not evolve over millions of years. God created us in His image and God breathed the breath of life in us. All life comes from God, but human life is set apart from all other life, in that it was God Breathed. (Genesis 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.)Our bodies are not our own. Neither is someone’s body that is unborn. Not one has a right over their own bodies or the bodies of the unborn. We all belong to God. We are created in his image. We must honor and respect the sanctity of God given life.

ABORTION STATISTICS (source abort73.com)

ANNUAL ABORTION STATISTICS

• In 2011, approximately 1.06 million abortions took place in the U.S., down from an estimated 1.21 million abortions in 2008, 1.29 million in 2002, 1.31 million in 2000 and 1.36 million in 1996. From 1973 through 2011, nearly 53 million legal abortions have occurred in the U.S. (AGI).
• Based on available state-level data, an estimated 1.04 million abortions took place in 2012—down from an estimated 1.16 million abortions in 2009 and 1.13 million abortions in 2010.
• In 2011, the highest number of reported abortions occurred in California (181,730), New York (138,370) and Florida (84,990); the fewest occurred in Wyoming (120), South Dakota (600) and North Dakota (1,250) (AGI).
• The 2011 abortion rates by state ranged from a low of 3.8 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44 in Mississippi (Wyoming had too few abortions for reliable tabulation) to a high of 28.6 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44 in New York (AGI).
• The annual number of legal induced abortions in the United States doubled between 1973 and 1979, and peaked in 1990. There was a slow but steady decline through the 1990’s. Overall, the number of annual abortions decreased by 6% between 2000 and 2009, with temporary spikes in 2002 and 2006 (CDC).
• In 2011, 17% of legal induced abortions occurred in California (AGI).
• The US abortion rate is similar to those of Australia, New Zealand, and Sweden but higher than those of other Western European countries (NAF).
• In 2005, the abortion rate in the United States was higher than recent rates reported for Canada and Western European countries and lower than rates reported for China, Cuba, the majority of Eastern European countries, and certain Newly Independent States of the former Soviet Union (CDC).
• Half of pregnancies among American women are unintended; about 4 in 10 of these are terminated by abortion. Twenty-one percent of all U.S. pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) end in abortion. (AGI).

WHO HAS ABORTIONS?

• In 2010, unmarried women accounted for 85% of all abortions (CDC).
• Women living with a partner to whom they are not married account for 25% of abortions but only about 10% of women in the population (NAF).
• In 2010, women who had not aborted in the past accounted for 55.6% of all abortions; women with one or two prior abortions accounted for 36.7%, and women with three or more prior abortions accounted for 7.7% (CDC).
• Among women who obtained abortions in 2010, 40.3% had no prior live births; 45.9% had one or two prior live births, and 13.8% had three or more prior live births (CDC).
• Women between the ages of 20-24 obtained 32.9% of all abortions in 2010; women between 25-29 obtained 24.5% (CDC).
• Women in their 20’s have the highest abortion rates. In 2010, women aged 20-24 had 27.4 abortions for every one thousand 20-24 year-old women. Women aged 25-29 had 20.4 abortions for every one thousand 25-29 year-old women (CDC).
• 51% of U.S. women obtaining abortions are younger than 25; women aged 20-24 obtain 33% of all U.S. abortions, and teenagers obtain 18% (AGI).
• In 2010, adolescents under 15 years obtained .05% of all abortions, but had the highest abortion ratio, 851 abortions for every 1,000 live births (CDC).
• Black women were 3.7 times more likely to have an abortion in 2010 than non-Hispanic white women (CDC).
• The abortion rate of non-metropolitan women is about half that of women who live in metropolitan counties (NAF).
• The abortion rate of women with Medicaid coverage is three times as high as that of other women (NAF).
• 37% of women obtaining abortions identify themselves as Protestant, and 28% identify themselves as Catholic (AGI).
• At current rates, nearly one-third of American women will have an abortion (AGI).

WHY DO ABORTIONS OCCUR?

• On average, women give at least 3 reasons for choosing abortion: 3/4 say that having a baby would interfere with work, school or other responsibilities; about 3/4 say they cannot afford a child; and 1/2 say they do not want to be a single parent or are having problems with their husband or partner (AGI).
• Only 12% of women included a physical problem with their health among reasons for having an abortion (NAF).
• One per cent (of aborting women) reported that they were the survivors of rape (NAF).

WHEN DO ABORTIONS OCCUR?

• 89-92% of all abortions happen during the first trimester, prior to the 13th week of gestation (AGI/CDC).
• In 2010, 6.9% of all abortions occurred between 14-20 weeks’ gestation; 1.2% occurred ≥21 weeks’ gestation (CDC).
• Percentage of 2010 Reported Abortions by Weeks of Gestation* (CDC):
≤6 wks 7 wks 8 wks 9 wks 10 wks 11 wks 12 wks 13 wks 14-15 wks 16-17 wks 18-20 wks ≥21 wks
37.8% 19.3% 14.6% 9.8% 6.7% 5.1% 3.9% 2.9% 3.3% 1.8% 1.8% 1.2%
• *Gestational weeks are measured from the first day of the woman’s last menstruation and not from the day of conception. Though it does not provide an accurate fetal age (which is roughly 2 weeks less than the gestational age), it is the simplest way for an OB/GYN to age a pregnancy since the day of conception is often not known. Hence, if an abortion occurs at 8 weeks gestation, it is actually aborting a 6 week embryo. The images on our Prenatal Development and Abortion Pictures pages are more precisely captioned with fetal ages in accordance with standard teaching texts on prenatal development.

HOW DOES ABORTION TAKE PLACE?

• In 2010, 80.5% of reported abortions were accomplished by curettage (which includes dilatation and evacuation). Most curettage abortions are suction procedures (CDC).
• Medical abortions made up approximately 17.8% of all abortions reported (CDC).
• Ninety-six per cent of the more than 140,000 second-trimester abortions that occur annually in the USA are accomplished by dilation and evacuation (D&E) (NAF).
WHO IS DOING THE ABORTIONS?
• The number of abortion providers declined by 4% between 2008 and 2011—from 1,793 to 1,720 (AGI).
• Forty-two percent of providers offer very early abortions (during the first four weeks’ gestation) and 95% offer abortion at eight weeks. Sixty-four percent of providers offer at least some second-trimester abortion services (13 weeks or later), and 20% offer abortion after 20 weeks. Eleven percent of all abortion providers offer abortions past 24 weeks (AGI).
• Most abortions in the USA are provided in freestanding clinics; in 2005, only 5% occurred in hospitals, down from 22% in 1980, and only 2% took place in physician’s offices (NAF).

ABORTION FATALITY

• In 2009, 8 women died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortion; From 1973-2009, 411 women have died as a result of legal abortion (CDC).
• The number of deaths attributable to legal induced abortion was highest before the 1980s (CDC).
• In 1972 (the year before abortion was federally legalized), a total of 24 women died from causes known to be associated with legal abortions, and 39 died as a result of known illegal abortions (CDC).