I was asked today when I thought life began. Specifically if it started at conception, since this is one of the biggest debates for/against abortion. As anybody reading this should know, abortion is the removal of the fetus from the mother's womb. The controversy is that if life begins at conception, then abortion is just another word for murder.
I didn't really have an answer for the person who asked me the question, mainly because I knew he would simply ask "Really?" to whatever I said and then laugh a little(not laugh, but kind of chuckle to himself), unless I happened to agree with his point of view, which I don't think I do. So I didn't see a point in giving him an answer.
As to my belief, I have come to the belief that every human life has existed since God created Man in Genesis. This is not to say that we are reincarnated, but rather that our souls don't come into being as we are conceived, but have existed since time began. A kink in my theory here is that some souls would be waiting quite a while, especially at this point. But I'm not focusing on that aspect of life. I mean to say that while the physical manifestation of our life begins at conception, our existence has existed since Genesis. So for me, abortion is murder, a denial of the right to live by those who were not denied that right. In a sense, I believe abortion is a way of saying "It's too bad my parents didn't have an abortion, or I wouldn't have to be going through this right now." Maybe that's a little drastic, I don't know. But if you were't denied the right to live, what gives you the right to deny someone else?
So to sum up what I've been saying, or I guess to restate it, I believe life began with Adam, and we began our existence at the same time he did. Our entrance into this world begins at conception, and thus abortion is equatable with murder. I guess that's all to say, I'll probably write more on the topic of life later this year. So all you people NOT following this blog can look forward to that.
I have some updated thoughts on this topic, which might be written on later... focusing on time and what happened between creation and my birth.
ReplyDeleteAdditional update: Concerning the issue of physical life beginning and when a person should be considered a person, I believe this is at conception. My reasoning is this: at the point of conception, if there is no interference from the outside (like an attempted abortion), that small grouping of cells will form into a human being. Once the egg is fertilized, the cells will form the body of a person if no one tries to stop it. So from my perspective, that means that a person should be considered a person and have the rights of a person at the point of conception. The implication of this is that any attempt to terminate that life should then be considered murder. Those who want to argue for the woman's choice is arguing for the mother to be allowed to choose to murder her unborn child. That is the choice being made in abortion.
ReplyDeleteOn the topic of time, which I had mentioned in the other comment, I think I believe that our souls exist outside of time and enter into time at the point of our conception. I believe the same for death. So someone who died 3,000 years ago and went to Heaven would "arrive" at the same time as someone who died today. I am not sure I have any proof or evidence to base this on, its just a thought from a scattered mind.