Life in Black and White
If you have read any of my posts you will probably figure out pretty quickly that I am a Christian and unashamedly so. I'm not sure what ideas that brings up in your mind about me but I'm pretty certain that there are preconceived notions. Are those notions correct or not? Well, I don't know what you are thinking so I couldn't honesty tell you.
However there are certain things in the American media that make me sad to say I'm a Christian. I see militant Christians with hardline views and powerful rhetoric which lead me to believe that they totally missed the point. One of those topics is Pro Life VS Pro Choice and for some reason Hive Learners asked their members to write an article on exactly that topic.
Thanks for throwing us under the bus.
and when I look at the Hive Learners rules I see this :
Religious / Political related contents will be ignored.
Okay, I'm not entirely sure how I can approach this topic without bringing up religion or politics because it is such a hotbed topic from both a religious and political point of view. But I'll do my best (and really guys could you have picked a harder topic?)
Thou shall not kill
The bible is pretty clear on this one for both Christians and Jewish
Exodus 20:13 (NLT) “You must not murder.”
But a quick Google search shows that many major religions also hold the same tenet that killing is wrong. *And if I got any of these quotes wrong please forgive me, it was a Google search
In Islam
Qur’an 5:32 (Sahih International) “…whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption on earth— it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one— it is as if he had saved mankind entirely.”
In Hinduism
Bhagavad Gita 16:1–2 “Nonviolence, truthfulness, and absence of anger… these are the qualities of the righteous.”
In Buddhism
First Precept (Pali Canon, Digha Nikaya 31) “I undertake the precept to abstain from taking life.”
In Sikhism
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 1377 “One who kills, or causes another to kill, is destroyed by his own actions.”
In Taoism
Tao Te Ching 74 “Do not take it upon yourself to kill.”
In Baha'i faith
Bahá’u’lláh, Kitáb-i-Aqdas “It is forbidden that man should destroy life.”
I believe it would be fair to say that many major religions will stand with the statement that "killing is wrong". So, it would be easy to say "Everyone should be Pro Life" and it would also be very naive.
Why?
Because the world isn't black and white. Let me be clear: In a perfect world where things go as they should there should be no abortion. In that way I am absolutely Pro Life and against abortion. Unfortunately we live in a world that is a long long ways from perfect. Things often do not go as they should in very very dark ways.
But first ... I'm not getting bogged down in details
This is usually where things get heated. I like to think the majority of people think murder is wrong and Pro Choice people typically don't think we should go around killing people. In that way the discussion turns to "When is a baby truly a person"? How far back do we go before a life is a life?
Image source Dall-e but if you want to see what its based on... Siskel and Ebert Review
Ever watched the movie "Monty Python, The Meaning of Life". They poked fun at this notion with their song / sketch about "Every sperm is sacred"
"Monty Python, The meaning of life : You don't have to be a six-footer... You don't have to have a great brain... You don't have to have any clothes on... You're a Catholic the moment Dad came.... Because..... Every sperm is sacred... Every sperm is great... If a sperm is wasted... God gets quite irate
If someone wants to get quite ludicrous in their rationale they could argue that you are a person the moment Dad had "That twinkle in his eye" or... well, look at the lyrics up above. Indeed there was a time that the Catholic church said condoms were evil and was all in on abstinence.
You know what? If there was a lot more abstinence there would be a lot fewer questions about Pro Life or Pro Choice. However I'm not wasting my time on that argument 🤣
I'm also not going to waste my time on arguing when a baby is or is not a life to take or not be taken. I'll leave you to your own conscience on that one. However, I will leave you with a different quote from the Bible which I believe is crucial in discussions like these.
Concessions are necessary
Now this verse is written in regards to marriage but I think it applies. The Bible says that a marriage is sacred and should be for life. Guess what, not every marriage works out. In a perfect world men would love their wives forever. In a perfect world there would be no spouse abuse, no violence at home, no quarrels, fights, disagreements and hurt feelings. I'm married and can absolutely say I don't live in a perfect world. Does that mean that the idea of marriage for life is wrong? I would say no. I would just say it is unrealistic given human nature.
Which is why I'm so happy when I see this verse.
Matthew 19:8 (NLT) Jesus replied, “Moses permitted divorce only as a concession to your hard hearts, but it was not what God had originally intended.”
Only as a concession to your hard hearts
To me this is HUGE
It lets me know that God see things as black and white, right and wrong, good and evil. However, it also lets me know that there is acknowledgement that we live in a world that isn't black and white.
I'm proudly Pro Life but guess what? Sometimes concessions have to be made.
I'll admit that I've had a condom that broke....and was very happy that emergency contraception was available.
As a pharmacist I've heard ugly stories about babies being created in ways that should never be (I'm not going into details). I know people who have had children very early in life and had their lives turned upside down because of it. I also know a person who had multiple abortions in one year. My mind has trouble comprehending what situation could lead to that? Once would be hard on a body but multiple times...I don't even want to imagine how hard that would be on them physically or emotionally.
Pro Life or Pro Choice is an easy mantra to chant. The reality is a lot messier. Ever person has their own unique life story. Every person has their own reason to say yes or no. I'm glad my Bible allows for concessions.
And guess what? Things get stickier because it takes who to make a baby.
There is a woman AND a man involved. Ok, yes, technically you could to things artificially but for anyone who spends that kind of money to get pregnant I think this question is really a non issue....back to the point. What if the man wants the baby and the woman doesn't? Isn't the child just as much "his?". Go back in time and a man having a heir was a HUGE thing to carry on the family line, shouldn't he have a say? Move forward in time in Canada and now a man who is the father of a child will be financially responsible for that child until they finish university regardless of marital status. That baby can affect the next 25 years of the fathers life! Shouldn't he have a say? Then again, the woman has to carry the baby and all the physical changes that go along with it. It's her body, shouldn't she have the final say?
Remember when I said we don't live in a perfect world and things get messy?
How I wish we lived in a perfect world
I don't have the answers. I just see the problems and wish we lived in a perfect world.
I wish we lived in a world where every child was wanted
I wish we lived in a world where every child had loving parents
I wish we lived in a world where every child was free to learn, play, live and thrive
I wish we lived in a world where no child ever went hungry
I wish we lived in a world where divorce was never needed and love always won
and
I wish I lived in a world where concessions were never necessary
.... I pray for that world to come, indeed it is the first part of the Lord's Prayer in the Bible, but I don't think it will be today.
And that's my take on a very thorny problem. As always feel free to comment. Although to be honest on a topic like this I kind of wish I could shut comments off as its absolutely flame bait anywhere but Hive.
But regardless I'm glad you made it to the end of this article. Thanks for reading.
Lol for me that was a mistake of a prompt that doesn’t fit the community 🤣🤣🤣 i thought the same when i read
hahaha.... I don't make the prompts I just do my best to write on them :)
I know!! hahaha I just think it is a polemic topic that will bring religion and politics for sure!
I dont even want to get started because I dont agree with many things but of course, I respect your opinion and understand where you are coming from. Its so funny that outside religion, many people would probably not know where they stand when it comes to certain matters. However, I am definitely team 'pro-choice'
Pregnancy can come to be due to different circumstances but ultimately, it believe the woman should have the choice to have the baby or not.
And I honestly know where you are coming from also. Honestly I would typically try to avoid the topic as much as possible but it was the post prompt so I thought....Hmm..... how do I approach this while trying to be respectful to both sides and honest to myself.
I do believe that whichever side you choose and whatever choice is made it is done with education and sincerity. I do believe it is too big a choice to make lightly.
And thanks for the reply, I do appreciate it :)