Pro-Life Week

This is a rather longish post, and it isn't original to me, but since many of you are interested in this, I thought I'd take to opportunity to tell you all at once.

As most of you know, LU is hosting ROSE - Reclaiming Other's Sacred Existence this week, the first pro-life event on campus. You can see some pictures here. I'm not sure how long this link will be active, but drop me a note if it breaks.

Anyway, I've attended three of the seminars so far. One of them was a more in-depth version of what we had at convo, which you can watch through LU's podcast site. Probably the most interesting so far, though not as stirring as the Center for Bioethical Reform presentation I just got back from (abortionno.com - very graphic), was Dr. Caner's presentation on "Formation in the Womb: the Issue of Abortion and a Biblical Apologetic." It was pretty formal for Dr. Caner (at least how I generally see him), but amazing, and very good for "beating them with their [abortionist's] own stick." Thought you might like to see it. These are his lecture notes, as well as those I took.

I. The issues at hand for a Christian

A. Socially, the issue of abortion is a tension between the rights of a woman's personal freedom to do what she chooses with her body, and the questions of the rights and freedoms of the baby.

B. Theologically, the issue is filtered by two fundamental questions.

1. Definition of Life: Does Life begin at conception or birth?

2. Definition of Ethic: Is it a sin to abort a fetus? (A term Dr. Caner Strongly dislikes.)

C. Historically, some Christians such as Augustine defined life at the moment of the first breath. Using Genesis 2:7, they note that God breathed life into Adam. Yet so many Scriptures predate life at conception that the issue of viability and life go back farther to the formation of the child. W. A. Criswell [one of Dr. Caner's teachers once he became a Christian] repented of this view. Also, Dr. Caner brought up the fact that we aren't created the same way Adam was - Adam was created as an adult, never in the womb. Dr. Caner also interjected that in Islam, life does not begin until the father says a particular thing in the child's ear, thus, while they don't "abort" children the way we do here, since it is a dishonor to have your first born be a daughter, in some nations parents will bury the baby girl face down in the sand before she has heard the father say those words. If she isn't really alive, why do we have an issue with that?

II. The Biblical Definition of Life in the Womb by God

A. The term "son" is used both before and after the birth process

1. Luke 1:24: "Elizabeth conceived a son." Huios = son

2. Luke 1:41: "Elizabeth has a baby in her womb." Brephos = the term for baby, both born and pre-born.

3. Luke 1:57: "Elizabeth brought forth a son." Huios = son, this time post-natal.

B. The Bible speaks of children in the womb in terms of life.

1. Genesis 25:21-22 [truncated by me].

"The babies jostled each other within her . . ."

2. 2 Kings 19:3 [truncated by me].

". . . as the day when children come to the point of birth . . ." - pre-born are still children.

3. Job 3:23 [truncated]

". . . was a man-child [Geber] conceived . . ." Geber is Hebrew for man. See also Psalms 127:5, 128:4, etc.

III. Biblical protection of Life in the Womb by God.

A. In the Bible, God refers to His formation of the human in the womb.

1. (The common verse): Jeremiah 1:5: "Before I formed you . . ."

2. (Less common): Ecclesiastes 11:5: ". . . how a body is formed in the womb . . ." The use of the word "formed" implies an intention design - there are no "accidental" babies with God.

B. The Bible describes life in terms of blood: Deuteronomy 12:23: ". . . do not eat the blood, because in the blood is life . . ." The fetus has a blood stream by four weeks, and a heartbeat before that.

C. The Old Testament maintains a "life-for-a-life" clause in case of the murder of an unborn child. (The strongest argument, in my opinion): Exodus 21:22-25: "If men who are fighting hit a pregnant woman so she gives birth prematurely but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman's husband demands and the court allows. But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise." There is no distinction in this verse between the mother and the child. This applies EITHER to both or to neither, not one or the other. The argument cannot be made that this law was specifically for judicial purposes. The murder of an unborn was considered an act of idolatry, attempting to be God. (Dr. Caner then cites Isaiah 44:2.)

D. As seen in Job 3:16, babies that die before birth are called infants who "never saw the light of day." The Hebrew for infant here is Olel, living being, which is universally translated "humans." see Hosea 13:16, Psalm 8:2, Joel 2:16.

That's side one of his notes. I'll try to post side two later! Now I have a drum lesson.

Manges-toi porc.