[Vision2020] Religion and Sex Quiz (abortion question)

[Ralph Nielsen]

Twelve years ago I wrote this summary:

	ABORTION AND THE BIBLE

Does God forbid abortion? Many people think he does, but they merely  
cite poetry or theological speculation. God actually speaks about  
abortion in only two places in the Bible, and Jesus never mentioned  
it at all.

1. ACCIDENTAL ABORTION
If a brawling man happens to strike a pregnant woman and causes a  
miscarriage, that is, an ABORTION, he must pay a fine to the  
expectant father. But if he injures the woman in any other way, he  
must be punished accordingly (Exodus 21:22-25).

2. INTENTIONAL ABORTION
If a man suspects that his wife has had inercourse with another man  
-- and possibly has become pregnant -- he shall take her to the  
tabernacle, where the  priest will mix holy water with dust off the  
floor -- where animals are slaughtered for sacrifice -- and force the  
woman to drink it. If she is guilty, her womb will discharge and her  
uterus will drop. In other words, she will have had an ABORTION  
(Numbers 5:11-21).

In neither case does the LORD say that the fetus has a so-called  
"right to life." And in neither case does the LORD forbid abortion.
            
************************************************************************ 
*****************************

How much is a person worth in the eyes of the LORD? It depends on the  
age and the sex of the person. A male of working age -- 20-60 years  
old -- is the most valuable, both older and younger males are worth  
less. Females are always worth less than males. But infants less than  
one month old are apparently not worth anything in the eyes of the  
LORD (Leviticus 27:1-7). So, obviously, persons not yet born have no  
value either. This view completely agrees with the citations above.

Ralph Nielsen	



Hi Wayne,

It's not completely true that the Bible does not mention abortion.   
Here is a passage from my article on abortion (www.class.uidaho.edu/ 
ngier/abortion.htm):

Christian orthodoxy was profoundly influenced by the first Greek  
translation of the Torah, done by Hellenistic Jews living in Egypt in  
the Third Century B.C.E. This first Greek Bible, called the  
Septuagint and considered divinely inspired by some early church  
fathers, translates Exodus 21:22 in such a way as to make a clear  
distinction between an "unformed" fetus and one "formed." The moral  
implication of the verse is that the accidental destruction of an  
unformed fetus was punishable by a fine, but any killing of a formed  
fetus required "a life for a life." The Jewish Halakhic tradition has  
a more different view of this verse in Hebrew: "Since the punishment  
is monetary rather than execution, the unborn fetus is not considered  
a living person and feticide is not murder."

For English Common Law the "formed" fetus was one that is sensate,  
and kicks and quickens in the womb.  The Catholic Church allowed the  
abortions of unformed fetuses until 1917.

If the conservative is one who preserves traditional views, then Roe  
v. Wade is a conservative position on abortion.

Yours for a woman's right to choose.

Nick Gier

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/vision2020/attachments/20110526/838638b4/attachment.html