Speaking Life Through Scripture and Science by Autumn
Hi! Today I'm going to share with you an essay I wrote for a pro-life essay contest...
“When do you believe life begins?” Before explaining my views to anyone, I’d start by asking this question and listening intently. I’d use empathy to try to understand why they feel the way they do. Then, I would seek to explain my beliefs in a way that is proposing, not imposing. When explaining that life begins at conception, my argument would vary depending on my audience.
If speaking to a fellow Christian, I’d point out that the Bible makes it clear that life begins at conception, if not before. Jeremiah 1:5 says; “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born I dedicated you…” The Lord is telling Jeremiah that his life and legacy began before he was even conceived.
We can also look at the phrasing of the scriptures to understand that at the moment of conception a child is a child. The Bible tells the stories of many conceptions and births. Every time the phrasing is the same, saying that the woman, “Conceived and bore a child.” Never does the Bible say that a woman, “Conceived a lump of tissue and eventually gave birth to a human.”
Another biblical example would be Matthew 1:20. In this passage an angel appears to Joseph and assures him that, “The child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” Again, it is important to note that the angel refers to a child that has been conceived.
If my audience wasn’t Christian, I would take a more secular approach to my argument. Scientifically, I would explain that, at the moment of conception, a baby already has its own unique DNA. Another fact that’s important is that of a baby’s heartbeat. Many don’t know that a baby’s heart can start beating as early as three weeks. That’s usually far before a woman would even know that she was pregnant.
After these arguments, I would clarify that defending the unborn doesn’t mean that one doesn’t care about the mothers. Especially after the overturning of Roe V. Wade, I see that pro-lifers are accused of not caring about the women who are in difficult situations. However, that usually isn’t true. To say that people against abortion are also against these women is like saying that people against war are also against the soldiers who are involved in the violence.
Someone opposing war would be considered an advocate of other solutions to global issues, not accused of hating the soldiers involved. Instead they would be commended for trying to find other solutions so that soldiers wouldn’t have to go through the pain that war brings.
Most people who oppose abortion are like those who oppose war. They hate the evil that takes the lives of children, but don’t hate the mothers who are involved in it. Instead we strive to support both the mothers and the children so that no one has to go through the pain that abortion brings.
