Theologically speaking, why is abortion so "bad" in Christianity (compared to Judaism, Islam, etc)
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Anonymous
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This has always puzzled me. While there are certainly strictists in Judaism and Islam, both religions tend to take a considerably more moderate attitude towards abortion and termination of a pregnancy, compared to Christianity and especially Catholicism. I don't really understand why. Yes, I know there's an emphasis on "life" but the other Abrahamic religions are more open to termination than their middle sibling. Why? How historically and theologically did this happen?
As an example, I grew up in a practicing Muslim family and practicing community. In Islam, it's commonly believed (according to various texts) that God "breathes" a soul into a fetus 120 days after conception. Before 120 days, it does not have a soul. Protection of the mother is paramount - both before AND after those 120 days, and it is undisputed that a mother/woman takes precedence in a pregnancy. Termination for her wellbeing can be done at ANY time, with medical guidance. As for other termination reasons, I (and I know many others) were raised that it's between a woman and God. She should terminate in those 120 days, and without question if it's from rape or incest. All other reasons were at her (and her family's discretion). Obviously there are some very strict people that don't support abortion at all, but overall there still seems to be much more wiggle room with regards to human circumstances. I believe it's similar in many veins of Judaism. Let's avoid a roe v. wade debate, and try to understand historically/theologically what happened, why things changed in the middle of the Abrahamic timeline. Anyone? |
Anonymous
| I blame the Catholics, who are obsessed with sex and controlling it. Celibate priests, contraception bans, etc. |
Anonymous
| There is no Biblical basis for it; it’s a totally manufactured issue. |
Anonymous
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Guessing it has to do with the Virgin Mary somehow.
The 120-day thing is really interesting and makes intuitive sense, as that's when the baby starts kicking (and is actually fairly close to viability, scientifically speaking). |
Anonymous
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Theologically speaking, it’s not in any way. The Bible makes no mention of abortion except for the passage that can be interpreted as a priest giving a woman an abortion.
In 1978, evangelical leaders, at the behest of conservative activist Paul Weyrich, seized on abortion not for moral reasons, but as a rallying-cry to deny President Jimmy Carter a second term. Why? Because the anti-abortion crusade was more palatable than the religious right’s real motive: protecting segregated schools. |
Anonymous
| The early Catholic church did allow abortion. In 1869, Pope Pius IX declared all abortion murder. |
Anonymous
| Because it's not actually about religion. It's about something else. Can you think what it might be? |
Anonymous
| Historically, attempts to bring on menses before the quickening (about 3 months when you first feel movement) was widely accepted-certainly it was in early america by puritans/orthodox protestants. |
Anonymous
He is also the one who established the dogma of Immaculate Conception of Mary on 8 December 1854, and by 1870, he established the dogma of "papal infallibility,” which states that when speaking in terms of Church doctrine, the Pope speaks the truth with certainty. Convenient, isn't it? His reason: "He believed that while it may not be known when ensoulment occurs, there was the possibility that it happens at conception. Believing it was morally safer to follow this conclusion, he thought all life should be protected from the start of conception. In 1869 he removed the labels of “animated” fetus and “unanimated” fetus and concluded that abortions at any point of gestation were punishable by excommunication." https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/pope-pius-ix-1792-1878 So, all of this pain and suffering inflicted on women based on one man bucking centuries of belief and practice, hedging his moral bets, and declaring himself the last word on the subject. |
Anonymous
| Abortion is prohibited by an extrabiblical early 2nd century Christian text called the Didache. So it's not scripture, but it's tradition for the Roman Catholic, Eastern Catholic, and Orthodox churches dating back to the early church. Sola scriptura Protestants who are divorced from the early church traditions cannot defend their abortion stance using the bible or church tradition. In fact, in the 70s before the rise of the religious right, most protestant churches were not anti-abortion. |
Anonymous
It was also a way to attack the women's rights movement. And it's a pretty recent development. Generally, abortion bans applied after "quickening," when you could feel the fetus moving. Abortion bans were part of an effort by an increasingly professionalized medical establishment to discredit midwives (who generally performed abortions). |
Anonymous
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It isn’t. The southern Baptist church endorsed pro choice before and after Roe. American Catholic women are just as likely to abort an unplanned pregnancy as any other American women.
The anti choice movement is a fairly new phenomenon and has no actual basis in Christian scripture. The Bible says life begins at first breath. |
Anonymous
This. People who are connected to the Puritans who hated sex. |
Anonymous
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You might be interested in this piece:
https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2022/06/judaism-abortion-rights-religious-freedom/661264/ |