ABORTION

Position
Because the CRC believes that all human beings are imagebearers of God, it affirms the unique value of all human life. Mindful of the sixth commandment"You shall not murder" (Ex. 20:13) the church condemns the wanton or arbitrary destruction of any human being at any stage of its development from the point of conception to the point of death. The church affirms that an induced abortion is an allowable option only when the life of the mother-to-be is genuinely threatened by the continuation of the pregnancy. The church calls believers to show Christian compassion and to offer support to those experiencing unwanted pregnancies as well as to those who have undergone abortions. Further, it calls believers to speak out against the atrocity of abortion, to promote action and legislation that reflect the teaching of Scripture regarding the sanctity of human life, and to reject all violence against those who perpetrate abortion. See also Life Issues.

History
The Christian Reformed Church took its official stand on abortion in 1972 in response to overtures and a study committee appointed in 1971. Its synod has dealt with the issue of abortion several times since then. It endorsed the Human Life Amendment in 1976 and urged the churches to do all in their power to protect and

promote the sanctity of human life. Synod defeated an overture to designate an annual Sanctity of Human Life Sunday because it was hesitant to add to the number of special Sundays. However, in 1981 and in 1995 it did encourage the churches to give continued attention to this important issue and to use the anniversary date of the United States Supreme Court decision on abortion in the most effective way possible. In 1996, in response to concern about a Calvin College professor whose position on abortion did not agree with the official position of the CRC, synod noted that synodical decisions do not preclude faculty discussion, debate, or disagreement with the substance of the position taken. Synod reaffirmed its position on abortion in 1997 and condemned the practice of partial-birth abortion. Synod 1998 urged the churches to continue to oppose the atrocity of abortion, to minister to those who do not choose abortion as well as to those who suffer from its aftermath, and to reject all violence against those who perpetrate abortion. Synod 1999 considered an overture to study abortion and pregnancy-related issues along with an overture regarding ethical and theological issues in bioscience, and in response synod appointed a study committee "to examine the biblical/theological/ethical issues raised by the increasing capabilities and recent discoveries in bioscience and genetic engineering" (Acts of Synod 1999, p. 578). Synod 2010 received an overture regarding advocacy of the denominational position opposing abortion and adopted a recommendation "to instruct the Office of Social Justice and Hunger Action (OSJ) to boldly

advocate for the churchs position against abortion, and to help equip churches to promote the sanctity of human life" (Acts of Synod 2010, p. 883).

2270 Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life. 72 Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you. 73 My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately wrought in the depths of the earth. 74 2271 Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law: You shall not kill the embryo by abortion and shall not cause the newborn to perish. 75 God, the Lord of life, has entrusted to men the noble mission of safeguarding life, and men must carry it

out in a manner worthy of themselves. Life must be protected with the utmost care from the moment of conception: abortion and infanticide are abominable crimes. 76 2272 Formal cooperation in an abortion constitutes a grave offense. The Church attaches the canonical penalty of excommunication to this crime against human life. "A person who procures a completed abortion incurs excommunication latae sententiae ," 77 "by the very commission of the offense," 78 and subject to the conditions provided by Canon Law. 79 The Church does not thereby intend to restrict the scope of mercy. Rather, she makes clear the gravity of the crime committed, the irreparable harm done to the innocent who is put to death, as well as to the parents and the whole of society. 2273 The inalienable right to life of every innocent human individual is a constitutive element of a civil society and its legislation : "The inalienable rights of the person must be recognized and respected by civil society and the political authority. These human rights depend neither on single individuals nor on parents; nor do they represent a concession made by society and the state; they belong to human nature and are inherent in the person by virtue of the creative act from which the person took his origin. Among such

fundamental rights one should mention in this regard every human being's right to life and physical integrity from the moment of conception until death." 80 "The moment a positive law deprives a category of human beings of the protection which civil legislation ought to accord them, the state is denying the equality of all before the law. When the state does not place its power at the service of the rights of each citizen, and in particular of the more vulnerable, the very foundations of a state based on law are undermined. . . . As a consequence of the respect and protection which must be ensured for the unborn child from the moment of conception, the law must provide appropriate penal sanctions for every deliberate violation of the child's rights." 81 2274 Since it must be treated from conception as a person, the embryo must be defended in its integrity, cared for, and healed, as far as possible, like any other human being. Prenatal diagnosis is morally licit, "if it respects the life and integrity of the embryo and the human fetus and is directed toward its safe guarding or healing as an individual. . . . It is gravely opposed to the moral law when this is done with the thought of possibly inducing an abortion, depending upon the results: a diagnosis must not be the equivalent of a

death sentence." 82 2275 "One must hold as licit procedures carried out on the human embryo which respect the life and integrity of the embryo and do not involve disproportionate risks for it, but are directed toward its healing the improvement of its condition of health, or its individual survival." 83 "It is immoral to produce human embryos intended for exploitation as disposable biological material." 84 "Certain attempts to influence chromosomic or genetic inheritance are not therapeutic but are aimed at producing human beings selected according to sex or other predetermined qualities. Such manipulations are contrary to the personal dignity of the human being and his integrity and identity" 85 which are unique and unrepeatable. 72 Cf. CDF, Donum vitae I,1. 73 Jer 1:5; cf. Job 10:8-12; Ps 22:10-11. 74 Ps 139:15. 75 Didache 2,2:SCh 248,148; cf. Ep. Barnabae 19,5:PG 2 777; Ad Diognetum 5,6:PG 2,1173; Tertullian, Apol . 9:PL 1,319-320. 76 GS 51 3. 77 CIC, can. 1398. 78 CIC, can. 1314.

79 Cf. CIC, cann. 1323-1324. 80 CDF, Donum vitae III. 81 CDF, Donum vitae III. 82 CDF, Donum vitae I,2. 83 CDF, Donum vitae I,3. 84 CDF, Donum vitae I,5. 85 CDF, Donum vitae I,6. The Bible's Teaching Against Abortion
By: Fr. Frank A. Pavone Click here for additional Scriptural summaries Answering the Theological Case for Abortion Rights from the Bible Audio: Why Scripture Says NO to Abortion [Part 1] and [Part 2] Retreat on Scriptural Perspectives on the Pro-life Movement The Bible clearly teaches that abortion is wrong. This teaching comes across in many ways and for many reasons. Some people point out that the word "abortion" is not in the Bible, and that is true. Nevertheless, the teaching about abortion is there. This is the case with many teachings. The word "Trinity" is not in the Bible, but the teaching about the Trinity is there. In any case, a person who wants to deny the teaching about abortion would deny it even if the word were there. Lets look at some of the Biblical reasons why abortion, the deliberate destruction of a child in the womb, is very wrong. 1. The Bible teaches that human life is different from other types of life, because human beings are made in the very image of God.

The accounts of the creation of man and woman in Genesis (Genesis 1:26-31; 2:4-25) tell us this: "God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them" (Genesis 1:27). The word "create" is used three times here, emphasizing a special crowning moment in the whole process of Gods making the world and everything in it. The man and woman are given "dominion" over everything else in the visible world. Not even the original sin takes away the image of God in human beings. St. James refers to this image and says that because of it we should not even speak ill of one another. "With [the tongue] we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings who are made in the image of God . . . This ought not be so, brothers" (James 3:9-10). The image of God! This is what it means to be human! We are not just a bunch of cells randomly thrown together by some impersonal forces. Rather, we really reflect an eternal God who knew us from before we were made, and purposely called us into being. At the heart of the abortion tragedy is the question raised in the Psalms: "Lord, what is man that you care for him, mortal man that you keep him in mind? . . . With glory and honor you crowned him, giving him power over the works of your hands" (Psalm 8:57). There is the key. Not only did God make us, but He values us. The Bible tells us of a God who is madly in love with us, so much so that He became one of us and even died for us while we were still offending Him (see Romans 5:6-8). In the face of all this, can we say that human beings are disposable, like a car that becomes more trouble than it is worth? "God doesnt make junk." If you

believe the Bible, you have to believe that human life is sacred, more sacred than we have ever imagined! 2. The Bible teaches that children are a blessing. God commanded our first parents to "Be fertile and multiply" (Genesis 1:28). Why? God Himself is fertile. Love always overflows into life. When the first mother brought forth the first child, she exclaimed, "I have brought forth a man with the help of the Lord" (Genesis 4:1). The help of the Lord is essential, for He has dominion over human life and is its origin. Parents cooperate with God in bringing forth life. Because this whole process is under Gods dominion, it is sinful to interrupt it. The prophet Amos condemns the Ammonites "because they ripped open expectant mothers in Gilead" (Amos 1:13). "Truly children are a gift from the Lord; the fruit of the womb is a reward" (Psalm 127:3). 3. The Bible teaches that the child in the womb is truly a human child, who even has a relationship with the Lord. The phrase "conceived and bore" is used repeatedly (see Genesis 4:1,17) and the individual has the same identity before as after birth. "In sin my mother conceived me," the repentant psalmist says in Psalm 51:7. The same word is used for the child before and after birth (Brephos, that is, "infant," is used in Luke 1:41 and Luke 18:15.) God knows the preborn child. "You knit me in my mothers womb . . . nor was my frame unknown to you when I was made in secret" (Psalm 139:13,15). God also helps and calls the preborn child. "You have been my guide since I was first formed . . . from my mothers womb you are my God" (Psalm 22:10-11). "God from my mothers womb had set me apart and called me through his grace" (St. Paul to the Galatians 1:15).

4. Scripture repeatedly condemns the killing of the innocent. This flows from everything that has been seen so far. Gods own finger writes in stone the commandment "Thou shalt not kill" (Exodus 20:13, Deuteronomy 5:17) and Christ reaffirms it (Matthew 19:18 - notice that He mentions this commandment first). The Book of Revelation affirms that (unrepentant) murderers cannot enter the kingdom of heaven (Revelation 22:15). The killing of children is especially condemned by God through the prophets. In the land God gave his people to occupy, foreign nations had the custom of sacrificing some of their children in fire. God told His people that they were not to share in this sin. They did, however, as Psalm 106 relates: "They mingled with the nations and learned their worksThey sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons, and they shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and their daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, desecrating the land with bloodshed" (Psalm 106:35, 37-38). This sin of child-sacrifice, in fact, is mentioned as one of the major reasons that the Kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Assyrians and the people taken into exile. "They mutilated their sons and daughters by firetill the Lord, in his great anger against Israel, put them away out of his sight" (2 Kings 17:17-18). Notice that this practice was a religious ritual. Not even for "religious freedom" can the killing of children be tolerated. 5. The Bible teaches that God is a God of justice. An act of justice is an act of intervention for the helpless, an act of defense for those who are too weak to defend themselves. In foretelling the Messiah, Psalm 72 says, "Justice shall flower in his daysfor he shall rescue the poor man when he cries out and the afflicted when he has no one to help him" (Psalms 72:7,12).

Jesus Christ is our justice (1 Corinthians 1:30) because He rescued us from sin and death when we had none to help us (see Romans 5:6, Ephesians 2:4-5). If God does justice for His people, He expects His people to do justice for one another. "Be merciful as your heavenly Father is merciful" (Luke 6:36). "Go and do likewise" (Luke 10:37). "Do unto others as you would have them do to you" (Matthew 7:12). "Love one another" (John 15:17). Abortion is the opposite of these teachings. It is a reversal of justice. It is a destruction of the helpless rather than a rescue of them. If Gods people do not intervene to save those whose lives are attacked, then the people are not pleasing or worshiping Him. God says through Isaiah, "Trample my courts no more! Bring no more worthless offeringsYour festivals I detestWhen you spread out your hands, I close my eyes to you; though you pray the more, I will not listen. Your hands are full of blood! Wash yourselves cleanlearn to do good. Make justice your aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphans plea, defend the widow" (Isaiah 1:13-17). Indeed, those who worship God but support abortion are falling into the same contradiction as Gods people of old, and need to hear the same message. 6. Jesus Christ paid special attention to the poor, the despised, and those whom the rest of society considered insignificant. He broke down the false barriers that people set up among themselves, and instead acknowledged the equal human dignity of every individual, despite what common opinion might say. Hence we see Him reach out to children despite the efforts of the apostles to keep them away (Matthew 19:13-15); to tax collectors

and sinners despite the objections of the Scribes (Mark 2:16); to the blind despite the warnings of the crowd (Matthew 20:29-34); to a foreign woman despite the utter surprise of the disciples and of the woman herself (John 4:9, 27); to Gentiles despite the anger of the Jews (Matthew 21:41-46); and to the lepers, despite their isolation from the rest of society (Luke 17:11-19). When it comes to human dignity, Christ erases distinctions. St. Paul declares, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave or free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28). We can likewise say, "There is neither born nor unborn." Using this distinction as a basis for the value of life or the protection one deserves is meaningless and offensive to all that Scripture teaches. The unborn are the segment of our society which is most neglected and discriminated against. Christ Himself surely has a special love for them. 7. Scripture teaches us to love. St. John says, "This is the message you have heard from the beginning: we should love one another, unlike Cain who belonged to the evil one and slaughtered his brother" (1 John 3:11-12). Love is directly contrasted with slaughter. To take the life of another is to break the command of love. To fail to help those in need and danger is also to fail to love. Christ teaches this clearly in the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), in the story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31), and in many other places. No group of people is in more serious danger than the boys and girls in the womb. "If someonesees a brother in need and refuses him compassion, how can the love of God remain in Him?" (1 John 3:17).

8. Life is victorious over death. This is one of Scriptures most basic themes. The victory of life is foretold in the promise that the head of the serpent, through whom death entered the world, would be crushed (see Genesis 3:15). Isaiah promised, "He will destroy death forever" (Isaiah 25:8). At the scene of the first murder, the soil "opened its mouth" to swallow Abels blood. At the scene of the final victory of life, it is death itself that "will be swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 15:54-57). Abortion is death. Christ came to conquer death, and therefore abortion. "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10). The final outcome of the battle for life has already been decided by the Resurrection of Christ. We are not just working for victory; we are working from victory. We joyfully take a victory that has already been won, and proclaim, celebrate, and serve it until He comes again to bring it to its fullness. "There shall be no more death" (Revelation 21:4). "Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!" (Revelation 22:20).
The Bible

Abortion, infanticide and child abandonment were permitted under Roman law at the time of Jesus . Surprisingly, abortion is never mentioned in the Bible, despite the fact that it has been practiced since ancient times by a variety of means. However, a number of Bible passages
1

have been cited as being relevant to the abortion issue. They may well state some general principles that are relevant, but none of them were originally intended as statements about abortion. The following three passages and others are sometimes cited as evidence that a fetus is truly a living human being and deserves the same protection. However, when read in context, it seems clear that was not the intended message. Luke Chapter 1 tells about God's intervention in the miraculous births of Jesus and John the Baptist. Jeremiah Chapter 1 is about Jeremiah's call as a prophet. Job Chapter 10 is Job's plea to God to relieve his unfair suffering. At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah's home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached

my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. (NIV, Luke 1:39-44) Now the word of the LORD came to me saying, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations." (NAS, Jeremiah 1:4-5) I will say to God: ... "Your hands shaped me and made me. Will you now turn and destroy me? Remember that you molded me like clay. Will you now turn me to dust again? (NIV, Job 10:2, 8-9) The passage below has been cited as evidence that a fetus is not a living being. Life is equated with breath throughout the Bible, and, taken out of context, this passage seems to suggest that a person is not living until he or she takes a first breath after birth. However, Genesis Chapter 2 is actually about God's creation of mankind as special and spiritually-aware beings. The LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the

breath of life, and the man became a living being. (NIV, Genesis 2:7) The passage below seems to say that causing death to a fetus is not as serious a crime as causing death to a person, but it is actually just part of a long section specifying the punishments for various crimes. And if men struggle with each other and strike a woman with child so that she has a miscarriage, yet there is no further injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman's husband may demand of him; and he shall pay as the judges decide. "But if there is any further injury, then you shall appoint as a penalty life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, (NAS, Exodus 21:22-24) Numbers 5:11-22 describes a procedure for a trial by ordeal for a woman accused of adultery. Some think the ordeal was supposed to cause an abortion if the woman were pregnant from adultery. A more common opinion is that sterility was the intended result. The exact meaning remains unclear.

In summary, the Bible gives clear and direct guidance on many other topics, but abortion is never specifically mentioned in the Bible. Some Bible passages may well give insight into the issues involved, but there is no general agreement about their interpretation .
Opinions

Prior to 1973, abortion was legal in some of the 50 states of the U.S., usually with restrictions. In 1973, the United States Supreme Court, in its Roe v. Wade decision, ruled that a woman has a right to an abortion during the first trimester of pregnancy. However, the states are still allowed to regulate abortion during the second trimester and prohibit it during the third trimester . Since that time, abortion has become one of the most controversial and divisive issues within society.
2

The Pro-life Position

Pro-life activists represent one extreme of opinion. They believe life begins at the instant of conception. Therefore, abortion is murder and is prohibited by the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:13). They strongly support laws banning all or almost all abortions.

However, the belief that life begins at conception does not have clear support from medical science, the Bible, religious tradition or legal tradition. Some early Church fathers (e.g., Tertullian) wrote against abortion, and it has been considered sinful throughout Church history. However, early Christians apparently did not view abortion as murder until well beyond conception. In the thirteenth century, Catholic theologian Thomas Aquinas wrote that a soul enters the body at 40 days after conception for males and 80 days for females. That became church doctrine for many centuries, and abortion before that time of ensoulment was not considered a mortal sin. The belief that life begins at conception apparently has its origins in an 1869 decree by Pope Pius IX that abortion at any point in pregnancy was cause for excommunication.3,4 English common law apparently tolerated abortion until "quickening," the first detectable fetal movements, around the fifth month. Similarly, abortion was largely unregulated in the U.S. until the mid 1800s. Laws against abortion were passed around 1900, but the primary

reasons had to do with the injuries and deaths resulting from unskilled abortions and a struggle between opposing factions for control of medical practice.5
The Pro-choice Position

Pro-choice activists represent the other extreme of opinion. They believe that abortion does not differ fundamentally from other forms of birth control, and they strongly support the right of a woman to make her own choice about abortion, free of any legal constraints. They point out that legalized abortion does not force anyone to have an abortion against her will, and they say that laws against abortion amount to forcing a religious doctrine onto people of other faiths. However, the pro-choice position ignores the fact that many widely accepted laws are the result of moral concerns and that there is a long history of moral opposition to abortion and legal regulation of its practice.6
Public opinion

As with society as a whole, Christians are divided on the issue of abortion and have beliefs ranging from the extreme pro-life to the extreme pro-choice position. There is no general

agreement among Christians about what situations might justify abortion. Polls typically show that about 28% of people in the U.S. say abortion should be legal in all circumstances. Another 17% say abortion should be illegal in all circumstances. A majority, 54%, favor legal abortion in some circumstances. The Roman Catholic Church is strongly associated with the movement to outlaw abortion, but the polls actually show that the views of Catholics on this issue do not differ from the rest of the population.7
Issues

The polls show that a majority of people have reservations about both the extreme pro-life and pro-choice positions. These are some of the issues that are of concern to that majority:

Morality. Many people have deep and serious doubts about the morality of abortion. At the same time, they believe abortion may be the lesser of evils in some cases. Situations thought to justify abortion include, with varying degrees of acceptance, danger to the mother's life, defective fetus, rape,

incest, teen pregnancy, risk to the mother's physical or emotional health, unstable family situations, mental retardation of the mother, etc. Separation of church and state. Many people with moral objections to abortion believe that opposition to abortion is essentially a religious belief. As such, they believe it would be wrong to use the law to impose that religious belief on the large segment of the population holding different beliefs. Dangers of illegal abortions. Before the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalized abortion throughout the U.S., abortions were allowed in some of the states. In 1972, 586,800 legal abortions were performed in those states.8 It is estimated that between 200,000 and 1,200,000 illegal abortions were also performed each year in the U.S.9 Many women living in areas where abortion was not allowed simply traveled to states or countries where abortion was legal to terminate their pregnancies. Those who could not afford that option often sought out someone to perform the procedure illegally.

Some sympathetic doctors were willing to help. But many illegal abortions were performed by unqualified practitioners, and many women suffered exploitation, sexual abuse, injury, infection, sterility and even death at the hands of these "back alley" practitioners.10,11,12 Despite some claims to the contrary, the mainstream of medical opinion is that legal abortions are very safe, with less risk to a woman's physical and mental health than continuing a pregnancy.13 Effectiveness of restrictions. Many people who oppose availability of abortion in some or all circumstances fear that the availability of legal abortion in numerous states and countries plus the option of illegal abortion would make any legal ban largely ineffective. At the same time, such restrictions would likely bring back the evils of illegal abortions that have now been almost completely eliminated. Tactics. Neither side has done a good job of explaining its beliefs in a way that appeals to the majority in the middle. Activists on both sides repeat their slogans over and over, but they have seldom attempted to understand

and address the concerns of those in the middle or on the other side.14 Some politicians exploit the abortion issue for political gain by inflaming people's passions and fears.15A very small number of activists have harassed and deceived women seeking abortions, illegally blockaded clinics, harassed doctors and committed acts of violence, including murder. Such actions are clearly against Bible teachings and are not condoned by mainstream Christian denominations. However, the actions of a few have created an unfavorable view of the pro-life movement in the minds of many.16,17
Miscellaneous Topics
Is Abortion a Sin? Is Abortion Murder? Is it Ever Right to have an Abortion?

There is no general agreement among Christians, Christian theologians or Christian churches about what situations could make terminating a pregnancy the right and moral choice. However, most would agree that it is not a step to be taken if satisfactory alternatives are available. A woman or couple faced with the choice is left with medical counseling, pastoral counseling, advice of family and friends, and prayer to help with the decision.

Will God Forgive Me if I had an Abortion?

Some women who have had an abortion and/or their partners who were involved in the decision may come to have regrets later. They might feel that they have committed a terrible sin and God will never forgive them. However, the Bible says that God will forgive any sin if a person repents (makes a sincere resolve to turn away from sin and toward God) and also forgives other people who have sinned against that person. Related article: What Does the Bible Say About Forgiveness of Sins?
How Should I Treat Someone who has had an Abortion? How Should I Treat Someone who Disagrees with My Beliefs about Abortion?

The strong emotions surrounding the abortion issue may lead those on both sides of the issue into the sin of self-righteousness. But Jesus and other New Testament leaders taught by word and example not to condemn or shun or discriminate against those we consider to be "sinners" (Matthew 7:1-2, 9:10-13, Luke 7:3648, 18:9-14, John 8:1-11). Christians have a responsibility to correct matters of wrongdoing among themselves (Matthew 18:15-17), but this should always be

done fairly and with compassion. We are never to take upon ourselves the task of moral judgment that belongs to God alone (Matthew 22:37-40, Hebrews 10:30, Romans 14:1013, 1 Corinthians 4:5). As Christians, we need to remember that we are all sinners in God's eyes (Romans 3:23, 1 John 1:8), and that God loves all His children, even those who believe differently than we do (Matthew 5:43-48). We cannot afford to let our strong feelings on abortion issues blind us to Jesus' commandment to "Love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22:36-39).
Church Doctrine

A number of churches, including United Church of Christ, Episcopal, Presbyterian (USA) and United Methodist, do not approve of abortion as a means of birth control. However, they support the right of a woman to obtain an abortion, if she deems that is the best choice in her circumstances, and they favor keeping abortion legal. Other churches, including Roman Catholic and Southern Baptist, oppose all abortions and favor making abortion illegal. Here is a sampling
18 19 20

of official church positions from the three largest denominations in the U.S.:
Roman Catholic:

2270. Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person - among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life. 2271. Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law. From Catechism of the Catholic Church, (c) 1994, United States Catholic Conference, Inc., http://www.nccbuscc.org/catechism/text/index.ht m
Southern Baptist:

Procreation is a gift from God, a precious trust reserved for marriage. At the moment of conception, a new being enters the universe, a

human being, a being created in God's image. This human being deserves our protection, whatever the circumstances of conception. From Position Statements, Copyright (c) 1999 2001, Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention, http://sbc.net/default.asp?url=positionstatements.html
United Methodist:

The beginning of life and the ending of life are the God-given boundaries of human existence. While individuals have always had some degree of control over when they would die, they now have the awesome power to determine when and even whether new individuals will be born. Our belief in the sanctity of unborn human life makes us reluctant to approve abortion. But we are equally bound to respect the sacredness of the life and well-being of the mother, for whom devastating damage may result from an unacceptable pregnancy. In continuity with past Christian teaching, we recognize tragic conflicts of life with life that may justify abortion, and in such cases we support the legal option of abortion under proper medical procedures. We

cannot affirm abortion as an acceptable means of birth control, and we unconditionally reject it as a means of gender selection. We oppose the use of late-term abortion known as dilation and extraction (partial-birth abortion) and call for the end of this practice except when the physical life of the mother is in danger and no other medical procedure is available, or in the case of severe fetal anomalies incompatible with life. We call all Christians to a searching and prayerful inquiry into the sorts of conditions that may warrant abortion. We commit our Church to continue to provide nurturing ministries to those who terminate a pregnancy, to those in the midst of a crisis pregnancy, and to those who give birth. Governmental laws and regulations do not provide all the guidance required by the informed Christian conscience. Therefore, a decision concerning abortion should be made only after thoughtful and prayerful consideration by the parties involved, with medical, pastoral, and other appropriate counsel.