Abortion Ancient Culture consider abortion a serious crime Hippocratic Oath Didache Early Church 1820 – distinct human life – discovery of the ovum – moment of conception 1960’s liberalization of abortion laws Roe v. Wade 1973

D & C Suction Saline Prostaglandin D & E Hysterotomy Partial Birth Abortion

1.Gift of God 2.God is sovereign over conception 3.Childlessness seen as a curse Who has the right to take away what only God can give? Genesis 2 God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul. Psalm 139 Knew David before birth; An individual in the womb; God knows each individual as if he/she is the only person Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed you in the womb I knew you People are created for a purpose

Genesis 1 Created in the image of God Luke 1:41-44 John as an unborn child respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit Exodus 21:22-25 Unborn part of the legal code of ancient Israel; Baby in the womb had the same legal status as a baby outside the womb Psalm 51 5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Beginning of each person in this world Ecclesiastes 12:7 7 and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. The ending of each person in this world

1. The Embryo is genetically different and distinct from the mother. 2. The heart is formed on the 18 th day 3. Individual brain waves are detected between day 40 and Eight week old child has the indication of response to pain. For medical science the only clear line that can be drawn is conception. The courts have run away from the issue of where life begins. Burden of proof should be on the prosecution. There should be a presumption of innocence. Hippocratic Oath I will not give a lethal drug to anyone if I am asked, nor will I advise such a plan; and similarly I will not give a woman a pessary to cause an abortion. Roe v. Wade says the unborn child is not a person so not protected by the Fourteenth Amendment.

Roe v. Wade opted for is the child viable but viability is variable down to the 22 nd week. Arbitrary criteria used on when a person is a person. 1. Intelligence 2. Cultural criteria 3. IQ (potential) Personhood = created in the image of God.

Every woman has a right to her own body. 1.Every woman – half aborted fetuses are male 2.Has a right – our legal system does not recognize an absolute right 3.To control – did not exercise control before baby was conceived 4.Her own body – does not include the babies’ body The Baby is a separate life The Baby is a person Crisis pregnancy – two wrongs don’t make a right

Embryonic Stem Cells Come from abortions and in vitro fertilization The in vitro problem These are embryos Church become involved Pro-life movement Prayer $ Churches as centers of information Involvement in a crisis pregnancy center Pastors and individuals need to be informed