More Catholic Controversy - Sorry

This is filed under "Religion" rather than "Seeking," as opposed to most of my spiritual searching-type posts which are filed under "Seeking."  Why?  Because, for some reason, abortion seems to be associated with Catholicism in particular, rather than Christianity or other faiths in general.  Again I ask, why?  To this "why?", I don't have an answer.  Why is it that anti-abortion is a well-known Catholic stereotype (or at least it's supposed to be - there are some that go so far as to claim, from both sides, that if one isn't anti-abortion, then how could one consider him or herself to be Catholic?  However, there is far more to Catholicism than abortion, and that's all I have to say about that here), yet not so for other faiths?

It's an unanswerable question, in that it should not even BE a question of whether religious beliefs dictate support of choice or non-choice, regarding whatever "choice" is in question.  This is a question of life or death - not of when life begins, or when intelligent life begins, or when consciousness arises, or when the formation of a soul occurs, for these are also not knowable - at least not in the foreseeable future.  It is, quite simply, a question of whether one believes that a human being can decide to end the physical existence of another human being for the sake of economic or lifestyle convenience, or for the possibility of the avoidance of a non-conventional life to be led by an as yet unborn person that will have a physical makeup that is different from that of "normal" human beings.  It is also not a question of whether a person ought to be allowed to protect herself from the possibility of physical harm that may arise from carrying a pregnancy to term and giving birth; that point is readily conceded by all sides of the debate, and rightfully so.

Were primitive societies morally correct in their practice of discarding newborns who were deemed unfit to live and exist in their societies?  Were later societies morally correct when they decided that life didn't begin until the baby was born, allowing the unborn child to be killed at any time up until birth?  Are WE now morally correct in deciding that babies can be killed in the womb for any reason (or for no reason at all), provided that they haven't been alive long enough to really count as human being, say, just a few months?  That the timing or method of killing them is the real issue, rather than the actual act of killing?

The wording I choose to pose these questions, as well as the questions themselves, amply reveals my beliefs in this area.  I hope you agree with me, and if not, I hope you are offended or even angered by this post, because this is an issue that, clearly, people cannot "agree to disagree" on, as it is the issue of life itself.

Comments

[Amit]

I'm waiting to get a new documentary called "Lake of Fire" - which is about the life/choice issue. Have you had a chance to watch it?

[worth]

Thanks Amit - I haven't heard of it, but I'll check it out and see if I need to add it to the Netflix queue.

Just curious though: whether or not you are Catholic, do you view abortion, or life/choice, as a "Catholic" issue? Or as a "women's rights" issue? Or something else?

[Amit]

worth, I grew up in India as a Hindu so I'm not Catholic. Though I must add that I'm not very religious (and that term has as many different meanings/definitions as there are readers).

How do I view abortion as a male, who does not know anyone who has experienced abortion, i.e. my knowledge is second-hand? I don't embrace either of the ideological extremes, and find myself somewhere in the gray middle. If it were our - meaning me and my hypothetical partner's - hypothetical baby, I would not think of abortion at all - I value life. But I do think that others should have their space to make their own decision regarding abortion, as it's not an easy/simple one as it's made out to be. As a society, I think we should be moving in a direction where abortion is not viewed as a way of contraception and life is valued. Life's complex, and there are no easy answers. :)

[worth]

Amit, you reiterate my sentiment EXACTLY with your comment that says: "As a society, I think we should be moving in a direction where abortion is not viewed as a way of contraception and life is valued." Where I disagree is the sentence just before that one, where you think that others should have space to make their own decisions. For me, it IS that simple and it IS an easy answer, whenever there is no question of physical health. But at least we have some common ground, which is always the key to hope for the way forward, is it not?

Also, just today at lunch I finished listening to the 20 hour audiobook The Essence of the Bhagavad Gita as explained by Paramhansa Yogananda. I don't understand all religious viewpoints (let alone agree with them), but at least I'm trying! After investing many, many hours in studies of Islam, Judaism, some Buddhism, and finally a little Hindu, it's really helping me to identify (surprisingly) more closely with own faith and beliefs, along with gaining huge respect and admiration for other traditions. Confucius and Lao Tzu are up to bat now, after some cursory skimming over the past couple of weeks.

[Amit]

I saw the movie this weekend. Do check it out. It presents both sides of the argument, though the pro-life does feature some Reconstructionists. I never even knew there was such a movement before I saw the movie.