Right To Life

When I speak of the right to life, I am not referring simply to opposition to abortion. Most people who believe in what they would term a right to life are actually anti-abortion rather than pro-life, given the obvious fact that life does not stop at birth.

Of course, most people who consider themselves to be pro-choice are actually just pro-abortion, but that's not what I am talking about here.

When I say that I am pro-life, I mean that I am opposed to abortion, as well as to capital punishment and killing in times of war.

I am also going to take positions that, on the surface, might appear to be contradictory, but which make perfect sense to me and, since I will be referring to my own viewpoint, that's all that really matters. I am not proposing a new religion, and I am certainly not imposing one on anyone else.

On abortion, there are really only three questions that are relevant. When do you think life begins? Do you value life? Do you have a right to end a life that is not valuable to you?

Biologically, it seems clear to me that life begins with conception, and it certainly exists prior to the actual point of delivery. To me, there can be no logical argument contrary to this. I understand that there are such arguments, but I don't consider them to be logical.

Overall, I value life, although there are some lives that I would consider more valuable than others, and there are lives that I wouldn't lose any sleep over at all. When someone rapes and murders a child, or anyone else for that matter, you won't see me standing outside the prison holding a sign protesting his execution.

Yet, I wouldn't flick the switch or inject the poison because I don't believe that I have the right to take the life of another human being. I don't believe that anyone else does either, but their conscience isn't my concern.

Yes, Old Testament law clearly calls for capital punishment. Yet the stipulation of "life for life" was not enforced with Cain, the world's first murderer. Neither was it enforced with David, whom God called a man after his own heart. Jesus did not advocate the stoning of the woman caught in adultery, although that was clearly the law of the time.

It seems to me that the direction in the Bible has been one of an early severity to a later stance of grace, or from retribution to rehabilitation.

Genesis 9:6 calls for the death penalty for murderers, but it does so in the nature of an atonement.

Christ fulfilled this atonement on the cross.

The Old Testament called for the death penalty for eighteen different offenses, yet this law was tempered by the provision of cities of refuge, and for each offense except murder, a redemptive alternative was in place.

I do not, however, believe that the Bible clearly calls for an end to capital punishment. Even when Jesus objected to the stoning of the adulteress, He did not necessarily call for an end to the death penalty as it might pertain to other people or situations.

The Old Testament clarifies that the death penalty was intended to be a deterrent rather than a call for vengeance, yet I believe that it exists in this country largely because of a demand for revenge.

Everyone, even the most despicable murderers have a right to life, although that may not always seem to be the case. Even Jeffrey Dahmer, who killed and ate his victims, became a Christian before he was stabbed to death in prison.

For me, however, the social advantage that might result from this deterrent is more than cancelled out by the tragic fact that innocent people are sometimes put to death. The modern use of DNA has proven the innocence of several people who had been sentenced to death or to long prison terms.

This, and the fact that the justice system works much differently for the wealthy and the elite than it does for the rest of us is enough to persuade me that capital punishment is wrong.

When it comes to war, my opinion might vary somewhat if I could believe that a war was defensive in nature. Unfortunately, most of our wars are not defensive and even those that might seem to be were not without manipulation beforehand. Mostly, wars are about global objectives and political power.

Are these wars truly necessary? I don't know, perhaps because the actual reason for them are never divulged. Maybe this is why God rarely puts Christians in charge of governments.

I do believe that nations and individuals have the right to self defense.

 

Why on earth would I give an opinion other than my own?

Can you tell me where I suggest anything of the sort?

I'd be happy to discuss this further if you should ever be in the mood to discuss things that I have actually said. Of course, that would involve actually reading what it was that I have said.

 

I wouldn't take it.