Abortion Flashcards
1
Q
Arguments for abortion
A
- Right to choose - her body
- Rape, it’s compassionate
- Circumstances, too young, children already
- Her health and welfare are more important than foetus’
- The quality of life of the unborn child or the woman’s existing children
- Stopping legal abortions would mean a return to ‘back street’ abortions
2
Q
Arguments against abortion
A
- Life begins at conception
- The right to live and to reach their potential
- There are alternatives e.g. adoption
- The unborn child is denied a choice
- Abortion makes life appear cheap and disposable
- People born with disabilities can live full and happy lives
3
Q
The Roman Catholic view on Abortion
A
- Roman Catholic Church forbids abortion
- They regard abortion as the murder of life and it is punishable by excommunication
- All life is created by God in his own image and is known to him because in the Bible it states “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb”
- The Roman Catholic teaching: the foetus is a human being from the moment of conception, and that its rights to life are equal to that of the mother’s
- The doctrine of double effect can be applied to abortion if the intention of the act is to save the mother’s life but a secondary effect would be the death of a foetus e.g. an ectopic pregnancy
4
Q
The Church of England view on Abortion
A
- Combines strong opposition to abortion with recognition that there are strictly limited circumstances where it is the lesser of two evils
- For example, the mother’s life is endangered
- This is because the life of the foetus is not ‘absolutely sacrosanct’
5
Q
Quaker view on abortion
A
- Many protestants like Quakers support a woman’s right to choose
- They look at individual circumstances e.g. age of mother, rape, mental health issues
- They advocate social support for women suffering through this issue
6
Q
Pro-choice
A
Means that we respect the right of the individual woman to make an informed choice if they are faced with an unplanned pregnancy
