Historically speaking, there are no references to abortion before the year 1400 B.C. As early as 2000 B.C., in Egypt and Mesopotamia, there are records of drugs that caused miscarriages, but the Egyptians had a high view of life, even mummifying fetuses. The Assyrian Codex in 1100 B.C. stated that abortion was punishable by impalement. Persian law in 600 B.C. called abortion willful murder. Though abortion was not practiced in the land of Canaan after 1400 B.C. it is clear that the infant sacrifices were used as a means of population control. Historically speaking, one can clearly see that those cultures that we now refer to as undeveloped and uncivilized, etc., realized and recognized what abortion truly was .... i.e. murder. During the New Testament times abortion was practiced by the Greek and Roman cultures. The medical community for the most part did not approve of abortion since the Hippocratic oath given in 400 B.C. stated, "I will not give to a woman an instrument to procure abortion." This very same oath is still given to all medical personnel in this day and age.
Under no circumstances did the law of Moses allow for abortion. The Jewish position on abortion was that it was never practiced and should it be performed, it was punished by death. Note what Josephus, in his histories of the Jews, states concerning abortion, "The law orders all the offspring to be brought up, and forbids woman either to cause abortion or to make away with the fetus, a woman convicted of this is regarded as an infanticide because she destroys a soul and diminishes the race." One would wonder why it was so clear to the ancient world and yet so murky to the modern era!
The argument that pro-abortionists use concerning the woman's body being her own and that she is able to do with it as she pleases is in direct contradiction to I Corinthians 6:19 where our bodies are described as the "temple of the Lord", "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit {who is} in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?"We are not our own, and whatever we do should glorify God in our bodies. The cries that are heard in the streets concerning the "rights" of a woman to do with her body as she pleases is pure rebellion against the God in Heaven. In James 3:9 we are told, "Therewith bless we the Lord and Father; and therewith curse we men, who are made after the likeness of God." There is no question that abortion is one of the greatest curses on men.
ABORTION and the FACTS
The United States is a country where 5,500 abortion clinics abort 30% of all pregnancies. In our nation's capital there are three abortions performed for every one live birth, and this is not uncommon. Since 1980 abortions have outnumbered live births in 18 metropolitan areas of the United States. The shame of this problem is reflected in the statistic that 99% of all abortions are performed on demand. This means that the only prerequisite that is demanded of the mother is her desire to rid herself of the developing fetus. For years we have heard the cry that if abortions were abolished, "What would happen to the woman who finds herself in the position of having been raped, involved in incest, has a severe fetal deformity, or her life is at stake?" The way this argument is presented leads one to believe that abortions are here because of such cases. However, let us not blind you with the facts! Only 1% of the abortions performed annually in this country are for rape, incest, fetal deformity, or the mother's health. Many believe that the percentage is even smaller than this. Let us note a fact concerning pregnancy in the case of rape or incest. "The case of rape and incest is really a non-issue because of its rare occurrence. It is estimated that in 5,000 to 10,000 rapes, only one pregnancy will result. In a typical US city with a population of 500,000 that would be one case every 10 to 20 years!"
The National Organization for Women (NOW) movement would have Americans and the rest of the world believe that the majority of Americans are in favor of abortion on demand. However, the facts speak for themselves. In a recent poll (conducted in November of 1989) to determine the attitude of Americans toward abortion showed these startling statistics: 82% approved of abortion where there was danger to the mother's health, 72% for rape and incest, 68% for serious birth defects, and only 30% for other reasons. What this means is that only 30% of all Americans surveyed thought that abortion should be performed on demand. This is a mere minority of the population. How can we defend abortion on demand, knowing that less than 1% of all abortions are performed for these "special cases". In this country an innocent victim of abortion is destroyed every 21 seconds, (the present rate is 4,383 per day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, amounting to 1,600,000 per year), and that with the approval of many of our physicians, religious leaders, and fellow countrymen. With the present government in power the stage is set to lead the way for more abortions. Note some of the legislation that has started to come out already concerning abortion. (1) The gag rule on federally funded clinics to allow abortion counseling has been lifted. (2) The ban on fetal tissue research has been lifted. (3) Abortions are now allowed at military hospitals. (4) Funding has been provided for overseas population programs, and (5) the pill RU-486 has been pledged to be under review.
The world was astounded by the cruelty and inhumane treatment of the Jews during the second world war by Hitler and the German forces; however, the methods of abortion that have claimed the lives of 28,000,000 babies are worse. There are at least five major procedures that are used to terminate an unwanted pregnancy. (1) The vacuum suction method. "The vacuum is so powerful that the baby is instantly broken up into a fluid mass of blood, tissue, and cartilage." (2) The cutting up method. "The doctor just slices the baby into pieces inside the womb of the mother. The skull is crushed with the forcepts to reduce its size for the withdrawal." (3) The surgical method. "The abdomen of the mother is surgically opened and the baby removed. The baby is then either used in experiments or else burned or drowned in water." (4) The Saline Method. "A salt solution is injected into her amniotic sac where the baby is literally burned to death -in effect pickling the baby. The baby may thrash about for a few moments, but soon it becomes perfectly still and dies. In 24 hours, labor will start and the already dead baby is delivered." These above methods and their descriptions were taken from, Five Ways To Kill An Unborn Child.
Another very gruesome method of killing the unborn, and we label this as number five, is (5) The New D & X method. (See graphics at bottom of this article to view the horrors of this procedure) This new method of terminating late term pregnancies was described in detail by Dr. Martin Haskell at the September 13, 1992, "Risk Management Seminar" sponsored by the National Abortion Federation. He said that he had performed 700 of these "Dilation and Extraction" or "D & X", which distinguishes it from the "Dilation and Evacuation" technique. The reason Dr. Haskell gave for the development of this new procedure is solely because he said he found that the "classic D & E" method (which dismembers the unborn child in the uterus) was "difficult due to the toughness of fetal tissue at this stage in the development. Listed briefly below is the procedure as was described by Dr. Haskell. "Because the opening of the woman's cervix must be greatly enlarged, a D & X abortion requires three days. The first two days are used to dilate the woman's cervix through the use of laminaria. These are cylindrical shaped or tapered devices which are inserted into the cervix and which gradually increase in diameter as they absorb water. During the procedure Dr. Haskell initially uses ultra-sound to identify how the unborn child is oriented in the uterus. Having located an `extremity', he inserts a forcepts through the vagina and cervical canal into the uterus and grasps one of the baby's legs. Having turned the unborn baby inside of the uterus so that it is orientated feet first, the child is then delivered feet first, then the torso up to the child's neck. At this point, all of the baby's body is outside of the uterus except for the head. After locating the base of the baby's skull a pair of blunt-tipped surgical scissors are jammed into it. The tips of the scissors are then spread apart, enlarging the wound. After removing the scissors a suction cather is inserted into the baby's skull and the brains are sucked out, known as `evacuating the skull contents.' After the brain collapses, the head is now small enough to be removed through the cervix. The placenta is removed using forcepts and the uterine wall is scraped. The procedure is done!" (Quoted by Richard D. Glasow, Ph.D. NRL Education Director, April 14, 1993). {Watch a short Video on Saving the Life of the Innocent}
The above methods and others similar to them is the so-called "right to do with her own body as she wishes". Doctor Heather Morris, Canadian obstetrician and gynecologists, speaking in Ontario, Canada, voiced the view that any country accepting abortion has descended into the abyss of cruelty and can no longer be called civilized. "A civilized society is judged on how it takes care of those who can't take care of themselves."
Is there any doubt in the minds of medical science that the fetus is a living being? NO! Note this extract from the California Medical Association's Journal dated September, 1970, "Since the old ethic has not yet been fully displaced it has been necessary to separate the idea of abortion from the idea of killing, which continues to be socially abhorrent. The result has been a curious avoidance of the scientific fact, which everyone really knows, that human life begins with conception and is continuous whether intro - or extra-uterine, until death. The very considerable gymnastics which are required to rationalize abortion as anything but the taking of a human life would be ludicrous if they were not often put forward under socially impeccable auspices."
Is there any doubt in the Scriptures that life begins at conception? NO! Note these scriptures: Leviticus 17:14 --- "...For {it is} the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off." At 17 days, the developing fetus has developed its own blood cells; the placenta is part of the new life and not of the mother. Also, please see the context of Exodus 21:23 which says, "But if any harm follow, then thou shalt give life for life..."
In Luke 1:41-45, we can see how the unborn child was viewed by the Holy Spirit. It is interesting too, that the Greek word "brephos" used in Luke 1:41 to refer to the unborn child is the same as used in Luke 18:15 which states that, "they were bringing even the babies to him." The unborn child and the born child were considered the same in the New Testament, just as they were in the Old Testament.
The very core of our existence tells us there is something drastically wrong when professional men and women try to justify the blatant murder of innocent lives by the selfish statements of "It is my life, and you don't tell me what I can or can't do with it." How sad it is that the abortionist only tells the story of selfish improvement and not the love and mercy and forgiving attitude of our Father in Heaven. The pains of abortion linger on for years to come and the guilt felt by the woman is said to never die.
Why do we rationalize the violent death of innocent lives by the cries of "What about rape, incest, etc.?" Do two wrongs make a right? Certainly not! The only way to bring about an end to this cruel and destructive slaughter of innocent human lives is to turn our lives back to the Almighty God. Will you not read the Scriptures and recognize that fornication cannot be covered by murder but rather it just adds sin to sin. "Woe to the rebellious children, saith Jehovah, that take counsel, but not of me; and that make a league, but not of my Spirit, that they may add sin to sin." Isaiah 30:1
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