The Bible and Abortion in Singapore

Abortion is one of the most morally controversial issues of our time. It is bound to provoke strong reactions from both sides of the debate, who are often referred to as "pro-life" or "pro-choice". Pro-lifers argue that abortion should be banned in most cases because the unborn child is entitled to his or her right to live. On the other hand, pro-choicers support the legalisation of abortion, taking the view that a woman has a right to freely choose to do whatever she wants with her body.

Does the Bible have anything to say here?

What does the Bible say about abortion?

One atheist writer claims that "the Bible doesn’t say anything specifically about abortion". On one level, he is right. A search for "abortion" on websites like BibleGateway.com will not show up with a particular verse in the Bible specifically addressing the topic.

However, on that count, the Bible does not say anything "specifically" about a lot of things, including smoking, drugs, nuclear weapons, and a whole host of other morally controversial issues. We need to dig deeper.

There are two important questions we need to ask when approaching the topic of abortion. Philosopher and theologian William Lane Craig, who is one of the leading apologists of our time, phrased the two important questions as follows:

1. Do human beings possess intrinsic moral value?  
2. Is the developing foetus a human being?

The Bible makes it clear from the beginning that all human beings possess intrinsic moral value as bearers of the image of God (Imago Dei). All of humankind, both male and female, are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27; 9:6). This is the reason why God commanded, "You shall not murder" (Exodus 20:13).

There are numerous passages in the Bible which affirm the humanity of the developing foetus. One of the most powerful passages is King David's psalm, Psalm 139:

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
(Psalm 139:14-16)

Other passages include Genesis 25:22, Isaiah 49:1, Jeremiah 1:4-5 and Luke 1:44.

One interesting passage is Exodus 21:

If men who are fighting hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely [OR has a miscarriage] but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman's husband demands and the court allows. But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise. (Exodus 21:22-25)

The word used in the text, translated "gives birth prematurely" or "miscarriage", is the Hebrew word yatsah, which could refer to a premature but live birth. The word translated "serious injury" could refer to anything from death to a sore finger, as is clear from the following verses which mention anything from "life" to a "bruise". Therefore, John A. Eidsmoe, in "A Biblical View of Abortion" (1984) 4 J. Christian Jurisprudence 17, explains the meaning of the passage as follows:

If men are involved in a fight and hurt a pregnant woman so that she delivers her child prematurely, but there is no injury to the mother or child, the husband is to be compensated only for his time, expenses, inconvenience, etc., and perhaps pain and suffering as well. But if the mother or child is injured, as a result, or if either die as a result, the lex talionis or law of like punishment applies: eye for eye, tooth for tooth, life for life.

Since human beings possess intrinsic moral value, and the developing foetus a human being, it follows that abortion is murder. Christians throughout the ages have condemned abortion as a terrible evil. In one of the earliest Christian teachings, the Didache, the early Church wrote "you shall not murder a child by abortion nor kill that which is born". In 2003, the American Southern Baptist Convention repented of its earlier support for abortion, praying and working "for the day when the act of abortion will be not only illegal, but also unthinkable."

Abortion in Singapore: 12,000 abortions per year, one in four babies killed

Abortion was liberalised in Singapore in 1969. Before 1969, abortion was only permitted if it was done "in good faith for the purpose of saving the life of the woman". Moving the Abortion Bill in Parliament, then-Minister for Health, Chua Sian Chin, argued that the liberalisation of abortion was meant "to promote the well-being of the woman and to avoid impairment of her health, in the interests of humanity and human progress."

Currently, under the Termination of Pregnancy Act, abortion is allowed for any reason whatsoever up to 24 weeks of the pregnancy. Thereafter, abortion is only allowed if it is "immediately necessary to save the life or to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman".

The Ministry of Health gives the following statistics on abortion in recent years:

Year	Total number of abortions carried out
2003	12272
2004	12070
2005	11482
2006	12032
2007	11933
2008	12222
2009	12318
2010	12082
2011	11940
2012	10624

There are approximately 12,000 abortions per year. This means that one in four babies is killed before birth.

To call this a tragedy would be a massive understatement.

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves"

Abortion is one of the greatest evils of our time. The Bible makes it clear that all human beings, whether before or after birth, are made in the image of God and therefore have intrinsic moral value. 

As Christians, we are called to be the voice of the voiceless, and to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. 12,000 unborn children are killed every year. Their only "crime" was to have been conceived. 

Will you be their voice?

Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
(Proverbs 31:8)