The soul question is an interesting one - but critical to any religious debate on abortion - for if no soul exists then how can we say a Person exists ?
So when you go to heaven - and after 10,000 years of Hail Mary's you wish to take a vacation - and live out another life on one of the millions of world out there in the Universe. The one rule being that you will not remember your past life .. until you get back to heaven - where would you go ?
More importantly to this convo - when would you enter the fleshy vessel awaiting you ? - knowing that you are going to blank out - and reawaken with no memory of your past life.
There is no point in entering the fleshy vessel prior to that vessel having the wiring for the brain complete .. without which .. conscious is not possible .. so .. until this point there is no such thing as "waking up" .. no such thing as thought .. no such thing as a soul.
I think therefor I am.
From a Science Perspective - prior to the wiring of the brain being completed -there is no significant brain activity.. as the wiring of the brain nears completion however, the brain lights up like a Christmas Tree.
Also .. at this point - the odds of the Fetus making it are very high .. whereas if the soul enters at the zygote stage - the odds that the zygote will make it are quite low .. 75% don't make it through Gestation. One would think that if God was so concerned about the zygote - he would have not put so many barriers in place.
So that is my answer from a religious and moral perspective. I have serious moral issues with abortion after sentience/ cognition has been established.
The legal question is different .. I do not favor law on the basis of " We don't know otherwise" as this is a horrible justification for law.
I am not in favor of forcing my personal religious beliefs on others through physical violence.
From a personal perspective .. I do not have a problem with abortion in the early stages -as I do not believe a soul exists prior to sentience.
The earlier the better.
Later on I have little respect for a woman who - after 4 months or more - decides to have an abortion.. What was the logic here .. lets see how big the Fetus can get before we terminate ?
Thank You
So when you go to heaven - and after 10,000 years of Hail Mary's you wish to take a vacation - and live out another life on one of the millions of world out there in the Universe. The one rule being that you will not remember your past life .. until you get back to heaven - where would you go ?
I don't believe we get to choose. I believe the choice is made for us.
So let's say some people don't believe God is a person. They believe God is Energy, the source.
And everything everywhere is made of energy. Even dark matter which is the non material between the material has energy.
Everything comes from and returns and always is a part of that energy, All the time.
Even a decompsing body is generating energy by the simple fact it's decomposing.
It's a doing thing. As long as something is doing, then energy is in it.
That is, God is all and in all.
Energy is moving through time and space.
Let's get personal shall we?
When a man a woman "know" eachother, they are doing.
Singularly within both there is energy. The energy coming from the man combines with the energy from the woman.
The husband shall cleave unto his wife and the wife shall cleave to her husband.
They both have energy in them. We call this energy Life.
Now during this "knowing" , a new energy, a new doing, is beginning.
At no point in time is energy not present.
Energy is in the sperm and in the egg. They are doing what they do.
When they bump into eachother figuratively speaking, we get the Big Bang.
And they two shall become one flesh.
It's still doing.
So the energy that makes up the mind of a zygote is was and always has been present.
At no time is there no energy, the energy is always present.
This would relate to the wiring of the brain.
It's always been there. Whether that wiring comes from the male or from the female or the combination of both,
the wiring is ever present. At no time was the wiring non existent. Because the energy is always present.
Then we come to housing of the wiring. What we call a brain.
Like putting a hot wire into an electric box.
If the power is always on you better be wearing some heavy duty rubber gloves.
Now the electric box is what houses the energy. It's a physical storage place that keeps and protects and has switches to where that energy is directed.
Heart, Organs, Limbs, the house. Livingroom kitchen bathroom etc.
Without the energy in the brain the lights don't go on in the bathroom.
So in order for the entire house to function properly energy must be flowing freely through it at all times.
That's the physical and functioning beginning of life.
Then we come to personality. Who are you?
At what point did you become you?
Have you always existed but need a new house?
Did you get to choose this house or was it designed for you in mind?
And what if the house isn't functioning properly?
If the house can't house you because of malfuntion, maybe that's what happens in miscarriages.
But now where are you?
I believe you are still the energy. It's just we need to find a new junction box and a new house.
Ashes to ashes and dust to dust (Physical), and the spirit/you returns to God/energy.
So the question is:
If the energy is flowing and the junction box is wired and the house is fully functional,
Do you have the authority to pull the plug?
Do you have the authority to dismantle the house?
Do you have the authority to destroy life?
