Can We Know When Life Begins?

Discussions about the ethics and legality of abortion tend to follow certain patterns.  One of these patterns works like this:

• The defender of abortion legality (called "Pro-Choice") will admit that the debate hinges upon when an individual human life begins.  

• However, he/she will assert that this knowledge is totally obscure, subjective, and unknowable. 

• Thus, he/she concludes abortion should remain legal.

In fact, that is the very logic used in Roe vs Wade when the court decided upon a constitution right to abortion.  Justice Blackmun wrote:

"When those trained in the respective disciplines of medicine, philosophy, and theology are unable to arrive at any consensus, the judiciary, at this point in the development of man's knowledge, is not in a position to speculate as to the answer."

So that's what I want to look at today.  Is this really the case?  Or are folks just trying to deny an inconvenient truth?

No Divorce? What About Abusive Marriages?

Dear Apologist, can a Catholic get divorced if her husband is abusive?  And what would her status in the Church afterward?

Can a Christian Go it Alone?

Dear Apologist, my friend says she can be a good Christian without going to a church.  What should I say?

Three Principles for Opposing Euthanasia

Euthanasia and Physician Assisted Suicide (PAS) are two issues which are quickly emerging in the Western world.   They present us with a very troubling moral dilemma.  It is typically given to us like this:

"Suppose you had a person who was slowly dying of some incurable illness.  But his death is slow and agonizing.  Would it be so wrong for that person to be given a pill so that he can die more quickly and painlessly?  Wouldn't the Golden Rule have us end that person's suffering, or at least allow him to end it himself?"

It sounds like the truly empathetic position - perhaps even the Christian position - would be to embrace euthanasia and PAS.  Any yet you have the Catechism of the Catholic Church insisting the following:

"Those whose lives are diminished or weakened deserve special respect. Sick or handicapped persons should be helped to lead lives as normal as possible. Whatever its motives and means, direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable." - CCC 2276

Today I wanted to look at three principals which I use to explain why I am opposed to euthanasia and physician assisted suicide.

The Bible and "God's Word"

A student recently sent me a fascinating video of a debate between an Evangelical pastor and a Mormon.  One thing which struck me was the way the pastor referred to the Bible as "God's Word ".  

For Evangelicals, the term "God's Word " is synonymous with "the Bible ".  But that terminology can sound odd for someone who has always been immersed in Catholic culture.  We just don't talk like that.

It is a weird quirk of how Catholic and Evangelical language has evolved separately, but reflects deeply held assumptions.  So today I want to explore this phenomenon and ask:

"What does the Bible say "God's Word" is?"