Biblical Verses
I wrote this page because I got tired of people incorrectly citing Biblical authority as support for their beliefs. Disclaimer: If you want to believe in God, the Bible, etc., go ahead; I'm not against honest belief. But if you're going to cite the Bible to support your point of view, then do it correctly, do it consistently, and if you give yourself the freedom to ignore parts of the Bible, you'd better be prepared to extend that freedom to everyone else.
Abortion
This is actually the topic that gets me most annoyed: people who say that the Bible forbids abortion.
Here's everything the Bible has to say about abortion, and I quote: " ".
Now, those who insist the Bible forbids abortion under pain of eternal hellfire will generally cite several verses. Let's dispose of these in sequence.
"Thou shall not kill", from the decalog. Obviously, the Bible doesn't mean this: ritual sacrifice of animals is not only permitted, but required throughout the Old Testament. Also, it's obvious the Bible doesn't mean "Thou shall not kill people", as capital punishment was mandated for many crimes. So let's start out by saying that what the decalog really means is "Thou shall not deliberately kill another human being without permission from a higher authority."
Now, I could simply point out that, since Roe v. Wade, abortion has been legal in the United States, and that settles it. But of course it doesn't, since abortion could be made illegal, and that would likewise settle it. The real question is and always has been: at what point does a fertilized egg become a human being?
The Biblical justification I've heard cited for the idea that humanity begins at conception is Jeremiah 1:5, "Before I formed you in your mother's womb, I set you apart." Taken literally, this means that God has a plan for every egg that will become fertilized (and likewise every spermatazoa that will fertilize an egg). But does this mean that the fertilized egg is human? Compare Matthew 10:29: "Yet not one of them [sparrows] will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father [God]." In other words, God has plans for sparrows too.
Let's go further. The Bible clearly regards the accidental killing of the unborn as a crime. Exodus 21:22-3: "If two men fight and strike a pregnant woman so her fruit departs from her, but no further injury occurs, the offender must be fined whatever the father demands and the court allows. But if there is serious injury, you must take life for life."
What's interesting about this is that exact meaning of "fruit departs from her" is unclear. Newer versions render this as "gives birth prematurely", while older versions use the term "miscarry." Miscarriage implies death of the unborn, while "gives birth prematurely" does not. Both are reasonable interpretations, but they remain interpretations. If you interpret "fruit depart" as miscarriage, then it's clear that the "serious injury" referred to in the latter half is to the woman. If you interpret "fruit depart" as premature delivery, then "serious injury" could mean stillbirth or any of a number of other things.
But now the sticking point: This verse applies to the accidental killing the unborn, and says nothing about the deliberate termination of a pregnancy. We cannot assume that what is a crime in one case is a crime in the other case: again, even though the Bible clearly says "Thou shall not kill," it just as clearly specifies death as the punishment for a broad range of crimes. Moreover, it is clear that the crime is committed against the father, as he is the one owed restitution (regardless of how you choose to interpret "fruit departs").
So what does this mean? If you object to abortion, that's your prerogative in a free society. But if you say that the Bible prohibits abortion, you're bearing false witness (pretty clearly prohibited). Be honest and say that the Bible, as you choose to interpret it, forbids abortion. Better yet, leave the Bible out of the equation entirely, and admit that you object to abortion because you object to abortion.