Abortion

2. The most accepted scientific theory for the origin of the universe is the
Big Bang theory:
Matter is eternal: it cannot be created or destroyed. It can only be
changed.
About 13.7 billion years ago, the mater of the universe became so
compressed that it produced a huge explosion.
As the matter flew away from the explosion, the force of gravity
helped to join some together, That formed the solar system.
Radio telescopes
have discovered
background
radiation which
scientists believe
is a remnant of
the Big Bang
The Redshift effect.
This tells us that the
universe is still
expanding because
of the colour of
other galaxies. It is
still expanding from
the point of the
initial Big Bang.
Evidence for the Big Bang
In 2014, scientists detected ripples in deep space.
These are thought to be triggered by the rapid
expansion of the universe during the Big Bang.
Peter Higgs and his team in
2012 re-created the conditions
for the Big Bang and proved
the existence of the Higgs field
(some particles come together
and some don’t) Higgs field is
an invisible field lying across
the universe. The discovery
helped explain exactly how the
Big Bang created the universe.

3. George Lemaitre (1894-1966)
Lemaitre was a Catholic priest and a professor of physics.
He was the first scientists to propose the Big Bang theory.
Lemaitre described the beginning of the universe as a burst of fireworks, he
compared galaxies to the burning embers from fireworks.
He also proposed that the expansion of the universe was actually accelerating, this
was proved in 1990.
In 1951 Pope Pius XII declared that this theory gave proof for Catholic Christians.
However, Lemaitre denied this and said his theory neither proved nor disproved
religion and he persuaded the Pope to stop making comments on the scientific origins
of the universe.
This view says that science is wrong and the Bible is right. It claims that all the evidence
there is for the Big Bang and evolution can be explained by the effects of Noah’s flood
(which must have totally changed rock formations and created fossils, for example) and the
Apparent Age theory.
The Apparent Age theory claims that if you accept the Biblical account of creation in
Genesis, then when Adam was made the Earth was six days old, but to Adam it would have
looked billions of years old. Trees would have been created with rings showing them to be
hundreds of years old, the Grand Canyon would have looked 2 billion years old when it was
one second old.
Therefore, these Christians believe that God created the universe in the way described in
the Bible, which is why this response is often called creationism.
Some Christians simply ignore scientific explanations of the creation of the
universe, but those who think about them have three types of response:
Creationism
The ‘intelligent design’ argument developed from creationism. Christians who believe in this
theory think that the universe is so complex that it can’t have happened by chance. They
believe that it must have been created by an intelligent designer- God.
They believe that the universe has different types of complexity:
‘irreducible complexity’- the universe depends on many interacting parts and the removal of
any one of those parts would mean that the whole system would stop working.
‘specified complexity’- the patterns in living things, for example in DNA.
They claim that this means that it could not have happened by chance.
The Intelligent Design Response

4. Many Christians believe that both the scientific and Biblical explanations are true.
They believe that the Biblical stories of creation aren’t meant to be read as literal accounts
of exactly how God created the universe. They are simply meant to show us the God
created everything. So they believe in the Big Bang, but believe that God set it off and
controlled how the world has developed since.
Some Christians believe that the main points in the Biblical creation story fit with science.
The order of creation in Genesis broadly fits with the order science thinks the earth and life
was developed. God said “Let there be light”- this is a direct reference to the Big Bang.
These Christians see scientific discoveries as providing more evidence for God, for
example:
• The Big Bang had to happen at the right time. If it was a microsecond earlier or later it
would not have worked.
• Gravity had to be involved- only God could have made gravity.
• The universe is so complex it must have a creator who organised it to work so well.
• Life on earth requires carbon, this could not have happened by chance. God must have
ensured it was there.
The compatibility response
Intelligent design
says that DNA is too
complex to have
arisen by chance.
Noah’s ark, the boat in
which his family, and
the animals used to
escape the Flood, which
creationists believe
provides evidence for
the Big Bang theory.

5. A few Christians believe because the world was given to us by God, that it is
ours to misuse as we wish. They simply use it as a commodity. This has led to
pollution, climate change and depletion of resources. However, most Christians
believe that because God made the earth, the earth belongs to God, not
humans, and so it must be treated with respect and not as commodity.
• As God has made everything, humans must respect the whole environment.
• The environment is a gift from God to humans and so must be treated with
care.
• The Old Testament teaches that humans have a responsibility to treat
animals humanely and to treat the land kindly by not growing crops every
fiftieth year.
• In the Parable of the Talents, Jesus taught that God expects humans to pass
on the environment to the next generation better than they received it.
• Judgement Day- The Bible makes it clear that on the last day, people will be
judged on their actions. Most Christians believe that part of this judgement
will be on how they have looked after the Earth.

6. Sanctity of Life means that life is holy and sacred. Christians believe that
human life is holy because it is a gift from God. Regarding human life as
sacred means human life is to be treated as holy and therefore valued
and preserved.
Christians believe that because God created like, humans do not have
the right to treat life as they wish. Life belongs to its creator and so life
and death decisions must be in the hands of God.
Christians believe that the life and death of Jesus shows how sacred
human life is.
“So God created mankind in his own
image, in the image of God he
created them; male and female he
created them.” Genesis 1:27
“Then the Lord formed a man from
the dust of the ground and breathed
into his nostrils the breath of life,
and the man became a living being.”
Genesis 2:7
“Do you not know that your body
is a temple of the Holy Spirit who
is in you…?” Genesis 2:7
Only man has the capacity to
have a relationship with God, we
are different to other animals. We
have souls, we were made in
God’s likeness.
Our body is a temple, it is not be
abused but kept special like a temple
is.
Human life is special because it
comes directly from God.
The main issues where sanctity of life is important are euthanasia
and abortion, however there are several other areas, such as: war,
killing in self-defence and the death penalty.

7. Christians believe that God created man, however the most common
scientific explanation is the Theory of Evolution. It is associated with
Charles Darwin. He visited the Galapagos Islands and observed the
development of life forms that have been cut off from the rest of the
world. The theory is that life on earth has evolved in the following way:
After the earth formed about 4.5 billion years ago, the combination of
gases on the earth’s surface produced basic, single-celled life forms.
Life forms reproduce and so become more numerous.
Randomly occurring changes in the genetic structure of these life forms
means that the offspring have slight differences from their parents.
As more offspring are produced than the environment can support,
offspring that are better suited to the environment will be more likely to
survive. (Survival of the Fittest)
This means that more offspring in the next generation will have the
helpful difference.
Over millions of years, populations branch off and become new species.
Darwin called this “natural selection”, this means that species develop
naturally and do not need divine intervention (God).
If this is the case, human life has no special value other than what
humans give it.
Archaeopteryx- has characteristics of both
a reptile (long, bony tail and conical teeth)
and a bird (feathers and a wishbone)
Evidence for Evolution

8. In January 2010, the Diocese of Manchester put forward a paper (Special Agenda IV) to
suggest that religion and God are compatible. They asked Churches to try and show their
followers that they do not have to choose between religion and science. The report urged
the Church to show people that:
• Science and religion go hand in hand rather than oppose each other.
• Science shows ‘the amazing world God has created and the beauty and glory of God
himself.’
• Science and religion working together can help humanity to understand more about
the world.
• There are plenty of religious scientists.
• The Church helps and supports Christians working in science.
Evolution challenges the authority of the Bible. If
evolution is correct, the Bible is wrong. The Bible can
accommodate the Big Bang theory but cannot explain
evolution. Genesis says God produced everything,
however evolution states it was natural selection.
Natural selection seems to
provide an answer to the big
questions such as “Why are we
here?”
Some might say we no longer need
religion to explain this as
natural selection does.
Christianity is based on the concept of
‘original sin’ and the ‘fall of man.’ The
idea that Adam and Eve disobeyed
God. However, if evolution is true,
then there was no Adam and Eve, no
Fall, and therefore no original sin and
no need for Jesus’ death.
The idea of salvation and atonement
is not needed if this is the case.
Christianity is based on the idea that God is good and
his creation is good. Natural selection is based on the
principle of violence and suffering. Not only do species
struggle to survive, but some are killed by predators.
(Think of how some domesticated cats kill mice, play
with their victim and watch it struggle) This surely
doesn’t show how good God is?
Christians believe we have been made in the image of God, this simply
does not work with the theory of evolution because it says we have
evolved from other animals. So we are not special!

10. An abortion is the process of ending a pregnancy so it does not result in the birth of a
baby. Abortion is also known as a termination or a termination of pregnancy. Depending
on how many weeks the woman has been pregnant, the pregnancy is ended either by
taking medication or by having a surgical procedure.
Abortions have been carried out since ancient times as women tried to avoid having a
baby. In many countries, abortion is still illegal, but it appears that this makes little
difference to the number of abortions. It is estimated that approximately 20 million
unsafe abortions are performed annually around the world, mainly in countries where
abortion is illegal, and tens of thousands of women die as a result. When abortion was
legalised in South Africa in 1996, abortion-related deaths dropped by more than 90%.
2015 UK
Abortion statistics
In 2015 185,824 abortions were
carried out in the UK.
The abortion rate was highest for
women aged 21 (28 women per
100).
38% of abortions in 2015 were to
women who had already had one or
more abortions.
92% were carried out at under 13
weeks gestation.
Pro-Life is the name given to those
who want abortion banned.
Pro-choice is the name given to
those who support a woman’s right
to abortion

11. 1967 Act states an abortion can be carried out if two
doctors agree that…
 The mothers life is at risk
 There is risk of injury to the mother’s
physical /mental health
 There is a substantial risk that the baby will be
born seriously handicapped.
 There is a risk that another child would put the
mental or physical health of existing children at
risk.
The 1990 Act states that abortion must not take
place after 24 weeks – unless the mother’s life is
in grave danger.
PRO-LIFE PRO-CHOICE
• It is murder, the
foetus is a life.
• Life begins at
conception (moment
sperm and egg meet)
• Adoption is an
alternative.
• Even disabled children
have the right to live.
• It is kinder if the child will
be born severely disabled.
• It is a women’s body so it is
up to her.
• If a women has been raped
she should not have to
continue with the
pregnancy.
• Babies deserve love, if a
mother cannot give that
abortion is better.

12. Catholics accept that there are difficult issues surrounding abortion, for example if
doctors discover that a pregnant mother has cancer and chemotherapy would kill the
foetus. In this situation, Catholic moral philosophers use the ‘doctrine of double effect’;
the first effect is to save the mother’s life, the second (double) effect is to end the life of
the foetus. As the death of the foetus is secondary, and so not intended, an abortion has
not occurred.
Another difficult situation is if a woman becomes pregnant as a result of rape. The
Church teaches that one sinful act (rape) should not provoke another (abortion). With
counselling, help and adoption, good can come out of evil in the form of a new life. The
Bishop of England and Wales issued a statement saying that a rape victim may be given
contraception to prevent implantation of the rapist’s sperm as long as it could be
established that conception had not taken place.
 Reasons why some Christians agree with
abortion
 Reasons why some Christians disagree with
abortion
If abortions were
banned, women may
get dangerous ‘back-
street’ abortions that
put them at risk.
Jesus told Christians to love their
neighbour and abortion may be the
most loving thing to do.
They believe life
does not begin at
conception so the
foetus is not a life.
Christians should accept technological
advances in medicine, therefore if doctors
have developed tests to detect diseases
and suffering in a foetus, parents should
be allowed abortion on the basis of such
tests.
Jesus taught about
compassion to
others – in the
case of a woman
being raped an
abortion may be
the kindest action
Liberal
Protestants
Life is holy and
belongs to God,
therefore only God
has the right to
end a pregnancy.
Every person has a ‘right to life’. A foetus is a
human being and abortion destroys the right
to life.
Abortion is viewed as
murder so goes
against the 10
Commandments.
Life is sacred and a gift from
God.
All life is valued,
even if a child is
born disabled.
Life begins at conception.
Human life begins when an
ovum is fertilised; abortion is
therefore taking a life.
Roman Catholics and
Evangelical Protestants.
The Church points to
evidence that some women
may feel guilty and have
mental health issues after.
Adoption is a better
option, it preserves life
and brings joy to
another family.

13. A foetus cannot be considered a separate life until it is capable of living outside the
mother. Until that time, the foetus is part of the mother and its treatment should be
determined by the mother. As life does not begin at conception, abortions before a
certain point in the pregnancy are not taking a life.
A women should have the right to do what she wants with her own body in the same
way men do. They would argue that an unwanted pregnancy is no different from an
unwanted tumour. The problems caused to a women by having an unwanted baby are
a sufficient justification for her having an abortion.
Abortion should be an automatic right for women who have been raped or subjected
to incest or paedophilia.
Some Humanists argue that because foetuses born at 22-24 weeks can now survive,
the time limit for abortions should be reduced to 18 or 20 weeks. However, others
believe in abortion on demand. This is the idea that women should have the right to
an abortion without having to meet the conditions of the 1967 Act because they are
the ones who will have to carry and then bring up the baby.
For Humanists, the quality of life will always be more important than the preservation
of life at all costs. The probable quality of life of the baby and the woman’s rights
should all be taken into account. Most Humanists put the interests of the woman first,
since she would have to complete the pregnancy and probably care for the baby,
whose happiness would largely depend on hers.

14. Christians believe that this life is not the end. They believe that God will reward the
good and punish the bad in some form of life after death.
Although some Christians disagree on what happens they all believe there is
something after life, this is because:
 Jesus rose from the dead. If Jesus did it, there must be hope for others.
 St Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians that people will have a resurrection like that of
Jesus.
 St Paul also taught that God loves us so much that he rewards us with eternal life.
 Jesus taught he would come again at the end of the world for a final judgement.
 They believe all people are two parts body and soul. They believe in the
immortality of the soul. The idea that the soul lives on after death.
Many people like to believe in the idea of a soul, and we often look to the empirical
world to bolster our religious or spiritual beliefs, searching for corroborating physical
evidence. Just such scientific proof seemed to come in 1907,when a Massachusetts
doctor named Duncan MacDougall devised experiments that he expected would
actually measure the soul. Using six terminally ill patients on a specially-constructed
scale bed, he measured their weight before, during, and after death. His results were
mixed, but he concluded that there was indeed a very slight loss of weight, 21 grams
on average.
Near-death
experience
These happen
when people are
clinically dead for
a time and claim
to have
experienced
another
sensation.
Evidence of a spirit
world
Ghosts, Mediums,
Spirits appear to give
evidence of a spirit
world. The souls of
dead survive death. If
Mediums can contact
the dead there must
be an afterlife.
Reincarnation
Many people claim
to remember a
past life, they can
remember certain
things about their
old life. If this is
the case, there
must be life after
death.

15. Just like animals and plants, humans will cease to exist when they
die and reject the arguments for LAD because:
 All religions have different ideas. Which one is true? Surely none
of them.
 The evidence is based on holy books, but there is no way for a
non-believer to decide which holy book is true.
 The resurrection of Jesus is not based on reliable evidence.
 Evidence of near-death experience is also unreliable.
 Evidence of Mediums is suspect, do they really contact the dead?
 Evidence of reincarnation is suspect, only 11 of 1111 reported
reincarnation cases were found to be true.
 They think that LAD is simply a comfort for people when a loved
one dies.

17. Arguments against Euthanasia
Arguments for Euthanasia

18. Most Christians believe that non-voluntary, assisted suicide and
voluntary euthanasia are all wrong. However, they may accept that
modern medicine has introduced new issues. They believe that
switching off a life-support machine is not euthanasia.
Reasons why most Christians disagree with Euthanasia.
 Life is created by God and so is sacred to God. It is up to God to
take life, not humans.
 They regard it as murder. In the Bible it says “Do not kill”
 The Book of Job tells Christians to accept suffering as God’s will:
“Shall we accept good from God and not trouble? (Job 2:10)
 Sanctity of Life- ALL life is holy and belongs to God.
 Some Christians would say that turning a life support machine off
is murder- life is being ended by Humans not God.
Reasons why some Christians agree with limited use of Euthanasia.
 Modern medical science means that we can no longer be sure
what God’s wishes about someone’s death actually are. (without
medicine they may have already died)
 Jesus taught “love thy neighbour” and helping people in trouble
could be used to justify assisted suicide.
 Living Wills give people a chance to be in control of what doctors
are doing to them, which is a basic human right.
• Does the patient actually want to die?
• What happens if a cure is found?
• It is a role of a doctor to save not to
kill.
• People might change their minds.
• Who would make the decision? What
happens if family just want the
inheritance?
• It is unfair to keep people alive when
100 years ago they would have died
without medical advances.
• The NHS cannot afford to keep people
alive for years on a life-support
machine.
• People have the right to end their own
life.

19. A major Christian response to the problems o the terminally ill has
been the hospice movement.
Christians believe that instead of euthanasia, the terminally ill should
be helped by hospices which aim to relieve and control the pain of the
dying. The hospices should help patients, and their families and
friends, to face up to death by allowing them to talk in a free and open
way as well as care for the emotional needs of relatives before, during
and after the patient’s death.
Palliative care- medical or nursing care that reduces pain and improves
the quality of life of those who have terminal illnesses.

20. Christians believe they are Stewards of the Earth.
 God has given humans the earth as a gift to look after and respect.
 They need to look after it for future generations.
 Humans are in control of animals and plants.
 The Old Testament teaches that humans have a responsibility to treat
animals humanely and to farm the land kindly.
 In the Parable of the Talents, Jesus taught that God expects humans to
pass on the Earth to the next generation in a better condition than they
received it.
 Jesus also taught that Christians have a responsibility to ensure a far
sharing of the earth’s resources.
 On Judgement Day, Christians will be judged on how they have looked
after the environment.
There are many threats to the world such as, pollution, global
warming and the use of natural resources. Below is ways
Christians respond to these:
To combat pollution, Christians may:
 Recycle
 Promote the use of power from waste plants to produce electricity.
 Encourage people not to drop litter.
 Report any area that is badly littered.
To tackle the issue of Global warming, Christians may:
 Using energy-efficient technologies to allow us to use less energy.
 Using solar, wind or geothermal power.
 Opposing tropical deforestation and working to reduce emissions.
 Encouraging car manufacturers to use ethanol, biodiesel or electric batteries.
How Christians may respond to the use of natural resources:
 Christians must share resources and would promote the use of renewable
resources.
 Encourage car manufacturers to use water, sugar cane and electric batteries.
 Promote the use of recycling to enable the lifetime of many finite resources
to be extended.
 Encourage the work of scientists to produce chemicals from plants rather
than oil.

21. At a conference of world religious leaders held at Assisi in 1986,
the Christian delegates issued a declaration on the environment.
It stated that Christians believe that God created everything to be
good and created everything to live in harmony. God created
humans in his likeness to have a unique dominion (be in charge)
over his creation, but it is a dominion designed to protect, not
destroy, God’s creation. Anything humans do to damage creation
is a sin and the declaration condemns the environmental damage
caused by human activity:
“All human activity in the world must therefore lead to the
mutual enrichment of man and creatures.”

22. Animal rights is the idea that non-human animals are entitled to certain kinds
of consideration and that their most basic interests –such as need to avoid
suffering- should be given the same consideration as human beings. Those
who support animal rights argue that animals should no longer be viewed as
property or used as food, clothing, research subjects, entertainment or beasts
of burden (for work).
Most Christians support animal research because they believe that:
 Humans are unlike animals because only humans were made in the image of God.
 According to the Genesis creation story, God put mankind in charge of animals to use
for human benefit.
 Christians believe that only humans have souls.- so they have more rights than
animals.
 Animal testing has helped to develop vaccines against diseases like rabies, polio and
measles.
 Advances in treatments for fatal diseases rely on animal tests because other testing
methods are not advanced enough.
Some Christians oppose animal research because:
They believe that all animals are made by God and so are just as valuable as humans.
Jesus said: “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will be
forgotten by God.”
They believe that animals have souls just like humans and pets will go to Heaven.
They believe some scientists do experiments out of ‘curiosity’ and cosmetics and this
is unnecessary.
Most Christians support the use of animals for food because they
believe that this is why God produced the food chain.
“Then God said, ‘I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the
whole earth…and all the beasts and birds.” Genesis 1:29-30
Some Christians are vegetarians and are opposed to animals being
used for food:
• God created animals as well as humans.
• Humans have a duty to care for animals as part of their duty as stewards of the
earth.
• Christians should never be cruel. Jesus said he was a good shepherd, he said he
would lay down his life for his sheep rather than let them be harmed.
• Using animals for food is a waste of resources.