By John Blake, CNN
(CNN)Both quote the same Bible. Both follow the same Jesus. And both talk about the dignity of life.
Still, both stand on the other side of the controversial debate over abortion.
The US Supreme Court building in Washington, June 14, 2022.
Both embody the division of abortion in the church. And it shows how complicated the problem can be when two wise and knowledgeable people cite the Bible to support their views.
However, discussions about access to abortion will continue. This is a moral and religious issue for many religious people like Ellis and Horn.
Much of the abortion debate was filtered by angry protests and screaming slogans, but CNN interviewed these two Christians as each wrote a thoughtful public essay on the issue. I chose to do it.
I asked both Ellis and Horn the same four questions and received dramatically different responses. Their answer has been edited for brevity.
How does your faith shape your position on abortion?
Horn:My faith informs me that God created humans with his image. He loves humans and wants us to share the same love and promote justice to all other humans. My faith tells us that all human beings, all members of our species are equal in value and dignity, so my faith is why I do not want innocent members of our species. It just tells you that you shouldn't kill directly. My faith informs me that from the moment of pregnancy to the moment of death, all human beings deserve equal protection under the law.
Ellis:I believe in the dignity of human life and want to see a world with few abortions. However, we also know that banning abortions will have the most serious impact on people in already marginalized societies, and that wealthy white women will always have access to safe and affordable abortions. Making abortion illegal affects disproportionately to young women, poor women, colored women, and, in rural areas, women who do not have the privileged support systems that some people have. These are the kind of people Jesus has always advocated in his life and ministry. First and foremost, I always have the best for the situation of a living, breathing, human woman, and her and her family.
Which Bible passage do you quote to justify your position?
Horn:The Bible doesn't explicitly mention abortion, so I'm not saying that abortion itself is wrong, but that infanticide is wrong. , Pedophilia is wrong. Instead, I use the Bible to inform me of general principles. The Bible reveals in Exodus 23: 7 and Proverbs 6: 16-17 that it is wrong to kill an innocent man. Proverbs chapter 6 says that God hates hands that shed innocent blood.
If the Bible says it is wrong to kill an innocent human, and science and sound reasoning tell us that human embryos and human fetuses are humans, then the Bible Tells me that killing them is wrong. The Bible does not say that it is wrong to lynch a black man, but it is clearly wrong because the Bible says that it is wrong to kill an innocent person. That applies to all born and unborn humans. More appropriate than
, the Bible states that human life exists in the womb (Luke 1:41), and the Bible prohibits the killing of innocent humans (Exodus 20). : 13) That is. This prohibition applies to abortion as well as other murders. These differences do not negate their inviolable right to life, as fetuses are smaller and more dependent humans.
Ellis:Be really careful when you take up a complex topic like abortion and try to justify it or blame it in one or two poems. is needed. Out of context. The Bible is a very complex book written by multiple people in various historical and social contexts. It may be irresponsible to omit a sentence or two and relate it to America in the 21st century. The Bible does not explicitly state abortion or pros and cons in any way. It's not there.
When thinking about the scriptures that anti-abortion people draw, they are often about murder, sexual immorality, and blaming women. They are out of context. I will return to pulling out of Christ's life and service. Jesus really defended the woman in a beautiful and unique way during the period he lived. Even by being with and talking to women, he respected women and broke social practices. In both Jesus and our time, the female body is abandoned too often. I don't think Jesus will admit it.
There is a Bible story in which Jesus defended and empowered women. In John 4: 1-42, Jesus engaged a woman in the well and empowered her to spread his teachings. At Luke 8: 43-48, Jesus spoke to the woman who touched her clothes and dropped everything to help her. And at Matthew 28: 1-20, Jesus entrusted the good news of the resurrection to the woman.
What is the greatest myth that people have about people who share your position?
Horn:The biggest myth people have about my position on abortion is that it is just a religious position. There are many religious people who oppose abortion, just as there were many religious people who oppose racism in the United States. Opposition to racial separation and abortion is not just a religious position. Rather, these are human rights issues. Because it is based on the basic truth that any rational person can reach. That is, we should give equal respect and protection to all human beings under the law.
Just as there is no morally relevant difference between blacks and whites to justify whites' abuse of blacks, between born and unborn humans. There are no morally related differences. Fetuses are smaller, slower to develop and more dependent than us, while newborns are also smaller, slower to develop and more dependent than us. However, these reasons do not justify killing a born child, nor do they justify saying that a fetus is not a human and can be killed.
Can those who oppose your position regarding abortion still legally call themselves Christians?
Horn:There may be Christians who support legal abortion, just as there were many Christians who supported legal slavery. Being a Christian means that you have a valid baptism, and you believe in the central beliefs of Christian faith. But Christians who support legal slavery and legal abortion are inconsistent with the moral law that Christianity gives us. So, while they are Christians, they will be judged as Christians for violating the law that Christ gave us to protect the innocent and to protect the weak.
People are free to have any religious beliefs, including pro-choice Christians, but they are not always free to act on those beliefs.Some religions teach that polygamy, slavery, female genital mutilation, or honor killings should be legal, but the law is all harm, including harm done in the name of the religion. We must protect all innocent humans, both born and unborn.
Ellis:I clearly disagree with those who oppose abortion, in the sense that they cannot be Christians just because I personally disagree. There is none. Who says who can or cannot be a Christian? It really is only God's work. I think we must stop this fierce gatekeeping of Christianity, especially if it is based on issues such as abortion that are not mentioned in the Bible.
When Jesus asked people to obey him, you didn't have to first pass some sort of moral or political checklist. I grew up in West Texas in a very religious and very conservative environment. I know so many people who oppose abortion because of their faith. I obviously don't personally agree with them because of my faith, but I don't think that means they aren't good people, or they aren't good Christians.
