Q: When Does Human Life Begin?

A: Simple, when the egg is fertilized by a sperm & becomes a zygote.

This is what used to be called conception. Unfortunately, back in the 60s the term conception was stolen by those supporting birth control & redefined to mean implantation, not fertilization. That enabled them to claim that "the pill" etc, weren't the abortifacients that they OFTEN ARE. (NOTE: As a part of the effort that Pro-life needs to take to restore the term "conception" to its proper usage, whenever you read conception from here on in this post, it means fertilization NOT implantation.)

Scientist Maureen Condic, PhD, a senior fellow of the Westchester Institute for Ethics and the Human Person has published a white paper, When Does Human Life Begin?, that takes a scientific look at the question. In the paper, she addresses the topic using current scientific data in human embryology. Her conclusion, that human life begins at conception when the sperm & egg fuse & become a zygote is not merely a faith based opinion but a "reflection of the way the world is."

Condic knows what she is talking about. She is an associate professor of neurobiology and anatomy at the University of Utah School of Medicine. She received her doctorate in neurobiology from the University of California, Berkely. Her teaching focuses primarily on embryonic development, and she directs the University of Utah School of Medicine's course in human embryology. In 1999, she was awarded the Basil O’Connor Young Investigator Award for her studies of peripheral nervous system development. In 2002, she was named a McKnight Neuroscience of Brain Disorders Investigator in recognition of her research in the field of adult spinal cord regeneration.

The forward to the paper was written by Fr. Richard John Neuhaus of First Things. He starts out by going after all those who fill the air with "the smog that obscures and confuses debates about abortion, embryonic research, cloning, and related issues."

He then says: "Among the chief obfuscations and confusions is the claim that we do not know when human life begins. This frequently takes the form of claiming that the question is a matter of faith or religious belief. Nothing could be farther from the truth, as is lucidly and convincingly demonstrated in this White Paper."

In his typical style, Fr. Neuhaus takes no prisoners. "When a human life begins is a question of science." He goes on to show the importance of this paper. "It is sometimes said that the abortion debate is about “values” rather than “facts.” An honest debate about abortion, however, is about values based on facts. If we don’t get the facts right, we will not get our values right. Establishing by clear scientific evidence the moment at which a human life begins is not the end of the abortion debate. On the contrary, that is the point from which the debate begins."

Rather than attempt to reinvent the wheel by attempting to summarize the paper, I will simply share Dr. Condic's excellent summary of her paper. "Resolving the question of when human life begins is critical for advancing a reasoned public policy debate over abortion and human embryo research. This article considers the current scientific evidence in human embryology and addresses two central questions concerning the beginning of life: 1) in the course of sperm-egg interaction, when is a new cell formed that is distinct from either sperm or egg? and 2) is this new cell a new human organism—i.e., a new human being? Based on universally accepted scientific criteria, a new cell, the human zygote, comes into existence at the moment of sperm-egg fusion, an event that occurs in less than a second. Upon formation, the zygote immediately initiates a complex sequence of events that establish the molecular conditions required for continued embryonic development. The behavior of the zygote is radically unlike that of either sperm or egg separately and is characteristic of a human organism. Thus, the scientific evidence supports the conclusion that a zygote is a human organism and that the life of a new human being commences at a scientifically well defined “moment of conception.” This conclusion is objective, consistent with the factual evidence, and independent of any specific ethical, moral, political, or religious view of human life or of human embryos." (Bravo to her for restoring the proper meaning to conception as well.)

Follw this link to the White Paper to read it in its entirety. While she does use scientific terms, she ensures it is readable to the average person who knows the basics of biology from high school. She included clearly understandable definitions, plenty of illustrations & weblinks to many of her sources.

Dr. Condic has provided an excellent resource to show that it isn't merely a matter of faith that life begins at conception. For those who sincerely want the truth, & esp those who are unsure what the facts are, this will be a welcome aide in clearing up the confusion.

Unfortunately, for many it will be unwelcome, or twisted & even denied as truly scientific. Biden, Pelosi et al's twisting of Catholic teaching shows that. & I doubt that this scientific support for what the Catholic Church has taught for 2000 yrs, & Judaism for centuries before that, will have any effect on their support of abortion, etc.

Their unwillingness to admit that the "blob of tissue" as they so often call it, is really a human being reminds me of a scene from the musical 1776. The debate on the Declaration of Independence has been going on for several days. Finally, Edward Rutledge of South Carolina stands up to demand Jefferson's paragraph on black slavery be removed as it attacks the South's "peculiar institution" & "cherished way of life." Jefferson & Adams derend the paragraph. When John Adams calls the slaves Americans, Rutledge says: "Are-they-now?"

Adams replies: "They are! They're people and they're here---if there is any (other) requirement, I've never heard of it." (other wasn't in the script but was used in the movie)

Rutledge's reply sounds very similar to the reply that the pro-aborts, pro-embryonic stem cell reseach minions in the "culture of death". He says: "They are here, yes, but they are not people, sir, they are property." (emphasis mine) Jefferson then restates that they are people.

Rutledge & the others who were pro-slavery knew the scientific facts, even black slave was a human being, just as they were, made in the image & likeness of God. However, by acknowledging their humanity, they could not justify their being kept as slaves. So, they reduced them to property, just like a house, a horse or mule. They dehumanized those blacks being held as slaves. Just as the "culture of death" minions dehumanize the unborn child to justify their views. They know the truth, they ignore it & even more, they deny what they know are the facts.

As Dr. Condic says in her Zenit interview: "I think every person who is concerned about the important "life-issues" of health care, abortion, assisted reproduction and stem-cell research should read this article, because understanding when life begins is the basis of a sound political, ethical and moral debate on these complex and difficult topics. Certainly, all those charged with the formation of public policy on these matters should read this argument and think seriously about its implications. If we cannot know what a human embryo is and when it comes into existence, we cannot make sound judgments regarding any of the issues surrounding the human embryo."

As for those who deny/ignore the scientific facts: "While people are free to formulate their opinion on when human life begins in any manner they choose (including belief and politics), not all opinions are equally consistent with factual reality. Those who choose to ignore the facts cannot expect their opinions to garner as much respect or to be given as much credibility as those who base their opinions in sound scientific observation and analysis."

Comparing their opinions to those of members of the Flat Earth Society she says: "The opinions of those who reject the scientific evidence concerning when life begins should not be the basis of public policy on embryo-related topics, either."

Facts are stubborn things that won't go away. Just like this country had to face the fact that slaves were human & entitled to the rights found in "Natural Law" that Rev. Martin Luther King so rightly pointed out were promised them in the Declaration of Independence, we will have acknowledge the unborn are just as human as we are, & just as entitled to the same rights to life, liberty & the pursuit of happiness that we are all entitled to.

Source: The Facts of When Human Life Begins

________________________

I have to add a comment about the scene from 1776. While the musical is basically historically accurate, they did rearrange a few events for dramatic purposes. 1 of these was making the debate of the document the same as that for actually declaring Independence. In reality, the Continental Congress declared independence on 2 July 1776. It debated the written Declaration for the next 2 days & adopted the final version on 4 July 1776.

Also, no written record exists of the actual debate. Writings by Jefferson, Adams & others at a later date were used to supply some parts of the debate. Since they didn't include everyone who was a part of Congress (to unweildy a number for the stage), they sometimes gave 1 character the words of someone else. Adams line about posterity's unforgiveness for how they handled the slavery issue was actually said by his cousin Sam.

One other historical note, the only Founding Father to never own a slave was John Adams. Even Ben Franklin, founder of 1 of the 1st anti-slavery societies in North America, owned a couple of slaves for a while.