When does human life begin? Psalm 139:13 declares, “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.” Jeremiah 1:5 declares, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

According to Cleveland Clinic, a well-respected medical provider in the state of Ohio that has been around for over 100 years, here is what happens in the first four weeks of life:

“In these first few weeks, a primitive face will take form with large dark circles for eyes. The mouth, lower jaw and throat are developing. Blood cells are taking shape, and circulation will begin. The tiny ‘heart’ tube will beat 65 times a minute by the end of the fourth week.”

Cleveland Clinic goes on to describe how doctors formulate the age of a preborn child and note “The first trimester will span from conception to 12 weeks.”

It is a settled fact that human life begins at conception. God declares this in His Word and science affirms it as a moral truth. This truth is undeniable and has held true since the creation account in Genesis and will hold true for all of eternity.

Now that we’ve settled the question of when life begins, the next question that is often discussed is whether or not it is morally acceptable to intentionally end the life of a baby in the womb? The most common justification that people use is that abortion should be allowed for cases of babies that were conceived in rape or incest, or when the life of the mother is at risk as a result of the child.

The rape and incest argument doesn’t stand up against even an ounce of scrutiny. It isn’t morally acceptable to end the life of a preborn child because of how they were conceived. Each human is created in the image of God and their value doesn’t decrease as a result of being conceived in an immoral or evil circumstance. Instead of punishing the preborn child for cases of rape and incest, the sole focus should be on punishing the one who committed this immoral act. Ending the life of a baby in cases of rape and incest is immoral and should never be permitted under law.

This leaves saving the life of the mother as justification for abortion. In 2009 the American Association of Pro-life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG) put out a statement on this justification:

“Abortion is the purposeful killing of the unborn in the termination of a pregnancy. AAPLOG opposes abortion. When extreme medical emergencies that threaten the life of the mother arise (chorioamnionitis or HELLP syndrome could be examples), AAPLOG believes in ‘treatment to save the mother’s life,’ including premature delivery if that is indicated — obviously with the patient’s informed consent. This is NOT ‘abortion to save the mother’s life.’ We are treating two patients, the mother and the baby, and every reasonable attempt to save the baby’s life would also be a part of our medical intervention. We acknowledge that, in some such instances, the baby would be too premature to survive.”

A statement called the Dublin Declaration put out by a large group of doctors clearly articulates this fundamental truth as well:

“As experienced practitioners and researchers in obstetrics and gynecology, we affirm that direct abortion – the purposeful destruction of the unborn child – is not medically necessary to save the life of a woman. We hold that there is a fundamental difference between abortion, and necessary medical treatments that are carried out to save the life of the mother, even if such treatment results in the loss of life of her unborn child. We confirm that the prohibition of abortion does not affect, in any way, the availability of optimal care to pregnant women.”

These statements alone debunk the “life of the mother” as automatic justification for intentionally ending the life of the preborn child.

Abortion should not be permitted under the law regardless of circumstance as it is morally wrong. Abortion should be abolished.