How Core Tenet #3 Applies to Abortion

-

 Topic: How Core Tenet #3 Applies to Abortion

The Alabama Supreme Court issued a ruling on February 16 declaring that embryos created through in vitro fertilization (IVF) should be considered children. This raises ethical as well as practical concerns. Does it mean that a couple attempting to conceive through IVF can claim all their embryos as dependents on their taxes? Does it mean that IVF clinics have to be registered as daycare centers? Can somebody use the carpool lane if they have frozen embryos in the back seat? And do they have to be buckled in? If somebody accidentally drops a petri dish with a clump of cells in it, and the cells die as a result, is that person going to be charged with committing the crime of abortion?

This ruling, like any abortion ban, is a direct violation of any Path adherents’ religious freedom: Core Tenet #3 tells us that our bodies are our own, and that bodily autonomy must be absolute. Other organizations, including the Satanic Temple (which, much like the Path itself, is an atheistic organization) are protesting this law as intrusive and dangerous. Until they are actually born, fetuses and embryos are either part of their parent’s body or, in the case of frozen embryos, clumps of cells that may or may not eventually become babies. But those cells are made up of our own tissue, which means they fall under the umbrella of bodily autonomy.

It is not like embryos are particularly sacred to Nature, or God if you prefer. One in four American pregnancies end in miscarriage, with twenty thousand or so more that are stillborn. That is up to one million per year, and we don’t really even know because any sexually active woman can have a spontaneous miscarriage without even knowing the egg was fertilized. No, the only people who have this embryo fetish in this country are religious conservatives. Their god clearly does not give a shit about the unborn.

Here's a thought experiment that illustrates the absurdity of Alabama’s law. Say you are in an in vitro clinic and there is a fire. There are thousands of embryos in one room, and two toddlers in another. You only have two hands. Who do you save? The toddlers, of course. It isn’t even a choice. You would not leave two toddlers to choke to death to save even a dozen embryos. Because they are not actually children, no matter what that Alabama court has to say on the matter.

Path teachings on this topic encourage us to have the “abortion talk” with your potential partner before engaging in any kind of procreative activity. Make sure they do not have a heartbeat-bill bumper sticker. Ask if they are from Alabama.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

On Sacrifice and the Path

-
  On Sacrifice and the Path   Sacrifice is a prevailing theme of many world religions, whether you are giving up life, time, or money. The idea is that you have to pay for salvation somehow; nothing is free, after all. Some religions have an entire laundry list of things you cannot do, things you must give up entirely in order to practice their faith. Some ask for money, either through tithes or “charitable donations.” The entire Christian faith is based on what is an objectively barbaric form of human sacrifice. The message is clear: to be saved, you must offer up something in return, or forgo something you once indulged in. A sacrifice must be made. Pagan spiritual traditions incorporate energetic reciprocity: to invoke the favors of the gods, certain offerings are made. These offerings can be physical or energetic in nature, either cream and honey to please the Fae folk, or personal psychic energy expended during a healing rite. These sacrifices are more personal (as ...
Read more

Beware the False Dichotomy

-
  The appeal of the dichotomy is understandable. It’s psychologically soothing to have two clear options, so we can act accordingly. Unfortunately, life is messy and complicated, and many of the dichotomies we embrace as a society are not only false, they are actively damaging. Consider the false dichotomy of “fight or flight,” of which I’ve written before. If you believe you only have two possible responses to perceived threat of trauma, you won’t realize that freeze, flop, and friend may be more appropriate to the situation. You could end up punching your boss, because running away is for cowards. Even worse, however, are the dichotomies we apply to sex, sexuality, and gender: you’re either gay or straight, male or female. What we are finally beginning to acknowledge is that these things exist on a spectrum, and the old labels just don’t work anymore. But there are still those who cling to these false dichotomies and refuse to recognize anyone’s identity if it doesn’t fit in ...
Read more

Path Doctrine on the Seven Deadly Sins

-
  Topic: Path Doctrine on the Seven Deadly Sins Today’s sermon is about the Christian list of seven “deadly sins” and how they relate to Path teachings. Some of these so-called sins are of the body, some are of the mind. But they must be subject to rational dissection so we can extract whatever value they may have. Lust is a body sin, and an easy one. The sex lives of others are none of our business, as long as everyone involved is a consenting adult and no harm is being done. If you are not hurting anyone or treating other people as things, feel free to lust after and even have sex with as many people as you want. Greed is one of the sins that you only commit in your head; the only problem with greed is that it can turn you into a power-hungry asshole. But there are wealthy people who still try to make the world a better place, so there is nothing wrong with greed itself. Gluttony is a body sin, and is contrary to the Virtue of Balance. If you find yourself overindulging, ...
Read more