Students at St Augustine Academy in Ventura, California, joined hundreds of students at Catholic colleges and high schools across the US staging a pro-life walkout on April 11 “I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse ; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19)
This verse is taken from the last chapter of the Book of Deuteronomy in the Old Testament. Capturing the essence of how the future of the nation of Israel depended on the response of the Jewish people to the Covenant, it underlines the connections between life and blessing.
To the nation of Israel, life was synonymous with blessing, and death with a curse. It also suggests that humanity has a choice – it can choose life or death, and the consequences of that choice have enormous implications for the peace and stability of the nation.
Dr Jordan B. Peterson, a clinical psychologist and Professor of Psychology at Toronto University has stated that the Bible is “a collective attempt by humanity to solve the deepest problems that we have”.
His Biblical series on YouTube, which has over a million viewers, gives insight into the psychological significance of the Biblical narrative. It appears, surprisingly, that this has enormous relevance for a modern, and largely millennial audience. Peterson’s lectures in the Biblical series have focused up to now on the Old Testament, stressing how these ancient texts provide humanity with essential information on how to interpret the world.
He concludes that knowledge of the biblical stories is essential to a deep understanding of Western culture, which in turn is vital to proper psychological health and societal stability. Western civilisation was founded on the Judeo-Christian ethic, which itself was based on profound respect for the sacredness of human life.
Deuteronomy, meaning ‘second law’, was a reiteration and re-establishment of the Mosaic law at a time of religious reform and political emancipation, and it outlines a moral code for the people of Israel in the light of their relationship with their God.
We may ask what this ancient text has to do with the Eighth Amendment. In some ways, the Irish Constitution can be compared to Deuteronomy. Written at a time of high idealism following independence, unapologetically invoking the name of the Holy Trinity, it is a remarkable document. The insertion of article 40.3.3 in 1983 was a response to a perceived potential threat to the protection of the unborn.
Those who voted to include it in 1983 could not have envisaged just how prescient it would turn out to be. The recent Supreme Court judgement leaves us in no doubt that article 40.3.3 (the Eighth Amendment) is now the only right afforded to the unborn in this country. If it is removed, all rights for the unborn will be removed with it.
The referendum of May 25 is possibly the most important referendum in the history of the State. It has a direct bearing on how the Irish people value life itself. It throws into sharp relief the question of whether the unborn child’s life is entitled to respect based on our common humanity. Implicated in this is the value humanity itself and thus all our lives.
Science leaves us in no doubt that the unborn child is human – we can no longer be excused because of ignorance, which may have been the case when the Abortion Act was introduced in England in 1967, or indeed in 1973 when the Supreme Court in the US legalised abortion in all American states. It is interesting to speculate whether, had this information been available at the time, the outcome would have been different.
The late Christopher Hitchens, an acknowledged atheist, admitted that the science of embryology and the development of ultrasound technology leaves us in no doubt about the humanity of the unborn child.
One of the most disconcerting features of the ‘debate’ surrounding repeal is the refusal to acknowledge this fact. This suggests at best a lack of maturity in dealing with the issues, akin to a child putting its hands over its ears to block out unwelcome information. At worst it suggests a sinister refusal to acknowledge facts that are crucial to making an informed decision on this issue.
This issue crosses all religious and ideological boundaries as can be seen by such diverse groups as New Wave Pro-life Feminists, Feminists for Life, Atheists4 8th, LGBT4Life and others.
As diverse as these groups may be, they share the view that human life is sacred and must be protected. As the most vulnerable and defenceless human being, the unborn child calls upon our deepest commitment towards protecting that life. Romano Guardini stated that “a divine chivalry protects that which is unable to protect itself and declares: I stand behind it!”.
This is the message that is most evident in the Old Testament prophets and of course it finds its ultimate expression in the message of Christ. Jesus, who entered into human history as an unborn child, came so that we – all of us – may have life to the full.
Many women unfortunately find themselves in vulnerable positions when they experience unplanned pregnancy, but many of the founding feminists rightly pointed out that abortion is anti-woman at its core.
Finola Bruton, the wife of the former Taoiseach John Bruton, recently raised this issue when she stated that adoption is a child-centred response to the problem of unplanned pregnancy. She questioned why this option appears to have gone out of fashion. We might also question whether abortion is the cheap and easy solution to unplanned pregnancies for a government still struggling with healthcare reform and an ever-growing welfare bill.
Seeing the issue within a global context, it appears that the pro-life cause is gaining considerable momentum internationally, particularly in the US where recent polls indicate that a majority of Americans consider abortion to be harmful to women and morally wrong.
On April 11, over 400 American high schools witnessed a walk-out protest by pro-life students.
Ireland is in a unique position. It has had the opportunity to observe how legalisation of abortion has worked out in countries where it has been legal for over 40 years. It would be a tragic irony if, having maintained a culture of life up to this point, we finally succumb to the culture of death at a time when nations who have done so in the past are re-evaluating that choice.
It would be a tragic irony if, at a time when Minister Katherine Zappone is proposing that the state supply new parents with ‘baby boxes’ to encourage the gift of life, we vote to extinguish the right to exist for all children before birth.
We have an opportunity to choose life and blessing on May 25. This choice will have enormous consequences for our future as a nation and as a society.