this is not a test. I am not attempting to see who will answer "correctly". I am honestly just curious to see how those on the board who are Christians will answer these questions. a) how do you think Jesus Christ would act toward a woman or a couple considering an abortion? b) how do you think Jesus Christ would act in a room full of people debating the merits of abortion? p.s. I started a new thread for this because, in my estimation, this is a different subject than the other one. sadly, like the other one, this one may also run astray. . .
I have no idea how Jesus would react, he is the son of God, and his father gave us free will. I think that Jesus would love you no matter what your decision. DaDakota
That's really tough....Jesus acted with tons of compassion for those struggling with tough things in their life. But at the same time he was brutally honest. When he saw injustice, he pointed it out...he wasn't afraid to call people hypocrites...and he wasn't afraid to say that there is an awful consequence as the wages of sin... I think He would act with compassion to a couple...but I believe he would probably straight up tell them it was wrong...that's my read as to what Jesus Christ would say....same thing in a big group...except he might do it to them by telling an eye-opening convicting story. please keep in mind, this is all conjecture based on my understanding of how Jesus interacted with people when he walked the planet. like DaDakota, I'm quite hesitant to ascribe actions and words to my God!
We don't know, but we do know this...Jesus would've become more conservative with age had he not been executed at the age of 33. Whatever his opinions were, they were just like that because he was fairly young.
So... are you saying that the entire religion which is based on the words of Jesus, would have been entirely different if Jesus had lived to an old age? Are you a devout Christian? If you are, and not some cynic, I find this position to be one of the most bizzare things I've ever heard. The concept that the whimsical reactions of Roman authorities to Jesus' life, and the subsequent decision to kill him could entirely alter the core tone of the beliefs of God as given to man is comical in a Monty Python-esqe way.
Ottomaton, Some of the more conservative members of this boards have not-so-humbly told Rocketman that his liberal ideas are the result of his youth and that he will grow to be more conservative as he "matures." Go check out the capital punishment thread and you'll get the joke. EDIT: Nothing's more ironic than a person who's constantly called subatomic to mess up another poster's name.
a)He would probably tell them that He loves those unborn babies already, since He already knows them... Job 31 15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same one form us both within our mothers? Psalm 139 13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, 16 your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. Isaiah 49 1 Listen to me, you islands; hear this, you distant nations: Before I was born the Lord called me; from my birth he has made mention of my name. Jeremiah 1 5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;" Then He would try to reassure them that if they would trust in Him, He would take care of them. He would tell them that He knows their suffering and the consequences of sin, but they should understand His way will lead to happiness and a sense of peace that is beyond all understanding. He would tell them that He loves them. b) He'd probably ask "Why don't you ask Me?".
Let me preclude this post by saying that I am a senior Theology minor at the University of St. Thomas (in Houston) and I am Roman Catholic. Some might think that this says enough to discount my opinion as biased, but I like to think that I can look at something relatively objectively and make an assessment of this question. This is why I think that the nature of Chevious' original questions must be viewed from a historical perspective, since to remove Jesus from the time that He lived would be counterintuitive to asking what He would say. The first mention of abortion directly is attributed to Hippocrates, who required physicians to bind themselves by oath not to give to women drinks fatal to the child in the womb. Such a proclamation would date between 350-370 BCE. Therefore, it can be assumed that at least Greek society saw some sort of problem in such a practice. The Roman Empire also formed laws against the practice of abortion roughly 3 centuries later (about the time of Jesus). This would lead one to believe that the society at large would be familiar with such a problem. Yet, if one turns to Scripture, there is lacking any mention of Jesus teaching about abortion. I would draw one of two conclusions (both could be valid, yet each would be sufficient): 1) Jewish society at the time may have not experienced a problem such as the Greeks and Romans with the practice of abortion 2) The Jews may have held the commandment against murder to clearly stipulate that abortion was not to be done. This may have precluded Jesus from addressing this. I realize that there are some problems with both of these conclusions, but I believe that any extension beyond this would be so speculative as to become pointless in context of the original questions. Scripture states that Jesus did many other things, but they are not all recorded due to the large number of things done. Perhaps He addressed abortion, and it was not recorded. Perhaps he never addressed abortion. I believe that either way, the question poses a challenge that is answered differently by the various Christian traditions: "Who speaks for Christ when He has not spoken Himself?" Obviously as a Roman Catholic, I would turn to the Church's teachings on the matter. A Southern Baptist would turn to his or her own reading of Scripture to determine the answer (guided by the Holy Spirit, as they believe). The nature of the original questions require so much other consideration outside of the abortion issue itself that they are not easy at all to answer. As for RM95's suggestion that Jesus' "opinions" would have changed with age, I note two things: one historical and one literary. 1) 33 for a Jew at the time of Jesus was not "young". In fact, in today's political environment, this would not be considered young. To say that Jesus held liberal views due to his age are rather shortsighted. 2) Scripture should not be read as Jesus advocating an "opinion". This tends to go along the same thread as those who refer to Jesus as a "great moral teacher". I've never known a great moral teacher who referred to himself as "the Son of God". Such statements, for a mortal, are those of a madman. Yet, if He was the Son of God, it would be more appropriate to treat Jesus' statements as objective truths, not opinion. Humans have opinion - God speaks in objective truths.
a) My guess: He would love them, but tell them the truth about if they were killing or not. I have my opinion what this was, but I am not going to assume I know Jesus's position. See other thread for my opinion. b) My guess: He would be upset by some of the methods used to carried out his love. I'm not the best Christian, but I try the to be the best me that I can.
That is the question of the last two thousand years. In my mind, those are the only two possibilities if Scripture is even remotely accurate in recording the events of Jesus' ministry. Afterall, what else would you think of someone who claimed to be the Son of God? Certainly not just a guy who had some good ideas.
