If you held up an apple in your hand, and I looked at it and said "That's an orange!", would I be right? What would you think if I said that the object you held in your hand is whatever I believe it to be? If I believe it's an apple, it's an apple. If I believe it's an orange, it's an orange. Would you agree with me, or would you think I'm a few bricks shy of a full load?
How you answer these questions depends on whether you think truth is relative, or absolute. If truth is relative, the apple is whatever a person thinks it is. If truth is absolute, the apple is an apple, regardless of what anyone thinks it is.
While the apple analogy is extremely simple, the principle can be applied to complex moral issues. Let's take the abortion issue, for example. People usually take one of the following positions in regards to abortion:
- Abortion is always bad.
- Abortion is always good.
- Abortion is good for some people, and bad for other people.
- Abortion is good in certain circumstances, and bad in others.
A person that takes position #1 believes that abortion kills an innocent unborn human being, and that killing an innocent human being is always wrong. A person that takes this position identifies themselves as pro-life, and denies any association with the pro-choice movement. A person that holds this position believes that abortion is wrong at any stage of the pregnancy.
A person that takes position #2 believes that abortion is always good, because it provides a way for a woman to avoid having a baby when she doesn't want one. A person that takes this position identifies strongly with the pro-choice movement, and believes that it is acceptable to perform abortions at any stage of the pregnancy, right up to the point of birth. Like position number one, position number two is an absolute position regarding abortion.
A person that takes position #3 believes that the morality of abortion is up to each individual. People who take this position are the ones who say "I personally wouldn't have an abortion, but I'm not going to prevent someone else from having one, if they feel it's right for them."
A person that takes position #4 believes that the morality of abortion depends on the situation. People who take this position believe that abortion is wrong except in certain situations, such as pregnancies due to rape or incest, or pregnancies that endanger the mother's life.
Which of these positions is correct? Positions 3 and 4 can be taken out of the running right away. Why? Because they are both relative positions, and truth is absolute. An apple is an apple, regardless of what people think it is, or the circumstance. The same applies to abortion. To say that abortion is right for some people and wrong for other people is as ridiculous as saying that an apple is an apple to some people, and an orange to others. To say that abortion is wrong in all situations except for certain ones is as ridiculous as saying an apple is an apple except when you play catch with it.
Since positions 3 and 4 have been eliminated, all that's left is positions 1 and 2. Which of these is the correct position? The answer depends on when a human being comes into existence. The only logical point at which a human being comes into existence is at the moment of fertilization. To think that a human being comes into existence at some arbitrary point between fertilization and birth is unreasonable, and not in accordance with human embryology (http://catholiceducation.org/articles/abortion/ab0027.html). Therefore, position 1 is the only position that can be correct. Abortion is always wrong, because it ends an innocent human being's life, regardless of how the human being came into existence. Abortion is always wrong, whether a person thinks it's wrong or not. Abortion is always wrong, regardless of the situation.
While I was driving home from the grocery store, I was thinking about the Planned Parenthood sex trafficking scandal. In case you haven't heard about it, you can read about it on the Live Action web site. Many people on both sides of the abortion issue would agree that what the manager of the Planned Parenthood clinic did was wrong, but I wonder what we would do if we were in her situation, or one similar to it? If you were the manager of a Planned Parenthood clinic, and a person you believed to be a real pimp came in and asked you if you would provide "health services" (including abortion and contraception) to under age girls that he is sex trafficking, how would you respond?
Obviously, your view on abortion and contraception use would affect how you would respond (I would hope). For the sake of this discussion, I'm going to assume that an abortion opponent wouldn't be in this situation, because they wouldn't take a job at a Planned Parenthood clinic. But what if you support abortion and contraception use? How would you respond? Would you:
- Politely excuse yourself from the room and call the police, and refuse to provide abortions and contraception to the girls he's trafficking?
- Politely excuse yourself from the room and call the police, and then provide abortions and contraception to the girls he's trafficking if you think they need it?
- Inform the pimp that sex trafficking is illegal and ask him to leave, but not report him to the authorities?
- Offer to provide abortions or contraception to the girls he's trafficking without informing the authorities?
- Respond in some other way?
What if the pimp really has an underage girl that got pregnant while he was trafficking her? If you choose option 1, aren't you denying her what is currently a legal medical procedure? If the pimp really has an underage girl that is pregnant, and you had the clinic give her an abortion, would you inform her parents?
Many people on Twitter are amazed when they find out that I advocate abstinence-only (ab-only) sex education. They tell me that ab-only sex education doesn't work, because people are going to have pre-marital sex regardless.
While some people are against ab-only sex education all together, most people advocate sex education that provides information on abstinence and the use of artificial birth control as a means of preventing unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases (STD's). While this may sound reasonable to most people, as a Catholic, I cannot advocate sex education that teaches people that it's ok to have pre-marital sex, as long as they use "protection" (artificial birth control). Here's why:
- The Catholic Church teaches that pre-marital sex is wrong (see http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=724&page=1). It would be a sin for me, as a Catholic Christian, to tell a person that it is ok to have pre-marital sex, whether it's protected sex or not.
- The Catholic Church teaches that the use of artificial birth control is wrong (see http://www.catholic.com/library/Birth_Control.asp and http://www.ewtn.com/library/marriage/shouldbe.txt). It would be a sin for me, as a Catholic Christian, to tell a person it is ok to use artificial birth control, no matter how good their intentions are for using it.
Since I believe that pre-marital sex and the use of artificial contraception is immoral, I cannot advocate sex education that teaches that it's ok to have pre-marital sex, or that it's ok to use artificial contraception.
I imagine that some people who read this post will say "that's fine for you to believe that way, but I don't have to believe that way because I'm not Catholic." I believe that each person is free to believe whatever they want to believe, but I also believe that truth is absolute. In regards to pre-marital sex, I believe it is wrong for everybody, not just for those who believe it's wrong. I don't ascribe to the belief that what's wrong for one person can be right for another person. An apple is an apple, regardless of what a person may think it is. Pre-marital sex is either wrong for everyone, or right for everyone. It can't be right if you believe it's right, and wrong if you believe it's wrong. I believe pre-marital sex is wrong for everyone because the Catholic Church, which was founded by Jesus Christ himself, and the Bible that came forth from the Church, teaches it is wrong. I believe Jesus when he said that the Holy Spirit would guide the Church to all truth, including the truth about pre-marital sex.
