Topic 3 - Origin And Value Of Human Life

• Speciesism


  Means a prejudice in favour of human species over other animal species
• Sanctity of Life - Christianity

  • Life is given by God and he has a plan for everyone even before they are born - God gives life and only he can take it away
  • We are made in the 'image of God' and he is pleased with what he has made.
  • Humans are more important than animals because we were the last part of creation and have been given souls
  • Jesus in his miracles and teaching showed that human life should be valued
• Sanctity of Life - Islam

  • Life is given by Allah and life is taken away by Allah - no human is to take a life
  • Allah breathes a soul into humans after 120 days
  • Allah has a plan for every human from the moment they are conceived
  • Killing one person is like killing all of humanity
• Sanctity of Life - Humanism

  • Human life is important but because it's the only one we have - no afterlife
  • Life is about being happy - every human should have the chance to be happy
  • Speciesism - Peter Singer believes it is wrong to give humans more rights than animals, this is prejudice against animals
  • Singer believes animas and humans should have equal rights and so he is a vegan and is against experiments
• In some instances, abortion may be allowed in the Church in Wales if the pregnancy threatens the life of the mother
• Early abortion is not considered murder in the Church in Wales as the foetus is viewed as just a collection of cells
• God has given humans free will to decide, and no woman should be forced to continue with a pregnancy against her wishes. She should follow her conscience
• Muslims follow absolute morality and believe that the sanctity of life is more important than the quality of life
• Most Muslims believe that life begins at conception, so abortion is not allowed
• Allah gives life and only he can take it away
• Ensoulment occurs after 120 days when Allah gives the foetus a soul, and no abortion is allowed after this point
• The Qur'an prohibits killing children out of poverty, indicating that abortion is not allowed if a person cannot afford them as Allah will provide for them
• Some Muslims believe that abortion can be permitted if the mother's life is in danger or if the child will have a serious disability
• The Qur'an teaches that on Judgement Day, the unborn child will question why its life was taken