Expert: Brenda Martin - 9/23/2007

Question
Hi Brenda,
I'm 18 and for the past 18 years I have been pro-life. I didn't think that it should ever be okay to kill a baby no matter what the circumstance, but now I don't know. My sister who is 26, took a pregnancy test and it was positive. Her and her husband were so happy, but when my sister went to her doctor. She said something was wrong and after further testing the doctor said my sister's pregnancy would have to be aborted. She has an ectopic pregnancy or something like that. It is when the egg gets fertilized in the fallopian tubes and then plants itself in the wall of the fallopian tube. My sister doesn't want the surgery, but her husband wants her to do it, but he's not Christian. At first I was with my sister, but after I read up on her problem I found out that if the baby continues to grow in her fallopian tube it will die and probably kill my sister too. I hate to think that my niece of nephew has to die, but I'm ashamed to admit if the baby died I wouldn't really be all that sad, but if my sister died I don't know what I'd do. Since my sister could die would God still be angry if she has the abortion? I want my sister to go to heaven, but it seems as if God's will has put her in a really bad situation.

Answer
Definition:- Abortion is the expulsion of an embryo or a fetus that is not normally able to live outside the womb. Spontaneous abortion or miscarriage may result from human imperfection or from an accident. Deliberately induced abortion simply to AVOID THE BIRTH OF AN UNWANTED CHILD is the willful taking of human life.

Your sister doesnt fall into this category, in her case it is not an abortion, it is a "medical decision" that needs to be made, sadly.

For instance; sometimes the treatment of a diseased condition, such as cancer of the cervix, causes the death of the developing embryo. But this may be an unavoidable side effect of the treatment; abortion is neither the treatment itself nor the objective.

Similarly, in some cases a fertilized ovum implants and begins to grow in the fallopian tube instead of the uterus. Such a tubal ectopic pregnancy cannot develop fully in this small tube; in time it will terminate with the rupture of the tube and the death of the embryo. If this condition is detected in advance, doctors usually treat it by removing the affected fallopian tube before it ruptures.

A Christian woman with a tubal pregnancy can decide whether to accept this operation. Normally she undoubtedly would be willing to face any risks of pregnancy so that her child could live. But with a tubal pregnancy she faces a grave risk while there is no possibility that the embryo can continue to live and a child be born.

God is not angry in these situations,& it is NOT God's will that your sister face this, that is a church teaching, not a bible teaching. The bible tells us "God is love" (1 john 4;8) why would a loving God inflict pain & suffering? the bible tells us; God is not responsible for the pain & suffering we see today, none of this is; "God's will" Satan is the "ruler of the world" (1 john 5;19)

As for going to "heaven" the bible tells us--

Ps. 37:11: “The meek ones themselves will possess the EARTH, and they will indeed find their exquisite delight in the abundance of peace.”

All the best
Brenda

HI there, No its not bad, its only natural you want your sister to live, sadly there is no way anybody can save the life of the child in this instance, as it would most definately die in the tube.

Im glad you feel a bit better & the fact you wrote asking shows you do "value the life of your nephew or neice"

Take care
Brenda