Despite Natural Law forbidding abortion, there is a doctrine of double effect that can be implemented. If the mother’s life is threatened as a result of the pregnancy, for instance during an ectopic pregnancy, then the destruction of the fallopian tube would be acceptable. Here, the primary aim is not the terminate the pregnancy but to save the mother’s life. The secondary effect is that the embryo is destroyed. Here, abortion would be permissible even by Natural law followers, who believe in the sanctity of life.
Short Paper on A Defense of Abortion by J. J. Thomson In the article A Defense of Abortion, Judith Jarvis Thomson exposes the idea that fetuses are considered persons from the moment of conception and, therefore, they have the right to life. However, Thomson argues that abortion under certain circumstances can be morally permissible. Based on these ideas Thompson implemented thought experiments such as the analogies of the violinist and the “drifting seeds”, which doesn’t really give an adequate explanation for why abortion is sometimes permissible. Thus, based on my understanding of these analogies I believe that Thomson’s arguments are not convincing and, therefore, abortion should not be permissible. Thomson explains that the fetus is a person who has the right to life.
Natural Law is a normative ethical theory and is considered to be a Christian ethic as it roots from the scriptures. This theory was put forward by Aristotle, based his theory of the efficient and final cause, and was championed by Aquinas in the 13th Century. It is a deontological theory that looks solely at the action, irrespective of the consequences therefore if an action is good, but the consequence is bad, Aquinas would deem this to be good.. Aquinas based his Natural Law theory on four words, "do good, avoid evil" and attempted to answer two questions; What is one's purpose? and What are we designed for?. It is also a deductive theory as the 5 primary precepts can be deduced to form secondary precepts such as do not abort.
With reference to Singer’s statement that, “… prevent evil… without sacrificing something of comparable moral significance”, in as much as the act of helping a friend who is suffering in a critical condition is morally good, in contrast, it is morally wrong to rob people at gun point. It would be sacrificing something of comparable moral significance for another. In other words, it is wrong to do a wrong action because of a right one. Singer also emphasizes the fact that you must be in the position to help. I think is a plausible idea since you cannot give what you do not have.
Mary Anne Warren “On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion” Article Summary: In this article, Mary Anne Warren argues that abortion is morally permissible. She approaches the issue with an eye toward the moral status of the fetus. The fetus, Warren argues, is not a person and therefore is not a member of the moral community. Warren distinguishes between two senses of the term “human being”: the genetic sense and the moral sense. Human beings in the moral sense are persons whose membership in the moral community implies certain moral rights.
This ethical theory aligns itself with a Christian worldview, arguing that an action is good only if the principle behind the action is moral law (Giersson and Holmgren, 2000). In other words, actions should only be done in accordance with God’s will. For instance, clearly stating how outliers are addressed when drawing conclusions based on the statistical analysis is ethical in that it is the right thing to do so that the probability of misinterpretation is minimized. Additionally, Kantian ethics also require autonomy, which is often required in relationship to dealing with clients and the subjects from whom data is collected (Tittle, 2000). Again, this ties back to the Christian worldview of loving ones neighbor.
They believe we as human beings are prone to sin. We have a proclivity to do terrible things or to be tempted to so (p.30, 2008). They believe our freedom or success of government is dependent on virtue. They further added that only moral people would remain free. On those premise it is asserted that religion play an important part in nurturing the virtue needed for a free society.
Being a Puritan Believer The Puritans have two core concepts that are the foundation to their religion. One concept is the belief that humanity is divided into two groups. They believe one group is the elect, and the other group is the damned. (Puritanism par. 5) The second core concept is the notion of free grace as opposed to a doctrine of works for the salvation of man, or in other words the earning of salvation.
Whereas by definition, paternalism restricts a person’s right to autonomy, and takes another person’s autonomous right away and makes decision on their behalf, even if it is contrary to the wishes of the patient (Beauchamp and Childress 2001). Paternalism with Mrs Jones was not the case, yet with regards to safeguarding her from further harm justice, beneficence and non-malfeasance would have been insuring long term interest. To be deemed competent professionals work within trust guidelines and trust protocols and must treat patients fairly, without discriminating against them; ensuring that the patient is able to make autonomous decisions regarding their own care (NMC
Abortions Are you pro-choice? Maybe you are pro-life, who knows maybe you aren’t sure. I’m not here to persuade you either way but I will give you a few facts to go off of. Let’s start with pro-choice, what is pro-choice? It is your belief that the fetus is not a human, rather just a mass of tissue.