What do Christians think about abortion?

Opinions on ethical issues such as abortion will very from church to church and Christian to Christian, however the bible contains a number of teachings that may be interpreted as relating to the issue of abortion.

One of the most important things to mention here is that Christians believe in the sancitiy of life- that is that they believe that life is special and sacred. They believe that individuals are made In God's Image, and that life is a gift from God and should therefore be protected. They also believe that every life is created for a purpose. This means that many Christians believe abortion is completely wrong. Life is sacred and even a small foetus or embryo represents life, and should be protected. However other Christians believe that abortion should be allowed in very specific circumstances. For example, what if the mother's life is at risk? What if continuing with the pregnancy has a high chance of killing both the mother and child? Then the sancity of life principle may be used as an arguement for abortion in this case as the mother's life is also sacred.

Other Christians may believe that it is important to show compassion and love to others- such as mothers who have become pregnant through horrible means, such as rape. The bible teaches unconditional love for others, and so in some cases an abortion may represent the loving thing to do, where the mother would experience large amounts of emotional pain were she to have the child.