כב וכי-ינצו אנשים, ונגפו אשה הרה ויצאו ילדיה, ולא יהיה, אסון--ענוש יענש, כאשר ישית עליו בעל האשה, ונתן, בפללים. כג ואם-אסון, יהיה--ונתתה נפש, תחת נפש. כד עין תחת עין, שן תחת שן, יד תחת יד, רגל תחת רגל. כה כויה תחת כויה, פצע תחת פצע, חבורה, תחת חבורה
Exodus 21:22-25 “When two men are fighting and one of them strikes a pregnant woman and she miscarries, but no other injury occurs, that man must pay according to the claims of her husband and the judgment of the courts. However, if other damage ensues, the injuries fall under the legal category of life for a life, eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, hand for a hand, or foot for a foot. Burn for burn, wound for wound, or bruise for bruise.”
If you ask a Christian why he or she opposes abortion they will of course say that it is murder and quote either Exodus 20:13 (You should not murder) or Exodus 21:12 (Someone who kills a man is put to death.) as the source for their position. They assume the abortion or induced miscarriage is a form of murder. The Torah clearly says otherwise. Were it to be considered murder, the assailant in question would not be liable a monetary fine, as established by 21:22, but a capital sentence.
Further support comes from 21:13 where it says, “If the killing was not planned but came about by act of God (accidental), I will provide a place for him to flee.” When we consider the case of 21:22, we do not find that the assailant is expected to ‘flee’, but must pay the compensatory damages negotiated by the husband and the judges. In either case, the killing of the unborn child is not treated as murder or even as involuntary manslaughter.
This does not mean that we should condone abortion any more than we would condone or permit any of the other damages done by one person to another. The Torah does, however, make a clear distinction between murder and induced miscarriage by assigning different remedies. The severity or gravity of the crime is measured by its punishment.
It is probable that Christian will counter by saying that 21:23 (“life for a life”) is meant literally. Even if we were to assume 21:12 to be literal (why shouldn't we?), the law in 21:23 is only referring to the mother, and not to her unborn child. The Torah is reminding us to adjudicate her injuries separately from the fetus in terms compensation.
Kol Tuv
4 Comments:
Actually, I believe the christian source for the abortion-is-murder stance is G-d saying to David: "I have known you from the womb". What this means to them is that David was considered a complete person (or soul) before he was born. What christans fail to understand about the Hebrew bible is that only the five books of Moses are law, the rest is considered inspiring stories.
I hadn't heard that one yet. Thanks. The bigger question is why if Jesus came to bring a new law, that they would remain so obsessed with the old one?
Besides, don't they think that the author of Shmos 21:22 also was the same guy who knew Dovid "from the womb?", and still decided not to call it murder?
The real issue is christian guilt about sex. That's why they get so much more excited about abortion and homosexuality than other issues. They will use any verse to rationalize their position.
As a person who has had an abortion, I can say without any hesitation that it was THE most life affirming decision I have ever made. I was already a single mother, very young without any emotional, physical or emotional support (and none to spare), and the potential father or my potential child had raped me. But if I had merely been young and stupid (which I was, walking home alone after dark, I suppose)and had gotten pregnant "by accident" my decision would've been the same.
It was my choice, and mine alone to make. And I don't care what you or Jesus or some anonymous writer of a so-called holy book thinks or thought. It is my womb, not a god's.
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