Editor,
A classic definition of law was given by Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century. He defined law as: “A command of reason, promulgated by legitimate authority, for the sake of the common good.” Aquinas was in agreement with the classical philosophers such as Cicero, who gave this definition of law: “For there is a true law: right reason.”
Law is a command of reason. A law has to be grounded in correct thinking about things in order for it to bind the consciences of people and be worthy of obedience. A law grounded in falsity is naturally repulsive to the human intellect and cannot compel obedience.
For example, a law which attempted to make it legal for children to kill their parents would cause tremendous outrage. Respect for parents is a bond that even the most depraved cannot ignore. Yet, this country’s various layers of government have made it legal for parents to kill their unborn children.
I find abortion completely contrary to reason and contrary to sound thinking, and therefore I find it something to be rejected. I think this for several reasons.
First, human life has a beginning and it’s definitely not birth.
No one begins life as a fully developed human being. Life has a beginning and there is a natural developmental process we all go through. The beginning of life is conception, as books on embryology plainly state.
Second, the unborn possess the same human nature as the rest of humanity. Humans beget humans. Due to their development level, the unborn cannot yet exercise the full abilities of their human nature, but they still possess the same human nature as the rest of us.
Third, since they possess the same human nature as the rest of humanity, the unborn deserve the same protection as everyone else.
As the Declaration of Independence states, the right to life is a God-given unalienable right. The right to life is not something the U.S. government or courts grant, but only recognize and protect. This is what makes America so great: God-given unalienable rights — rights that cannot be abrogated by another; not the government nor parents.
Lastly, women do have certain rights over their own bodies. I agree, but no one has the right to kill an innocent human being; not the government, doctors or parents. Obviously, it is not the woman’s life that is terminated in an abortion.
Due to these reasons, I see abortion as an unlawful act. It is unlawful because it is not grounded in sound reason, in the truth about human life, about human relations and civil rights. Also, it has resulted in the death of 55 million human beings in the U.S. since 1973.
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How can so many innocent lives be lost in a time of peace?
Augustine described a similar situation many years ago in his book The City of God while describing the evils of the Roman Empire: “Peace vied with war in cruelty and surpassed it: for while war overthrew armed hosts, peace slew the defenseless.”
Benjamin Sanchez
UNM alumnus
