Encore: Religions don't agree on when life begins

Encore: Religions don't agree on when life begins

Transcript¹

ROE² V. WADE³ AND THE FUTURE OF REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS IN AMERICA

When does life begin? Religions don't agree

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

A Louisiana lawmaker has introduced an antiabortion bill that describes human life as, quote, "created in the image of God." That bill would ban abortion⁴ from the moment of fertilization. The question of when life begins came up during oral arguments last year in the major abortion case that's currently before the Supreme⁵ Court. Justice Sonia Sotomayor asked Mississippi's solicitor⁶ general to explain why the state should be allowed to ban abortions⁷. She called this a religious question.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

SONIA SOTOMAYOR: It's still debated in religions. So when you say this is the only right that takes away from the state the ability to protect a life, that's a religious view, isn't it?

INSKEEP: NPR's Sarah McCammon reports that major religions disagree about the answer.

SARAH MCCAMMON, BYLINE⁸: Kaitlyn didn't want an abortion. She wanted a baby. But last year, when she was about 16 weeks pregnant, doctors told her there was a fatal problem with the fetus⁹, and her choices were to terminate or wait for a stillbirth. Through the process, Kaitlyn says she was guided and comforted by her faith.

KAITLYN: In Judaism, life and breath are essentially¹⁰ the same thing. So in Judaism, life begins when you take your first breath.

MCCAMMON: Kaitlyn lives in Kentucky, one of about two dozen states where most abortions could soon become illegal if the Supreme Court issues a decision in line with a draft opinion leaked last week that would overturn Roe v. Wade. She asked that we only use her first name because she's worried her job could be affected¹¹ if it's widely known that she had an abortion. She says in her understanding of Judaism, the decision was fundamentally hers.

KAITLYN: God has offered me a solution to my suffering, which is, you have medical options available to you to end this pregnancy¹². I didn't need to suffer any more than I already was.

MCCAMMON: Kaitlyn says her husband was supportive of her decision, but he wrestled¹³ in his own way.

KAITLYN: My husband's faith is different than mine. You know, he's not anti-choice at all. But this was difficult for him - one, because, of course, he wanted this child as well, but also because his faith feels differently about it. And it gave him just a different set of struggles, just a different set of questions with God.

MCCAMMON: Polls suggest that while a majority of Americans support abortion rights and oppose overturning Roe, views on abortion are closely tied to religion. Jewish, Buddhist¹⁴, Unitarian and nonreligious Americans express some of the strongest support for abortion rights in surveys. Within Christianity, there is a wide variety of views.

RYAN ANDERSON: The answer is going to be that, you know, every human being matters from the moment that they first come into existence.

MCCAMMON: Ryan Anderson is president of the Ethics¹⁶ and Public Policy Center, a conservative think tank. As a Catholic, Anderson believes that human life begins at conception. He opposes abortion.

ANDERSON: And no human being should be denied equal protection of the law. No human being should have their life destroyed.

MCCAMMON: But a majority of American Catholics, along with Black Protestants and white mainline Protestants, all say abortion should be allowed in most or all cases. That's according to a survey just out from the Pew Research Center. White Evangelical Christians¹⁷ express the strongest opposition¹⁸ to abortion, with more than 70% saying it should always or mostly be illegal.

Margaret Kamitsuka, professor emeritus¹⁹ of religion at Oberlin College, argues that within the Christian¹⁵ tradition, there's significant ambiguity²⁰ about abortion. She notes it's never mentioned in the Bible.

MARGARET KAMITSUKA: Which is quite stunning²¹ because pretty much every other moral issue is talked about, from divorce to gluttony and robbery and so on. But abortion is not talked about.

MCCAMMON: More than half of American Muslims support legal access to abortion, according to Pew. Zahra Ayubi is an associate professor of religion at Dartmouth. She says historically, defining the beginning of life has been less important for many Muslim thinkers than questions about how to preserve it.

ZAHRA AYUBI: And the preservation²² of life is really often understood to be the mother's life, because that is the life that exists.

MCCAMMON: Amicus briefs in the case have come from a wide variety of faith groups with widely varying positions. A brief from the Freedom From Religion Foundation argues that religion is at the heart of antiabortion laws and that, quote, "government has no business requiring citizens to comply with the religious beliefs of those who are in power."

For Kaitlyn in Kentucky, her Jewish faith was essential in helping²³ her work through the difficult decision to end her pregnancy after she learned the baby she'd been expecting would never survive.

KAITLYN: And it was very clear to me, in the role that faith played in my life and my decisions, that as much as I didn't understand it, God didn't mean for me to have this baby.

MCCAMMON: Kaitlyn says it will go on a long list of unanswered questions of faith.

Sarah McCammon, NPR News.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 roe   

n.鱼卵；獐鹿

参考例句：

• We will serve smoked cod's roe at the dinner.宴会上我们将上一道熏鳕鱼子。
• I'll scramble some eggs with roe?我用鱼籽炒几个鸡蛋好吗？

3 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

4 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

5 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

6 solicitor   

n.初级律师，事务律师

参考例句：

• The solicitor's advice gave me food for thought.律师的指点值得我深思。
• The solicitor moved for an adjournment of the case.律师请求将这个案件的诉讼延期。

7 abortions   

n.小产( abortion的名词复数 )；小产胎儿；（计划）等中止或夭折；败育

参考例句：

• The Venerable Master: By not having abortions, by not killing living beings. 上人：不堕胎、不杀生。 来自互联网
• Conclusion Chromosome abnormality is one of the causes of spontaneous abortions. 结论：染色体异常是导致反复自然流产的原因之一。 来自互联网

8 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

9 fetus   

n.胎，胎儿

参考例句：

• In the fetus,blood cells are formed in different sites at different ages.胎儿的血细胞在不同时期生成在不同的部位。
• No one knows why a fetus is not automatically rejected by the mother's immune system. 没有人知道为什么母亲的免疫系统不会自动排斥胎儿。

10 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

11 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

12 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

13 wrestled   

v.（与某人）搏斗( wrestle的过去式和过去分词 )；扭成一团；扭打；（与…）摔跤

参考例句：

• As a boy he had boxed and wrestled. 他小的时候又是打拳又是摔跤。
• Armed guards wrestled with the intruder. 武装警卫和闯入者扭打起来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 Buddhist   

adj./n.佛教的，佛教徒

参考例句：

• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。
• In the eye of the Buddhist,every worldly affair is vain.在佛教徒的眼里，人世上一切事情都是空的。

15 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

16 ethics   

n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准

参考例句：

• The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
• Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。

17 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

18 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

19 emeritus   

adj.名誉退休的

参考例句：

• "Perhaps I can introduce Mr.Lake Kirby,an emeritus professor from Washington University?"请允许我介绍华盛顿大学名誉教授莱克柯尔比先生。
• He will continue as chairman emeritus.他将会继续担任荣誉主席。

20 ambiguity   

n.模棱两可；意义不明确

参考例句：

• The telegram was misunderstood because of its ambiguity.由于电文意义不明确而造成了误解。
• Her answer was above all ambiguity.她的回答毫不含糊。

21 stunning   

adj.极好的；使人晕倒的

参考例句：

• His plays are distinguished only by their stunning mediocrity.他的戏剧与众不同之处就是平凡得出奇。
• The finished effect was absolutely stunning.完工后的效果非常美。

22 preservation   

n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持

参考例句：

• The police are responsible for the preservation of law and order.警察负责维持法律与秩序。
• The picture is in an excellent state of preservation.这幅画保存得极为完好。

23 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。