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1) Take a DNA sample from a human in gestation, regardless of gestation phase. Compare it with the parents DNA. The DNA will belong to the human species, and wi

1) Take a DNA sample from a human in gestation, regardless of gestation phase. Compare it with the parents DNA. The DNA will belong to the human species, and will be different to that of the parents. 2) Measure the vital signs of the organism. You will confirm that it is alive. 3) Try the same with other mammals. Please go ahead and try to falsify this. Have fun.

timbit42 4y ago
I get a kick out of Evangelicals trying to determine when life begins. The entire process is life. If any part of procreation wasn't life, then it would fail. For an atheist, it's all life so ending the process at any point is technically death. Every sperm is sacred, so to speak. For a Jew or Christian though, the Bible doesn't consider the unborn to be human until they are birthed. Instead they are considered potentially human. Since it is not human, killing it isn't considered murder. Evangelicals wrongly believe their Bible considers the unborn to be human, thus their anti-abortion stance. If you look back to the 1960's, Evangelicals were not anti-abortion. That changed in the 1970's and here we are today.
- 29athrowaway 4y ago
  What marks the beginning of the individual organism is the fertilization of the egg, forming the zygote. Before that you have separate gametes.
- josephcsible 4y ago
  > the Bible doesn't consider the unborn to be human until they are birthed. This isn't true.
anigbrowl 4y ago
Premise rejected. DNA is not the yardstick here. Human DNA tells you nothing about the level of development or self-sustainability. Your fingernail clippings contain your DNA; by your logic, clipping your fingernails is a form of suicide. A fetus in the early stages of development is not alive in the regular sense because it is incapable of independent survival and lacks the requisite organs to sustain itself, experience pain etc.
- 29athrowaway 4y ago
  Many neonates are not self-sustainable after birth. Some will never become self-sustainable and will depend on machines and medications to survive for the rest of their life. Most elderly people including yourself some years from now will not be "self-sustainable". You will need help to move around, you will need medications to survive and all sorts of help. There is a congenital disorder which makes you insensitive to pain. Does that make you not human? It is a rather dumb argument.

timbit42 4y ago

I get a kick out of Evangelicals trying to determine when life begins. The entire process is life. If any part of procreation wasn't life, then it would fail. For an atheist, it's all life so ending the process at any point is technically death. Every sperm is sacred, so to speak. For a Jew or Christian though, the Bible doesn't consider the unborn to be human until they are birthed. Instead they are considered potentially human. Since it is not human, killing it isn't considered murder. Evangelicals wrongly believe their Bible considers the unborn to be human, thus their anti-abortion stance. If you look back to the 1960's, Evangelicals were not anti-abortion. That changed in the 1970's and here we are today.

29athrowaway 4y ago
What marks the beginning of the individual organism is the fertilization of the egg, forming the zygote. Before that you have separate gametes.
josephcsible 4y ago
> the Bible doesn't consider the unborn to be human until they are birthed. This isn't true.

anigbrowl 4y ago

Premise rejected. DNA is not the yardstick here. Human DNA tells you nothing about the level of development or self-sustainability. Your fingernail clippings contain your DNA; by your logic, clipping your fingernails is a form of suicide. A fetus in the early stages of development is not alive in the regular sense because it is incapable of independent survival and lacks the requisite organs to sustain itself, experience pain etc.

29athrowaway 4y ago
Many neonates are not self-sustainable after birth. Some will never become self-sustainable and will depend on machines and medications to survive for the rest of their life. Most elderly people including yourself some years from now will not be "self-sustainable". You will need help to move around, you will need medications to survive and all sorts of help. There is a congenital disorder which makes you insensitive to pain. Does that make you not human? It is a rather dumb argument.