B. Abortion
1154. Abortion Merely to Prevent the Birth of an Unwanted
Child is Strictly Forbidden in the Cause
Abortion merely to prevent the birth of an unwanted child is
strictly forbidden in the Cause. There may, however, be
instances in which an abortion would be justified by medical
reasons, and legislation on this matter has been left to the
Universal House of Justice. At the present time, however, the
House of Justice does not intend to legislate on this very
delicate issue, and therefore it is left to the consciences of
those concerned who must carefully weigh the medical advice in
the light of the general guidance given in the teachings.
(From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of
Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ireland, March
16, 1983)
1155. Surgical Operation and Abortion -- The soul Appears at
Conception
Abortion and surgical operations for the purpose of
preventing the birth of unwanted children are forbidden in the
Cause unless there are circumstances which justify such
actions on medical grounds, in which case the decision, at
present, is left to the consciences of those concerned who
must carefully weigh the medical advice in the light of the
general guidance given in the Teachings. Beyond this nothing
has been found in the Writings concerning specific methods or
procedures to be used in family planning. It should be pointed
out, however, that the Teachings state that the soul appears
at conception, and that therefore it would be improper to use
such a method, the effect of which would be to produce an
abortion after conception has taken place. (From letter
written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an
individual believer, May 23, 1975) (Compilations, Lights of
Guidance, p. 343)
1163. Husband and Wife to Decide How Many Children to Have
There is nothing in the Sacred Writings specifically on the
subjects of birth control, abortion or sterilization, but
Bahá'u'lláh did state the primary purpose of marriage was the
procreation of children, and it is to this primary purpose
that the beloved Guardian alludes in many of the letters which
are quoted in the compilation. This does not imply that a
couple are obliged to have as many children as they can; the
Guardian's secretary clearly stated on his behalf, in answer
to an enquiry, that it was for the husband and wife to decide
how many children they would have. A decision to have no
children at all would vitiate the primary purpose of marriage
unless, of course, there were some medical reason why such a
decision would be required.
You and your husband, therefore, should have no feeling that
you are obliged to add to your already large family. This is a
matter entirely for you to decide, and there are many methods
of preventing conception, including self-discipline and
restraint, to which you can have recourse. Sterilization,
however, would be a more far-reaching action that any of
these, with implications and results beyond those necessary
for the immediate purpose of limiting the size of your family,
and is not permissible in Bahá'í law except in rare instances
where it is necessary for a medical reason. (From letter
written in behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an
individual believer, January 28, 1977) (Compilations, Lights
of Guidance, p. 346)
It is clear that to have surgical operation merely to avoid
unwanted children is not acceptable. However, as in the case
of abortion, circumstances might exist in which such an
operation would be justified. Individual believers called upon
to make such a decision must be guided by the Bahá'í
principles involved, the best professional advice available to
them and their own consciences. In arriving at a decision the
parties must also take into consideration the availability,
reliability, and reversibility of all contraceptive methods.
(From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of
Justice to an individual believer.) (Compilations, Lights of
Guidance, p. 347)
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