The Enigma of When the Fetus First Becomes a Living Being

Feb 15 2008

Legalizing elective abortion has had the consequence of reviving discussions on when life begins. In many cultures and in a number of religions, life is not considered to begin until either the mother becomes aware of independent fetal movement or at some other time when ensoulment is assumed to have taken place. Others who have thought about this consider that human life begins with the union of the sperm and egg and the reestablishment of the normal number of chromosomes and therefore the potential of a unique human being. For still others this is not the beginning of life, since a free-floating structure such as a fertilized egg must accomplish implantation in the wall of the mother’s uterus before developing the true potential of independent existence. Another large group of people believes that life commences only at the point when the fetus is able to maintain an independent existence. At present, with the best available perinatal care, The Enigma of When the Fetus First Becomes a Living Being this is around the twenty-fourth week of pregnancy. About 50 percent of fetuses of this developmental age today survive to adulthood. Many other people believe that the fetus achieves life only when it is actually born and has left its mother’s body.

Our own conviction is that the only scientific resolution to all this is that life is a continuum, that the sperm and the unfertilized egg are living structures like any cells, and that, although their union creates a potentially unique individual, it does not create life. Unfortunately, we doubt that the social and political issues that are related to this discussion will be resolved on a scientific basis.