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Views on abortion differ not only among major religious traditions, but within each one

The Catholic Church鈥檚 official line on听, and even on听, is well known: Don鈥檛 do it.

Surveys of how American Catholics live their lives, though, tell a different story.

The vast majority of Catholic women听have used contraceptives, despite the church鈥檚 ban.听听of U.S. Catholics believe abortion should be legal in all or most circumstances, whether or not they believe they would ever seek one.听听Americans who have had abortions are Catholic, according to the Guttmacher Institute, which advocates for reproductive health.

It鈥檚 a clear reminder of the complex relationship between any religious tradition鈥檚 teachings and how people actually live out their beliefs. With the U.S. Supreme Court听, the 1973 ruling that protects abortion rights nationwide, religious attitudes toward a woman鈥檚 right to end a pregnancy are in the spotlight. But even within one faith, there is no one religious position toward reproductive rights 鈥� let alone among different faiths.

Christianity and conscience

As a scholar of听gender听补苍诲听religion, I听听how religious traditions shape people鈥檚 understandings of contraception and abortion.

When it comes to official stances on abortion, religions鈥� positions are tied to different approaches to some key theological concepts. For instance, for several religions, a key issue in abortion rights is 鈥渆nsoulment,鈥澨�听鈥� that is, when a fetus becomes human.

The catch is that traditions place ensoulment at different moments and give it various degrees of importance. Catholic theologians place ensoulment听, which is why the official position of the Catholic Church is that abortion is never permitted. From the moment the sperm meets the egg, in Catholic theology, a human exists, and you cannot kill a human, regardless of how it came to exist. Nor can you choose between two human lives, which is why the church听.

As in any faith, not all Catholics feel compelled to follow the church teachings in all cases. And regardless of whether someone thinks they would ever seek an abortion, they may believe it should be a legal right. Fifty-seven percent of U.S. Catholics say abortion is morally wrong, but 68% still听, while only 14% believe that abortion should never be legal.

Some Catholics advocate for abortion access not despite but because of their dedication to Catholic teachings. The organization听听听as rooted in Catholicism鈥檚 emphasis on 鈥渟ocial justice, human dignity, and the听鈥� 鈥撎�听out of deep moral conviction.

Other Christians also say faith shapes their support for reproductive rights. Protestant clergy, along with their Jewish colleagues, were instrumental in听听before Roe, through a network called the Clergy Consultation Service. These pro-choice clergy were motivated by a range of concerns, including desperation that they saw among women in their congregations, and听. Today, the organization still exists as听.

There are myriad Protestant听. The most conservative equate it with murder, and therefore oppose any exemptions. The most liberal Protestant voices advocate for a broad platform of reproductive justice, calling on believers to 鈥�.鈥�

Who is a 鈥榩erson鈥�?

Muslims scholars and clerics, too, have听听on abortion. Some believe abortion is never permitted, and many allow it until ensoulment, which is often placed at 120 days鈥� gestation, just shy of 18 weeks. In general, many Muslim leaders听,听听鈥� though while many Muslims may seek out their religious leaders for guidance about or assistance with abortion, many do not.

Jewish tradition has a great deal of debate about听: Various rabbinic texts place it at or even before conception, and many place it at birth, but ensoulment is not as key as the legal status of the fetus under Jewish law. Generally, it is not considered to be a person. For instance,听听鈥� the main source of Jewish law 鈥� refers to the fetus as part of the mother鈥檚 body. The biblical Book of Exodus notes that if a pregnant woman is attacked and then miscarries,听听but is not guilty of murder.

In other words, Jewish law protects a fetus as a 鈥減otential person,鈥� but does not view it as holding the same full personhood as its mother. Jewish clergy generally agree that abortion is not only permitted, but mandated,听, because potential life must be sacrificed to save existing life 鈥� even during labor, as long as the head has not emerged from the birth canal.

Where听听gets complicated is when the mother鈥檚 life is not at risk. For example, contemporary Jewish leaders debate whether abortion is permitted if the mother鈥檚 mental health will be damaged, if genetic testing shows evidence of a nonfatal disability or if there are other compelling concerns, such as that the family鈥檚 resources would be strained too much to care for their existing children.

American Jews have generally supported legal abortion with very few restrictions, seeing it as a religious freedom issue 鈥� and a question of life versus potential life.听听support a woman鈥檚 right to an abortion, and while many might turn to their clergy for support in seeking an abortion, many would not see a need to.

A different view of life

As much diversity as exists in Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, there is likely even more in Hinduism, which has a range of texts, deities and worldviews. Many scholars argue that the fact so many different traditions are all lumped together under the umbrella term 鈥淗indusim鈥澨�听than anything else.

Most Hindus believe in听, which means that while one may enter bodies with birth and leave with death, life itself does not, precisely, begin or end. Rather, any given moment in a human body is seen as part of an unending cycle of life 鈥� making the question of when life begins quite different than in Abrahamic religions.

Some bioethicists see Hinduism as听, permitting abortion only to save the life of the mother. Looking at what people do, though, rather than what a tradition鈥檚 sacred texts say,听听in Hindu-majority India,听.

In the United States, there are immigrant Hindu communities, Asian American Hindu communities, and people who have converted to Hinduism who bring this diversity to their approaches to abortion. Overall, however 68% say听听in all or most cases.

Compassionate choices

Buddhists also have varied views on abortion. The听听notes: 鈥淏uddhism, like the other religions of the world, faces the fact that abortion may sometimes be the best decision and a truly moral choice. That does not mean there is nothing troubling about abortion, but it means that Buddhists may understand that reproductive decisions are part of the moral complexity of life.鈥�

听in particular can be seen as offering a 鈥渕iddle way鈥� between pro-choice and pro-life positions. While many Buddhists see life as beginning at conception, abortion is common and addressed through听, one of the enlightened figures Buddhists call bodhisattvas, who is believed to take care of aborted and miscarried fetuses.

In the end, the Buddhist approach to abortion emphasizes that abortion is a complex moral decision that should be made with听.

We tend to think of the religious response to abortion as one of opposition, but the reality is much more complicated. Formal religious teachings on abortion are complex and divided 鈥� and official positions aside,听, the majority of Americans, religious or not, support abortion.

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