Burgy:> l assert that the entity between C and D is not human and that
killing is not murder.
Brian: I disagree with you here. The existence of a zygote,
following the completion
of fertilization, is the first point at which you have the genetic (and
epigenetic) potentiality to develop into a mature human being....
The question, I believe, is not whether embryos (such as zygotes or
blastocysts), which are derived from the fusion of human gametes, are
truly
human. Of course, they're human! The real question is where are they
along
the continuum of human development? At what point along this
continuum does the developing human have a soul? At what point during
human
development does God "know us" and "form us"? (Sorry, I don't have my
Bible
with me, so I can't give the appropriate reference from Scripture). I
would
maintain that until we get to glory, we will never know the precise
answers to
these questions. That being the case, I think it is better to assume
that
human life begins at the moment when a cell (i.e. the zygote) has the
genetic
(and epigenetic) potentiality to initiate the earliest processes which
occur
along the continuum of human development. Only God really knows when
that
precise moment is.>>
On the basis of my prior arguments,
1. That a zygote may "split" along the way
2. That two zygotes may "fuse" along the way
I'd argue that abortion before implantation is not proscribed.
For me, I can't argue that way about the next phrase, from D to E (and
beyond).
After point E, it seems to me your argument holds well.
Burgy
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