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Theories of Moral Status on Fetal Abnormality

Introduction

Fetal abnormality is a genetic or physical mistake that can affect a pregnancy and complicate birth process, thereby bringing severe effects on the child after birth. This condition can be caused by various factors including genetic, medical and environmental conditions. When a person realizes that she carries a defective fetus, she becomes undecided on either to procure an abortion or keep the baby. However, all these depend on the surrounding conditions. As such, this paper describes Christian views regarding the nature of human beings by using various theories of moral status.

Christian View on the Nature of Human Persons

According to Christianity, human beings are God’s idea because God created the soul and placed it in a mortal flesh as He prepares time and history for them (France, Hunt, Ziebland, & Wyke 2013). As such, human beings are tasked with taking care for everything that God created. This view concurs with the divine command theory, which states that right or wrong comes from what God commanded (France et al., 2013). Principally, the Christian view of human beings and the divine command theory goes in line with the intrinsic human value and dignity, which is the value given to persons by the fact that they are human beings. France et al. (2013) contended that a being has a moral standing in case its interests matter intrinsically to at least certain degree of the moral assessment of his actions and events.

Theories Used by Jessica, Marco, Maria, and Dr. Wilson

 From the case of Fetal Abnormality provided, various theories are brought forward by different characters as they give recommendations on how to handle Jessica’s defective pregnancy. Some of the theories include ethical egoism theory, divine command theory, moral subjectivism theory, as well as, utilitarianism theory. Intuitively, Jessica is torn between ethical egoism theory which states that right or wrong depends on what is good for a person, and the divine command theory which holds that right or wrong depends on the command issued by God. Essentially, this is apparent as Jessica is concerned with her social economic improvement over which she would consider aborting the pregnancy because it would bring a negative effect in her life. Similarly, she recognizes that life is sacred, and that it is wrong to terminate a pregnancy, which is given only by God. By this divine command theory, she would consider keeping the pregnancy and taking care of the child when it is born.

On the other hand, Marco takes the moral subjectivism theory that states that right or wrong depends on what works best for the subject. In this case, Marco would support any decision that Jessica think is best for her. He supports every decision Jessica makes and assures Jessica that whether she decides to terminate or keep the pregnancy, he would back her up.  He gives Jessica time and responsibility to decide on her own destiny and the actions she undertake. Maria shows deep concern on the life of the fetus over any other thing.  She holds on to the divine command theory, which posits that right or wrong is determined by what God commands (Case Study: Fetal Abnormality, 2015).  She goes ahead to plead with Jessica to keep the pregnancy and prepare for motherhood just because life being a gift from God should not be destroyed by any human being.

Dr. Wilson bases his recommendations on the Utilitarianism theory. This theory states that right or wrong depends on the final goodness of the end result. He anticipates a happy and free life for Jessica at the end of it all if she terminates her defective pregnancy. Based on his view, a child born of such abnormal pregnancy would bring more harm to Jessica than what would happen if she terminates it.

The Theory I Agree With

The case of Jessica’s abnormal pregnancy is challenging to make an instant decision because of the several theories involved. Based on the position at which one views the issue at hand, the theories discussed in the paper can be applied effectively. However, Jessica is responsible for making a lifetime decision to bring happiness to her family and defective fetus. Intuitively, the dilemma of keeping the pregnancy or procuring abortion should be guided by establishing the choice that would bring the most appropriate outcome at the end. Based on her struggles and the challenges she experiences in life; I agree with the utilitarianism theory. In addition to her social-economic status, it is not anything to doubt that any infant born with defects would require Jessica to dedicate much of her time and energy to care for such child. Consequently, this would prevent Jessica from going to work. This would eventually make her to lack adequate resources to care for her baby.  Despite the fact that the fetus has a right to life, abortion can be morally permissible as it will bring good to many people. Thus, deciding to terminate the pregnancy would be the most appropriate decision that Jessica can take considering her current situation.