Abortion and Down Syndrome

Introduction

Statistics show that about 60-90% of children diagnosed with Down syndrome are murdered via abortion. Undoubtedly, couples who receive counsel to abort a child because of Down syndrome possess a unique struggle, but also, they possess a unique opportunity to glorify God in affliction. These couples stand in need of a rock solid doctrinal position that will motivate obedience to God throughout the pregnancy and the child’s life, despite receiving wicked counsel to abort the baby under the guise of “options.” The theological bedrock for these parents exists within the doctrine of the Image of God which helps inform, encourage, and motivate the decision to protect the life of the baby who may have Down syndrome.

The Image of God

The book of Genesis teaches that “God created man in His own image” (Gen. 1:27; cf. Gen. 5:1).[1] The terms “image” and “likeness” in Genesis show that mankind is “patterned after God.”[2] This doctrine affirms man’s “intellectual power, natural affections, and moral freedom.”[3] It displays the dignity and worth of all human beings because they exist to reflect their Creator. Dutch Reformed Theologian Herman Bavinck goes so far as to say that “a human being does not bear or have the image of God but that he or she is the image of God.”[4] Therefore, any attack on human life is an attack on the image of God, including abortion.

Connecting the doctrine of the Image of God with the sanctity of life begins with a brief anthropological review. God made humans with an inner man and an outer man. (2 Cor. 4:16). The outer man is biological; it is the part of a person you can see whether with the unaided eye or medical imaging. “Down syndrome is a condition in which a person is born with an extra copy of chromosome 21.”[5] Down syndrome is an outer man issue. These types of diseases and defects occur because of the sin of Adam; however, Louis Berkhof notes that the image of God “still remains in man even after his fall in sin.”[6] Genesis 9:6, 1 Corinthians 11:7, and James 3:9, all points in history occurring after the Fall, testify to this truth. Therefore, the baby with Down syndrome still possesses the image of God despite outer man defects like intellectual disability, a characteristic facial appearance, and weak muscle tone in infancy.[7]

The inner man is every other part of the individual that is not the outer man, including the baby’s thoughts, affections, desires, emotions, intentions, will, and motives. Therefore, since a soul is present at conception, the baby in the mother’s womb possesses a spirit that the Lord can save, counsel, comfort, lead, guide, and direct regardless of what occurs in their outer man. In his discussion on the image of God, Berkhof highlights this fact, saying, “The soul is united with and adapted to a body, but can, if need be, also exist without the body. In view of this we can speak of man as a spiritual being, and as also in that respect the image of God.”[8] None of this discounts the child’s body as made in the image of God but highlights that to abort a child because of an outer man defect is to completely disregard their soul which is: 1) present at conception, and 2) also made in the image of God. These facts should encourage and comfort the parents as they weigh the prospect of raising this child for the rest of their lives.

Moreover, the baby made in the image of God possesses God-given life (Psalm 139:13-16; Luke 1:39-45; 2:12-16). In the sixth commandment, God says, “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13). Therefore, abortion must be firmly rejected as a God-honoring way to preserve the image of God and protect the sanctity of life.

Lastly, this couple will need practical encouragement from God’s word and God’s people. Their parenting challenges will be difficult at times but God promises to comfort them in affliction, help them in weakness, and reward them for obedience (2 Cor. 1:3-5; 2 Cor. 12:7-10; Rev. 19:6-9). Additionally, the pastors and parishioners of the local church will standby these families to help support them in practical matters like cleaning, cooking, educating, and paying medical bills, as applicable.

Conclusion

The doctrine of the Image of God in man helps inform and encourage couples to protect the lives of their children who suffer from medical issues in the womb. These children image God in their inner and outer person regardless of the effects of sin on them bodily or spiritually. The church must assist these families by instructing them in sound doctrine and by providing practical service, always pointing them to the day in glory when defects like Down syndrome will not be a part of the New Creation because of the completed work of Christ on behalf of God’s people (Rev. 21:3-4).

Sola Gratia.

Footnotes:

            [1] Unless otherwise specified, all Bible references in this paper are to the New American Standard Bible, 1995 Text (NASB95) (La Habra: Zondervan, 2020).

            [2] John MacArthur and Richard Mayhue, eds., Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017), 410.

            [3] Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing Co, 1976), 204.

            [4] Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics: God and Creation (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Acadmic, 2004), 554.

            [5] National Institutes of Health, “About Down Syndrome,” nhi.gov, June 20, 2018, https://www.nih.gov/include-project/about-down-syndrome.

            [6] Berkhof, 204.

            [7]  National Institutes of Health, “About Down Syndrome,” nhi.gov, June 20, 2018, https://www.nih.gov/include-project/about-down-syndrome.

            [8] Berkhof, 204.