Friday, August 10, 2012
Iglesia ni Cristo Executive Minister Eduardo V. Manalo supports the RH Bill which promotes abortifacients
(photos of Mr. Manalo are from the Pasugo)
A CRITIQUE OF IGLESIA NI CRISTO EXECUTIVE
MINISTER EDUARDO V. MANALO’S STATEMENT ON THE RH BILL
PART IV
[This
is the fourth part of my critique of Iglesia ni Cristo Executive Minister
Eduardo V. Manalo’s position on the RH Bill. The words of Mr. Manalo are in green while
my comments are in black.]
Abortion and the use of abortifacients involve
the taking of life, which God explicitly forbids (Exod. 20:13).
Earlier, Mr. Eduardo V. Manalo makes this
statement: “We support their [modern methods of contraception] use as long
as these methods are empirically not abortifacient.”
That statement is neither here nor there. He
is supporting the RH Bill on one hand yet qualifies that support by stating
that only those modern artificial methods of contraception that are “empirically
not abortifacient” are the ones he
support. Excuse me, but has Mr. Manalo really read and understood the RH Bill?
The RH Bill, which Mr. Eduardo V. Manalo and
his church strongly support, actually promotes abortifacients. What is an abortifacient?
Abortifacient means “causing
abortion,” “an agent that induces abortion,” “an instrument or material capable
of terminating a pregnancy.”[1]
Mr. Eduardo V. Manalo is neither here nor there
For Mr. Manalo to fully understand how an abortifacient
works, he has first to learn when human life begins. Unfortunately for Mr. Manalo
(and the Filipino people), the RH Bill (House Bill 4244) does not deliberately
define when human life begins. But as we discussed in another article, the 1987
Philippine Constitution holds that human life begins at conception which means
fertilization.[2]
Medically, what happens at fertilization? The answer is obvious – the beginning
of human life:
“If and
when a sperm does penetrate the shell of the ovum, it sheds its tail, and will
proceed slowly into the center of the ovum. Its 23 chromosomes will line up
next to the ovum's 23 chromosomes, thus constituting a new cell, a fertilized
ovum of 46 chromosomes. From the entrance of the sperm until the first cell
division is a period of about 24 hours.
What is present at fertilization is an entire new human body, even
though it is yet a single cell. This is the most complicated cell in the
universe, for it contains within itself all of the information that is
needed for this human to develop into a mature adult.
The embryo then floats freely down through the mother's tube.
During this first week, the one cell divides until this new being constitutes
millions of cells. When this new human is one-week-old, he or she plants
within the lining of the mother's uterus, burrows into the spongy, nutritive
wall of her womb, contacts the mother's blood stream and sends a chemical,
hormonal message. This message goes to a gland at the base of her brain and
tells the mother's body that there is a new occupant. Accordingly, this
gland sends hormones into the woman's body that prevent her from menstruating.”[3]
Mr. Eduardo V. Manalo was once like these
To belabor the obvious, at fertilization, haploid gametes
combine together to form a diploid zygote, a genetically different individual
from the parents. This zygote now has 46 chromosomes – a new life! Textbooks on
embryology attest to that scientific fact, thus:
“The
male and the female sex cell or gametes … unite at fertilization to initiate
the embryonic development of a new individual.”[4]
“Zygote: this cell results from the union of an
oocyte(egg) and a sperm. A zygote is the beginning of a new human being
(i.e., an embryo)...
Human development begins at fertilization, the process during which a male gamete or sperm ...
unites with a female gamete or oocyte (egg) ... to form a single cell called a
zygote. This highly specialized, totipotent (multi-potential) cell marks the
beginning of each of us as a unique individual.”[5]
More textbooks and manuals on embryology can
be cited but the above references are enough for Mr. Manalo to get the point. At
any rate, the Philippine Medical Association affirms that life begins at
fertilization.
Fertilization: Life starts here
Where do abortifacients
come in? The RH Bill which the Executive Minister of the Iglesia ni Cristo supports defines “reproductive health care” as
referring “to the access to a full range of methods, facilities,
services and supplies that contribute to reproductive health and well-being
by preventing and solving reproductive health-related problems” (Sec. 4, H.B. 4244).
Moreover, the RH Bill, once enacted into law, mandates that “[a]ll accredited health facilities shall
provide a full range of modern family planning methods” (Sec. 7).[6]
What are included in the “full range of modern family planning methods” which INC religious leader
Eduardo V. Manalo supports? Answer: ABORTIFACIENTS. That’s why Mr. Manalo’s statement that “[w]e
support their [modern methods of contraception] use as long as these methods
are empirically not abortifacient” does not make sense because the RH Bill which Mr. Manalo supports
actually includes abortifacients! And
the RH Bill makes these products and supplies for “modern family planning methods” as “essential medicines”[7] to be regularly purchased
by national and local hospitals and other government health units (Sec. 10).
What are these abortifacients included in the “full
range of modern family planning methods” in the RH Bill and categorized as “essential medicines”? These are mainly
the intrauterine devices (IUDs), pills and injectables which have
post-fertilization effects; hence, abortifacients.
"We support their use as long as these methods are empirically not abortifacient," according to Mr. Eduardo V. Manalo
1.
Intrauterine device (IUD) –
“The
IUD or intrauterine device is
available in two different types in America. The hormonal IUD called Mirena,
and the copper IUD called Paragard. Mirena releases levonorgestrel, which is a
progestogen. Its primary function is to prevent implantation by the tiny
developing human (embryo).
Preventing ovulation appears to function as a distant second. A
study of women, one year after inserting the IUD, showed about one-half (45%)
of women were still ovulating. After four years, 75% of women were ovulating.
Obviously, the greater the number of women ovulating means the higher the chance
for fertilization to occur. Other mechanisms of Mirena include thickening the
mucus of the cervix, thus not allowing sperm to enter the uterus, or affecting
the mobility or survival of sperm.
If fertilization occurs,
most likely the tiny unborn child will be prevented from attaching to the
lining of the womb and he or she will die. This is a very early abortion.
The copper IUD's effectiveness comes from a continuous release
of copper into the uterine cavity; however, they aren't sure why this works.
The general consensus is that this is accomplished by preventing
implantation of the human embryo.
With both forms of IUD, if the
woman becomes pregnant, she has a greater chance of having an ectopic or tubal
pregnancy. This is when the tiny developing baby attaches to the lining of the
fallopian tube and may threaten the woman's life.
The IUD is not considered safe for women if they have not first
given birth to at least one child, have a history of or had breast cancer, or
have multiple sexual partners.”[8]
Health risk to women: CT Scan showing translocated IUD that perforated the rectum
2. Oral contraceptive pills –
The first effect of
oral contraceptive pills is to stop ovulation although this doesn’t happen all
the time. The second effect is the prevention of sperm from migrating to the
fallopian tube. The first and second effects are not yet abortifacient. But the
third effect is. The third effect of pills is that they prevent implantation of
fertilized egg when breakthrough ovulation occurs considering that prevention
of ovulation is not 100% effective. The third effect makes the pills
abortifacient. More so with emergency contraceptive pills (like Plan B) which prevents
implantation or rejection of an implanted embryo; hence, chemical abortion
happens. The following are examples of oral contraceptive pills:
“The
Birth Control Pill is the
most popular and widely used method of hormonal contraception. It involves
taking a month-long series of pills—three weeks of pills containing hormones,
and one without. This allows the woman to have a menstrual period. The Pill
contains two synthetic hormones, progestin and ethinyl estradiol and has three
mechanisms: 1) it prevents ovulation, 2) thickens the cervical mucus, which
makes it harder for sperm to enter the uterus and 3) affects the endometrium
or lining of the womb to make it more hostile to implantation. This
means the tiny developing baby (embryo) cannot attach to the uterine lining and
dies, which is a very early abortion. Even so, they define this as
"preventing pregnancy."
The pill kills! The third effect of the pill is that it prevents the fertilized egg from implantation
Plan B or
Emergency Contraception is designed for emergency use and not recommended to be
used as a regular method of birth control. Plan B One Step is a single pill
containing a high dose of progestin, and is available to women without
prescription if they are 17 or older. It claims that if taken within 72 hours
of "unprotected" sex, it will prevent ovulation, but it also
prevents the already conceived embryo from implanting in the endometrium,
causing an early abortion.
According to the pro-abortion blog site, Reproductive Health
Reality Check, Plan B isn't as effective as first touted, which has caused
financial backers to put funding on hold. In addition, the blog site
acknowledged that women are "abusing" Plan B by repeatedly using it
instead of other birth control methods.
Yaz and
Yasmin are not
the same thing; however, they are very similar. Both are classified as a
fourth-generation birth control pill that contains two synthetic hormones:
progestin and ethinyl estradiol. There is only a slight difference in dosage of
the two drugs. Yasmin has a slightly higher level of ethinyl estradiol than
Yaz. Both Yasmin and Yaz function identically. They prevent ovulation,
thicken the mucus of the cervix and make the endometrium more hostile to
implantation. This medication is also used to treat the symptoms of
premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).
Yaz and Yasmin have proven to be even more controversial than
NuvaRing. Consumer advocates have called on the FDA to recall the drugs. The
FDA has accused Yazmin of misrepresenting their products and downplaying
adverse side effects in their advertising. A class action lawsuit has been
filed against Yaz products on behalf of 74 women who have developed severe
health problems from these drugs.
Yasmin under fire for its scary side effects
The Minipill is
similar to the regular birth control pill, except that it contains only
progestin. As a result, this pill must be taken every day of the month,
compared to the regular birth control Pill that requires only three weeks. The
Minipill still operates using the three common mechanisms of hormonal
contraception: preventing ovulation, thickening the mucus of the cervix and making
the endometrium more hostile to implantation, which is a very early abortion.
It is considered less effective than the combined progestin and estrogen pill.
The progestin-only pill is considered to be Continuous Birth
Control. This usually results in stopping the woman's menstrual period (a
selling point of the drug). Types of birth control pills that are considered
Continuous Birth Control are Seasonale, Seasonique and Yaz.”[9]
3. Injectables –
“Depo-Provera is like the Minipill, a progestin-only drug,
but it is injected every three months into the woman's arm muscle or buttocks.
Since it is progestin only, it functions in the same way the Minipill does, including
the prevention of implantation.”[10]
Look at how they market Depo-Provera!
Let us now hold Mr. Eduardo V. Manalo to his own word: “Abortion and the use of abortifacients
involve the taking of life, which God explicitly forbids (Exod. 20:13).” As already demonstrated, the RH Bill which Mr. Manalo
supports includes abortifacients as
among the full range of modern family planning methods. If indeed Mr. Manalo is
sincere in what he says, and if he truly obeys the commandment of God, Mr.
Manalo has no other recourse but to emphatically reject the RH Bill and enjoin
the members of the Iglesia ni Cristo to
do the same. Unfortunately, Mr. Manalo continues to support the RH Bill which
promotes what God explicitly forbids (Exo. 20:13). What does that make of
Eduardo V. Manalo? An enemy of God.
Enemy of God: Mr. Eduardo V. Manalo,
Executive Minister of the Iglesia ni Cristo supports the RH Bill which
promotes what God explicitly forbids
[5]
K. Moore and T.V.N. Persaud, The Developing Human: Clinically Oriented Embryology (Philadelphia,
W.B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia, 1998 [6th Ed.]) pp. 2-18.
[7]
It may be asked Mr. Eduardo V. Manalo: “Why
are contraceptives included as essential medicines? What do they cure?
Pregnancy? Does Mr. Manalo support the idea that pregnancy is a disease?”
