When Does Life Begin?

Does life begin at conception, or is life passed on from one living creature to another? Obviously what we think of as a life beginning is really life being passed on. There should be no controversy here. We exist as individuals within a species. Controversy arises with the association of life with the concept of soul.

There is an argument that at conception the soul is united with the body. This suggests an individuality to the soul, an individuality created by a particular successful meeting of sperm and egg.

What soul is remains a mystery -- and there are many who accept mystery as part of the reality of life. Some, however, have a definite idea about soul. They believe that each living person is a soul (that soul is individual) and that it continues to exist after death. Some add to their concept of soul a belief in predestination: that a soul created at conception was destined to be born -- or reborn if one believes in reincarnation. Mystery makes soul a complex and confusing matter.

Some people see being born rather than not being born merely as good fortune, as chance, as a serendipitous coming together of a male and female who just happened to meet. They imagine an almost infinite number of potential persons that never made it into life because circumstances were not right. Such people are more inclined to support birth control or abortion than are those who speak of a right to life for the unborn and who see the invisible world as housing an infinite number of souls and new souls to be created at conception. They attribute their life simply to good fortune, their parent's generosity and the survival of their species.