- by Atty. Marwil N. Llasos
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 greenwhile 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 empiricallynot 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 “tothe 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 empiricallynot 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?”
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