This is a question that has been debated for quite some time, by many. Scientists have put their two cents in explanations that for some seem to make sense, but in reality, it makes no sense with their conclusion. This is not an easy subject, people either dismiss it, walk away from it, ignore it, or refuse to become close to it. I am speaking of the Life in the womb, and the thought that it is just tissue. You and I are not just tissue and Life is Precious. If you plant something and water it, it grows, it’s alive! Anything that continues to form is alive and so is the minute that life begins in the womb.
Just to share some perspective on this as follows:
2 weeks: Fertilization At the start of this week, you ovulate. Your egg is fertilized 12 to 24 hours later if a sperm penetrates it – and this simple biological occurrence begins a series of increasingly complicated processes that leads to a new human life if all goes well. Over the next several days, the fertilized egg will start dividing into multiple cells as it travels down the fallopian tube, enters your uterus, and starts to burrow into the uterine lining.
3 weeks: Implantation Now nestled in the nutrient-rich lining of your uterus is a microscopic ball of hundreds of rapidly multiplying cells that will develop into your baby. This ball, called a blastocyst, has begun to produce the pregnancy hormone hCG, which tells your ovaries to stop releasing eggs.
4 weeks Your ball of cells is now officially an embryo. You’re now about 4 weeks from the beginning of your last period. It’s around this time – when your next period would normally be due – that you might be able to get a positive result on a home pregnancy test.
5 weeks Your baby resembles a tadpole more than a human but is growing fast. The circulatory system is beginning to form, and the tiny “heart” will start to beat this week.
6 weeks Your baby’s nose, mouth, and ears are starting to take shape, and the intestines and brain are beginning to develop.
7 weeks Your baby has doubled in size since last week, but still has a tail, which will soon disappear. Little hands and feet that look more like paddles are emerging from the developing arms and legs.
8 weeks Your baby has started moving around, though you won’t feel movement yet. Nerve cells are branching out, forming primitive neural pathways. Breathing tubes now extend from his throat to his developing lungs.
9 weeks Your baby’s basic physiology is in place (she even has tiny earlobes), but there’s much more to come. Her embryonic tail has disappeared. She weighs just a fraction of an ounce but is about to start gaining weight fast.
10 weeks Your embryo has completed the most critical portion of development. His skin is still translucent, but his tiny limbs can bend and fine details like nails are starting to form.
11 weeks Your baby is almost fully formed. She’s kicking, stretching, and even hiccupping as her diaphragm develops, although you can’t feel any activity yet.
12 weeks This week your baby’s reflexes kick in: His fingers will soon begin to open and close, toes will curl, and his mouth will make sucking movements. He’ll feel it if you gently poke your tummy – though you won’t feel his movements yet.
13 weeks This is the last week of your first trimester. Your baby’s tiny fingers now have fingerprints, and her veins and organs are clearly visible through her skin. If you’re having a girl, her ovaries contain more than 2 million eggs.
14 weeks Your baby’s brain impulses have begun to fire and he’s using his facial muscles. His kidneys are working now, too. If you have an ultrasound, you may even see him sucking his thumb.
15 weeks Your baby’s eyelids are still fused shut, but she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight on your tummy, she’ll move away from the beam. Ultrasounds done this week may reveal your baby’s sex.
16 weeks The patterning on your baby’s scalp has begun, though the hair isn’t visible yet. His legs are more developed – find out when you’re likely to feel your baby kick! His head is more upright, and his ears are close to their final position.
17 weeks Your baby can move her joints, and her skeleton – formerly soft cartilage – is now hardening into bone. The umbilical cord is growing stronger and thicker.
18 weeks Your baby is flexing his arms and legs, and you may be able to feel those movements. Internally, a protective coating of myelin is forming around his nerves.
19 weeks Your baby’s senses – smell, vision, touch, taste, and hearing – are developing and she may be able to hear your voice. Talk, sing or read out loud to her, if you feel like it.
20 weeks Your baby can swallow now and his digestive system is producing meconium, the dark, sticky goo that he’ll pass in his first poop – either in his diaper or in the womb during delivery.
Thanks for the comment and some added clarity of support for this article.
The “culture of death” includes abortion of the innocent as well as euthanasia for the worthless. When I worked the crime-ridden, gang-infested, drug-plagued barrios, the common refrain was “La Vida es Barata”. (Life is cheap)
Too bad that the ultimate price to our society will be our collective loss of our humanity and more importantly our souls. All life (the unborn, the old, the sick, the vulnerable) is a gift from God.
It has been an “American Holocaust” of 60 million plus since Roe vs Wade. — the devil takes delight and dances indeed!