“If you truly believe in the value of life, you care about all of the weakest and most vulnerable members of society.” -Joni Eareckson Tada[1]
Does life have value? If so, who sets that value? I’ve been wondering about this for a while now, and I’m afraid I’ve come to the conclusion our global society seems to place more value on the lives of animals than it does on the lives of humans.
Human life seems to hold no fixed value to those who believe women have the singular ability to destroy it before birth. They may claim it is not life, but science tells us otherwise. Brain development begins 2 weeks after conception[2], embryo viability outside the womb is around 24 weeks[3] after conception, although there are cases of survival younger than this.[4] Those who support abortion now want that decision to rest with the woman carrying the child until the child is actually delivered. The funny thing about this debate is all the people who are making all the decisions actually were born and I’m pretty sure they see a lot of value in THEIR life, just not the lives of those who can’t defend themselves.
Along those same lines do black lives have value? It seems they must, but what is that value? Is it different than that of any other race? If so, why? Last year the nation went through a summer of riots as supporters who say Black Lives Matter fought with police, destroyed urban centers, and looted stores that were conveniently located in those areas the city officials and police abandoned to their rage. Does this destruction prove their point that those lives have value, or does it simply leave the question unanswered as those lives are used as a political chip to install some into power and wealth?
We have a whole litany of organizations who call to us for our dollars to support their causes saying the lives they support are important. Can we determine the value of a human or an animal from those organizations, or are they just a means to enrich some or push a political agenda? While tugging on our hearts the appeals show the good, they can do with our dollars, but are their appeals valid in placing a value on life? I tend to think not. A quick internet search shows for as little as $100 you can sponsor a child in Africa, and for that paltry sum you get a picture of a smiling child and a well written little letter thanking you for your gift, but at the same time for $100 you can sponsor a wild animal from Africa, and like with the children you get a nice picture, an information packet and a certificate (suitable for framing) of sponsorship of that animal.
Is the life of a child living in poverty in Africa worth the same as an animal living with the fear of death from poachers really worth the same thing? I don’t know? Of those $100 I would send; how much does either the child or the animal actually receive?
As I seek the answer to my questions, I’ve done many searches of the world wide web of all things and all I can find are opinions on the value of life. Most of them place increasing value on the lives of those who help others, who show empathy, and who strive to make life better, or speak to how to increase your opinion of self-worth. Not too many speculate about the potential value of life, or the diminished value of a life wracked by addiction, or trained as a criminal to prey on others.
Christine M. Korsgaard[5], writing in her 1996 paper on ethics for Harvard, compares and contrasts two great Philosophers, Aristotle and Kant in a work entitled “Aristotle and Kant on the Source of Value.” It is clear in that paper these great men understood value as a transient idea and a person’s worth can only be determined by the individuals themself.
My bottom line: I’ve purposely avoided a discussion of religion in this paper for the topic I write on is universal to mankind, but at the end of the day I find my own value in an understanding of faith and the life I live. For me, that value is not fixed, nor is the value of all the lives around me, but I place more on the potential values of the lives destroyed before life than I do on the lives wasted on selfish desire or outrage over their own choices.
[1] Joni Eareckson Tada (born October 15, 1949) is an evangelical Christian author, radio host, and founder of Joni and Friends, an organization "accelerating Christian ministry in the disability community."
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