Life begins at the exact moment of fertilization. Full stop.
All branches of science come into the unanimous agreement that the existence of a human being starts when the winner sperm cell enters the oocyte. The evidence is not debatable.
The most fundamental unit of life is the living cell. During fertilization, two living cells join together to form a zygote. Life represents a concept that is more complex than the human mind can naturally apprehend, and it is at the moment the zygote is formed when the energies comprising human living are fulfilled; energies that come partially from the maternal side, via the egg cell, and partially from the paternal side, via the “winner” sperm cell. By the moment of fertilization, the transition from meiosis to mitosis takes place, and the intracellular level of Ca2+ rises sharply following a trigger by InsP3 (Whitaker M., 2006). The commencement of such an exponential growth in the concentration of Ca2+ ions by InsP3 inside the new cell could represent a marker of the biophysical energy fulfillment. By the exact moment of fertilization, human life begins. To apprehend a much greater detail of the elements life consists of, we ought to explore and research biophysical concepts as well, and not rely our perspective solely upon molecular and cell biology, given the foundational characteristics of physics, which is also known as an instrument to study the first degree of matter. Likewise, there is a major ethical duty to acknowledge the moment human life begins and place the foundations of our bioethical determinations upon such a moment when living commences. Princeton University in the United States of America made it clear for all that life begins at the exact moment of fertilization, and not at the moment of zygote implantation on the uterine wall or after.
Physical matter was created so the chemical and the biological layers of matter could come into existence. Tis the mystery of the gift of life; just because we came from matter, it does not mean we are worthless; on the contrary, there can be no finite price given for us. Of course, this does not mean one should worship matter, as a few ancestors did in the past. There is a clear line between honor and worship, and we should detect such a line in our observations. The timing of the extradimensional creation of all matter and living beings is not for the natural mind to apprehend. The physical and chemical layers of matter took > billions of years to form, whilst life took millions of years to be completely formed via the process of natural selection, which existed as an allowance. Correlation does not imply causation, meaning that natural selection does not imply the Divine is nothing more than a “Good night!” story for immature people. It could on the contrary highlight His existence! When we came on this world, we came with the help of unconditional love and we were filled with humility, as we did not know what was outside of our mothers’ womb! This is the model we should follow during the entirety of our lives, as we do not know what is situated beyond the next step of our maturity process.
There really cannot be a long discussion on the matter. I hope we will change our approach in front of widespread phenomenon of pregnancy termination, as life and nature are interconnected. It is estimated that more than 200 million living babies have been aborted since the beginning of the contemporary era, which is beyond shocking and outrageous. Some people will mention cases of physical assault, and I completely sympathize with the victims. I believe oppressors as such should receive the most harsh punishment. As one interviewee of Joe Rogan stated, two wrongs cannot make a right, and losing the life of an unborn fetus, embryo or living cell is the same as losing the life of a born baby. There is no middle area and I believe we, as a society, should adjust our moral view to the evidence in a loving and discerning manner. The ignorance of activist groups and scientists calling themselves “progressive” is disgusting. When human life and suffering is unprecedented, nature suffers and there may even be more frequent phenomena resulting in casualties. And unprecedented moral decays are very much related to unprecedented increases of human suffering and, implicitly, to disturbances in nature phenomena-related patterns. This is not a statement of moral superiority or of expression of some form of happiness in front of suffering and negative phenomena, but a sincere call for all of us to work in unity, not just to restore the overall health of the Earth and her living inhabitants, but to improve such a state further if possible.
Featured image: By {{Sciencia58}} - Own work. Own graphic. Source: Figure 27.9C Campbell Biology, Pearson Education 2012 [1] [2], CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=82980004
Reference:
Whitaker M. (2006). Calcium at fertilization and in early development. Physiological reviews, 86(1), 25–88. https://doi.org/10.1152/physrev.00023.2005