A question from a
dear friend who was recently married…
Is there anything
wrong with having babies in-vitro?
(In vitro fertilization [IVF] is known popularly as the creation of ‘test-tube babies’, whereby sperm and ovum are united in a Petri dish and then transplanted into a mother’s womb.)
I used to think this was perfectly okay until I came across Geisler:
“…the main question in IVF from a Christian perspective relates to the ‘wasted’ embryos. According to present methods, the majority of embryos are sacrificed in order to get one that will survive…we are knowingly causing the death of many tiny human beings in order to get one to develop. Since the end does not justify this means, IVF which wastes embryos is morally wrong.
“The fact that
many naturally fertilized ova spontaneously abort is not relevant, for there is
a significant moral difference between a natural death and a homicide. IVF is not a natural death; it is an
artificially contrived and unnecessary death.” (Christian Ethics,
p.188)
Geisler goes on to
say that of course there is a possibility of perfecting the method such that no
wastages occur, yet until this happens, IVF remains an ethical no-no. As long as deaths are caused post-conception
(whether test-tube or ‘natural’), we need to realize that human lives are being
ended.
Since children
are perceived as gift from God, then ‘making’ babies not through the natural
way (e.g. artificial insemination, vitro, etc.) would also mean that we are
creating our own ‘gifts’ from God?
The issues
surrounding ‘non-natural’ baby-making concern less with ‘playing God’ than with
the consequences and contexts of our actions. The concepts per se of, say, a test-tube
conception or artificial insemination focus on assisting nature in her
damaged or impeded processes (a bit like inserting a metal tube into an
injured leg to help the bone grow, or taking aspirin – nothing ‘sinful’ or
‘ungodly’ about such actions).
Ultimately, the child if no less a gift from God.
Questions we need to
ask are:
· Are we respecting the sanctity of human life? (IVF fails in this criterion – for now – but artificial insemination [by husband or donor] does not)
· Is the ‘marriage bed kept pure’ (a’la Heb 13:4)? Will the child be raised by a married couple? (This is independent of the method being employed to produce conception, but is frequently raised as an objection)
· Are there social, legal, psychological problems to be considered? (most relevant for surrogate motherhood cases i.e. ‘wombs for hire’)
To repeat, we must be
wary of what our actions result in, even as we celebrate our Lord’s good
blessings…let me know your thoughts…regards, Alwyn.