Posted on 04/14/2025 12:44:25 PM PDT by CondoleezzaProtege
It’s high time for Protestant denominations to take a firm and authoritative stance on reproductive technology.
Since the birth of “Baby M” by in vitro fertilization (IVF) in 1978, reproductive technologies have outpaced public understanding, policy development, and theological reflection...By 2030, it is likely that they will be well on their way to developing artificial wombs for conception through birth.
American Evangelicals haven’t kept up. Indeed, most Protestant denominations in our country still lack a biblically informed stance on childbearing, infertility, and the most basic reproductive technology, such as IVF, surrogacy, and stem cell research. Even fewer have a coherent vision for how to approach the bioethical innovations of the 21st century.
This matters for two reasons. First, because Protestants necessarily hold a central place in America’s political and institutional life, their denominations’ positions on contemporary bioethical questions play a key role in determining the way that new scientific innovations are integrated into the moral framework of the American mind (i.e. condoms in the 1930s or the pill in the 1950s). Second, and on a much more practical basis, because individual pastors and congregants cannot be expected to handle the moral and medical complexity of emerging technologies on their own.
The assault on what it means to be human, from sexuality to artificial creations of human life, requires Christians to stand firm in their support for the integrity of marriage, sex, and procreation. The very life and well-being of future generations depend on it. Moral ambiguity will only breed more hardship in the life of the Church. Protestant denominations and leaders must carve a courageous vision forward about the good news of biblical anthropology.
With this need in mind, this two-part series aims to explore what prominent Protestant denominations currently teach...
(Excerpt) Read more at heritage.org ...
Your view on IVF is determined on whether you are Catholic or Protestant.
https://www.perplexity.ai/search/are-there-differences-between-.QTvgHutR2ur_hCbXRD3kQ
While the Catholic Church teaches IVF is sinful its rank and file members commonly don’t believe this.
Most Catholics bare have any understanding of the moral precepts of their faith.
The assault on what it means to be human, from sexuality to artificial creations of human life, requires Christians to stand firm in their support for the integrity of marriage, sex, and procreation.
I respectfully disagree with Heritage on this one. IVF and surrogacy don't in any impact the baby creation / pro-life argument. And since Protestants believe in Sola Scriptura -- I can't think of anything in the Bible that says thou shouldn't have a surrogate mother or have a fertility doctor. Perhaps there's something in the Bible like that I forgot. FReepers?
Cloning, however, might get into what it means for a "clump of cells" to be life (pro-life argument). I can see how that would get sticky.
Seems to be a simple , easy and cost effective solution to the problem.
But what do I know.
Do have to confess that the current state of feminist mindset and the serious lack of physical attractiveness of many women these days does make IVF an attractive option.
It seems to me there are differences within Catholics and Protestants.
insert “Ya don’t Say!” image here.
Definitely! (Below typed with tongue in cheek, poking fun at my own too )
Roman Catholics: Don't have fun if the menstrual calendar says otherwise, unless you want kids.
Orthodox: Who's your daddy? Wait, am I allowed to say that?
Pentecostals: Honey, do you believe in tongues? (wink-wink)
Mormons: Odds are at least one wife is in the mood.
Quakers: Honey, you're my friend with benefits.
Baptists: Honey, I asked our neighbor to buy us some wine.
Independents: Anything goes!
Church of Christ: Honey, I'll put on some mood music. But if the sex is good tell me to pause the music before you say "Oh God!".
This simply isn't true.
There are multiple embryos created in the IVF process; almost half of them are discarded, each of which is considered the taking of an innocent human life.
Simple question.
What happens to the extra babies?
That frames the discussion, and I credit a long ago Catholic Doc here for my understanding on it.
Breaking news. Protestants are not Catholic. The Catholic Church does not allow birth control, the protestant faith does. Protestants far out number Catholics in America. Except of course, on the Supreme Court.
Even from a purely pro-life — or humanist perspective, there needs to be clarity.
A lot of people discuss discarded embryos, which any Christian regardless of denomination should have a problem with — but there is also the disrupted sexual act — like the way sperm is collected that may pose ethical questions.
The commercialization of surrogacy is alarming as well. “Wombs for rent. For sale.”
You’re Catholics IIRC.
Then it’s not your business to tell non-Catholic churches what they should and should not be doing.
And even if you were *Protestant*, you’d have no business telling any other denomination how to run their churches.
Scripture does record surrogate mothers. Sarah and Hagar, Rachel and her handmaiden, Ruth and Naomi.
It doesn’t always end well, like with Hagar producing the Arabs nations, but it did happen.
They were just forced to use old fashioned means instead of IV technology.
I’ve always thought that couples who earnestly want children yet are unable to conceive naturally are meant by God to be the parents of orphans. Orphans have always been around so they need loving parents to adopt and raise them so as to contribute to the good of society. All the expense, despair and needless death of embryos that are part of IVF and other types of assisted reproduction are like a slap in the face of our Creator who “opens and closes the womb” (e.g.; Isaiah 66:9).
Talk to individual Catholics and you’ll see the wide range of opinion on this and many other subjects.
Most lay Catholics don’t particularly care what official church teaching is on many subjects and I’ve had Catholics themselves tell me that.
‘Baby M’ was artificial insemination, NOT in vitro. There is a difference.
Not true of the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod (LCMS), the orthodox, pro-life, apostolic, Bible-believing branch of Lutheranism . Check out their info page from their web site:
https://resources.lcms.org/reading-study/life-library-bioethics-articles/
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