Christian Attitudes And The Attitudes Of One Other Religion To Fertility Treatments

When someone is infertile and are forced to conceive using ways that are not natural, they can often be made to feel that it is wrong because of their religion. Christians and Muslims have different views toward infertility. Even though many people are against it, cases can be made to use infertility treatment to have a baby. Christianity has many views supporting the use of fertility treatment. Firstly, God commanded Adam and Eve to ‘… be fruitful and increase in number’ (Genesis 1 v28).

This can be read in many different ways, but generally it can be read to show that God wants us to reproduce, and that we should do this in whatever way possible, even if this involves fertility treatment. Furthermore, some Christians believe that discarded embryos are not alive and their destruction can be justified by the doctrine of effect, where the intention is to produce a child, not to kill an embryo. It is also seen by some Christians that the new technology which enables us to do this is good, and should be utilised as much as possible.

Many Christians believe that wasted embryos being used in IVF is not a very good thing according to their religion. As they believe the embryos are alive from the moment of conception and that that is basically the same as abortion. Catholics also believe it is wrong as using these treatments for fertilisation does not use the normal act of sex, which is something they see as an act God created for us to do in marriage to reproduce. Some Catholics also think that children have a right to know their biological parents, but in some forms of fertility treatment like AID and Surrogacy prevent this from happening, so they are banned.

Muslims can also be divided about what is right and wrong when it comes to infertility treatment. Quite a lot of Muslims believe that every couple should be given the chance to have their own child and are even actually expected to have a family. This means that even if someone is in fertile they still should have the chance of a child, even through infertility treatment. Also, as adoption is banned in Islamic teachings, then IVF and AIH are the only available treatment to help Islamic people have babies even when infertile, because the child can know who its real parents are.

But there are some aspects of infertility treatments that can be seen as very wrong in the Islamic community. For example, when a woman uses another man’s sperm to make a baby when her husband’s is defective, then this is seen as adultery. As well as this, surrogate motherhood or what is called “hiring a womb” is not allowed since it involves introducing the sperm of a male into the uterus of a woman to whom he is not married and, thus, which is also seen as adultery. It also says that it is wrong for a woman to donate an egg for fertilisation.