*** g04 9/22 p. 11 The Choices, the Issues ***
How Will You Decide?
Medical science will no doubt carry the development of assisted reproduction even further. Some predict that in the future 30 percent of all babies born will be the result of this technology. The debate over the ethical and moral issues involved will continue.
True Christians are guided by an even more important consideration—the viewpoint of our Creator, the one who arranged for procreation. (Psalm 36:9) Of course, the Bible does not directly comment on modern assisted reproductive techniques, for such procedures were not available in Bible times. However, the Bible does set out clear principles that indicate God’s thinking and viewpoint. (See the box “What Does the Bible Say?”) Such principles help us to make decisions that are ethical and moral and that leave us with a clear conscience before God.—1 Timothy 1:5.
*** g04 9/22 p. 8 The Choices, the Issues ***
True Christians, however, believe that life begins at conception. The fact that the original fertilized cell contains the program for the construction of the placenta, the implantation, the connections with the mother’s blood vessels, and more only increases their admiration for the divine Designer, Jehovah God.
*** g04 9/22 p. 10 The Choices, the Issues ***
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
The Bible, of course, makes no direct comments on modern-day assisted reproductive procedures. It does, however, enable us to know God’s view on certain key issues. And knowing the answers to two basic questions can guide true Christians in making decisions that are pleasing to God.
When does human life begin? The Bible indicates that life begins at conception. Note the words of the psalmist David, who was inspired to say of God: “Your eyes saw even the embryo of me, and in your book all its parts were down in writing.” (Psalm 139:16) Consider also Exodus 21:22, 23, where the original-language text indicates that a person would be held accountable for injury to an unborn child. The lesson to be learned is that our Creator views life as precious, even during the very early stages of development in the womb. In God’s eyes the willful destruction of an embryo would be viewed as abortion.
Are there any restrictions as to how one’s reproductive powers may be used? God’s view can be found at Leviticus 18:20, which says: “You must not give your emission as semen to the wife of your associate to become unclean by it.” The underlying principle in that Scriptural decree is this: A man’s semen should not be used to inseminate anyone other than his wife, and a woman should not bear a child for someone other than her own husband. In other words, the reproductive powers are not to be used for someone other than one’s marriage mate. True Christians, therefore, avoid surrogate motherhood as well as any procedures that involve the use of donated sperm, eggs, or embryos.
When making a decision involving assisted reproduction, true Christians must weigh carefully what the Bible reveals about God’s thinking. After all, he is the Originator of marriage and family life.—Ephesians 3:14, 15.
*** g04 9/22 p. 4 A Baby Boom Through Assisted Reproduction ***
AI (ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION). A procedure in which semen is introduced into the female reproductive organs by other than natural means. AI is an option often tried before the procedures described below.
GIFT (GAMETE INTRAFALLOPIAN TRANSFER). A procedure that involves removing eggs from a woman’s ovary, combining them with sperm, and using a laparoscope (an instrument used for examining the abdominal cavity) to place the unfertilized eggs and sperm into the woman’s Fallopian tube through small incisions in her abdomen.
ICSI (INTRACYTOPLASMIC SPERM INJECTION). (Shown magnified at left) A procedure in which a single sperm is injected directly into an egg.
IVF (IN VITRO FERTILIZATION). A procedure that involves removing eggs from a woman’s ovaries and fertilizing them outside her body. The resulting embryos are then transferred into her uterus through the cervix.
ZIFT (ZYGOTE INTRAFALLOPIAN TRANSFER). A procedure in which eggs are collected from a woman’s ovary and fertilized outside her body. A resulting fertilized egg is then inserted into her Fallopian tube through a small incision in her abdomen.
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