Bioethics in Faith and Practice, Volume 2, Number 1

24 Lones ⦁ A Christian Ethical Perspective on Surrogacy • Gestational surrogacy and egg donation (GS/ED) - A surrogate is implanted with an embryo created by IVF, using intended father's sperm and a donor egg. The resulting child is genetically related to intended father and genetically unrelated to the surrogate. • Gestational surrogacy and donor sperm (GS/DS) - A surrogate is implanted with an embryo created by IVF, using intended mother's egg and donor sperm. The resulting child is genetically related to intended mother and genetically unrelated to the surrogate. • Gestational surrogacy and donor embryo (GS/DE) - A donor embryo (resulting from a donor sperm and a donor egg) is implanted in a surrogate; such embryos may be available when others undergoing IVF have embryos left over, which they opt to donate to others. The resulting child is genetically unrelated to the intended parent(s) and genetically unrelated to the surrogate. Until the introduction of modern assisted reproductive technologies, traditional surrogacy was the only method available to women to enable them have their own genetic children. Gestational surrogacy is increasingly more popular than traditional surrogacy because it allows an infertile couple the chance to have a child who is genetically related to both the male and the female parent . iii According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, more than a 1,000 children were born through surrogacy in 2011. That number indicates an almost 100 percent increase from the 530 babies reported born in 2004 . iv Surrogacy is further divided into commercial and altruistic surrogacy. In the commercial version, the surrogate offers her services in exchange for money, or some other form of payment. In the altruistic version, the surrogate voluntarily agrees to carry the baby, but not for payment. While there are specific harms that befall one version but not the other, both are subject to the family of arguments claiming that surrogacy is harmful. v However, surrogacy has always been surrounded by controversy. While the controversy has perhaps diminished slightly in recent years because of the widespread increase, many of the ethical issues associated with surrogacy remain unsolved. That so many people fail to consider the moral implications of assisted reproductive technologies suggests that in the age of fertility treatments, in vitro fertilization and surrogacy, a woman's womb has come to be seen as a somewhat arbitrary. However, God insists that what happens in utero matters and cannot be casually or disrespectfully dismissed. The womb, where God first knits us together (Ps. 139:13-14), is not an arbitrary place for a child to grow and develop. Christians haven't done the hard work of thinking biblically about infertility or about new reproductive technologies such as IVF, sperm and egg donation, and specifically, surrogacy. When it comes to surrogacy, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World is here, and can't be disregarded any longer. Summary of Various Ethical Positions on Surrogacy: In the assessment of this author, there are at least four major ethical positions taken as to the morality of surrogacy. Please note these are summaries of the major ethical positions. A fuller discussion on ethical principles will follow which should be considered in evaluating these ethical positions. Because surrogacy utilizes A.R.T. (artificial reproductive technologies); many of these positions may apply to in vitro fertilization also. The first position rejects outright surrogacy in any form or method. This Conservative Ethic, is the polar opposite of the Permissive Ethic. Each of these positions takes an extreme ethical view while the Modified Permissive Ethic attempts to take a middle ground. The last position taken on surrogacy, Adoptive Surrogacy, is more of a response to the number unclaimed embryos. Respecting the