Is IVF Moral?

Check out Joe Carter's excellent post on IVF and it's moral implications. He makes clear that IVF, in truth, is just as immoral as abortion. He writes,

It is certainly easier to oppose those who would destroy embryos in an abortion or for speculative scientific research than it is to criticize citizens who create "extra" embryos out of the desire to have a child. But while the motives may differ, the embryo has the same moral status and deserves to be protected from harm. The pain of infertility does not provide an exemption to our obligation.

But he recognizes the despair and pain many feel as they try to conceive:

We should not, however, dismiss the pain and suffering caused by infertility. The inability to become pregnant is a problem that affects thousands of potential families. (After one year of sexual relations, 15% of American couples are unable to conceive a child.) This inability can become emotionally trying and lead couples to seek a medical solution to overcome their affliction. Every year couples spend millions of dollars on reproductive technologies for the mere chance of conceiving a child.

Medical interventions to overcome infertility can certainly be done in an ethical manner. The most ethically unproblematic methods of aiding the reproductive process should, therefore, be preferred whenever possible. The use of fertility drugs and artificial insemination, for example, do not require the production of multiple embryos that must be discarded or frozen and placed in storage. Fortunately, these are also the first options that most physicians would consider. Other methods, however, such as gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT), zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), or in vitro fertilization, can also be approached in a way that is respectful of human life.

Read the whole thing. This is definitely a blind spot for Christians. Though the issue can obviously be heartbreaking for families, the altruism of some may have gotten in the way of their godliness.