The Image of God and In Vitro Fertilization
This year, Dr. Robert Edwards was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine. Edwards is credited with the development of in vitro fertilization (IVF), which is the process of fertilizing an egg outside the womb. Once fertilized, the newly-conceived human zygote is placed in a woman’s uterus in the hopes that a successful implantation will occur. The process of IVF is seen by most in the medical community as a major breakthrough in fertility technology, and millions of children have been born as a result of IVF technology.
However, the treatment is more ethically problematic than most people know. It is an unethical practice because it commonly results in the creation of embryos without any likelihood of implantation. As a result, countless tiny humans are now languishing in freezers without hope of ever being implanted. Of the fertilized zygotes that are implanted in women, many of them are killed in the process, which is why IVF treatment often involves placing several fertilized embryos in a woman’s womb with a goal that at least one will successfully implant in her uterus.
From the moment of conception, these zygotes are humans, and should be treated as such. They are uniquely human, with a particular human DNA structure never to be replicated again. Creating countless tiny humans with no intention of allowing them to develop is wrong. Implanting several tiny humans in a woman’s womb with full knowledge that many will not survive is also wrong.
Dr. Edwards’ recent Nobel Prize award should make us question our motives. If the advancement of science is more valued than the protection of innocent human lives, such “advancement” is eternally worthless. The God of the Bible who gave us science is the same God who calls us to protect the innocent around us.
He is the God Who set planets in motion, Who founded the Earth upon its pillars, and Who commands the boundaries of the seas. But He is also the very same God Who sees the tiny sparrow fall, Who clothes the lilies in splendor, and Who carefully knits together tiny children in the womb. Pursuing scientific understanding is a good thing, but it must never come at the cost of devaluing the image of God in our fellow human beings.
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Read the news story here:
IVF discovery opened Pandora’s box of ethical issues
Reuters
PARIS (Reuters) – In vitro fertilization (IVF), the pioneering technique that won Robert Edwards the 2010 Nobel Prize for medicine, opened up a wealth of scientific options and a Pandora’s box of ethical…
Exodus 20:13
“You shall not murder. (NKJV)