Adopting Embryos

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I read an article about couples who are adopting other couple’s embryo’s and implanting them via IVF. I researched and the Catholic Church has no solid stance on this other than to say that it’s not sinful to adopt an embryo that would otherwise be murdered. It didn’t say anything about the IVF part though.

What do you guys think? I personally think that this is a great way for couples to become pregnant in a way that is not sinful. To me, it’s like adopting an abandoned child b/c that’s what these embryos are.

Just curious to see what other Catholics think about this form of having a child.
 
The Church currently condemns the use of Heteralogous In Vitro Fertilization and Embryo Transfer (H-IVF and ET); citing a trivialization of the marital act, and a problem with the right of the child to be brought to concieved and born by an act of love.

I agree with you, though, it does seem like adopting an abandonded child; the Church even says the problem of frozen embryoes produces a problem that has no clear moral option right now…

Pray for an end to this evil.
 
I think the principle of the double effect comes into play here: the intent is to adopt a child and give him a good, loving, nurturing home, but there’s a bit of a hitch: the child is an embryo in cryostasis and the first home he or she needs to be welcomed into the wife’s womb. Granted, this means having to resort to something that is a form of playing God, but that isn’t one’s intent. One’s intent is to save the child and give him a good life.
 
The Vatican’s latest document on the subject, Dignitas Personae, basically says that embryonic adoption has the same problems as IVF. It includes surrogacy, which is forbidden by the Church … so, it looks like the answer is no.

Dignitas Personae

The other problem is, if we really were allowed to save these children who would otherwise die, wouldn’t we have the moral responsibility to all do this? Shouldn’t we put conceiving our own children on hold till we have saved all of these embryos? It’s saving lives, after all.

I think JPII put it best when he said that there is no moral solution for the problem of all these frozen embryos. Our only hope is to try to get this sinful process to stop – mostly through prayer.
 
Hi Serap,

Well , I am also Catholic and know the feeling of having a child which enriches the parent’s life with happiness and success with its small legs and hands. Adopting Embryos is not an illegal issue but care should be taken on Embryos.IVF is a great technique for this stuff but there is wide difference between adopting an abandoned child in premature stage & adopting child after his/her birth . So, First think before taking any final step.

Thanks
 
wendyveldhuis said:
Hi Serap,

Well , I am also Catholic and know the feeling of having a child which enriches the parent’s life with happiness and success with its small legs and hands. Adopting Embryos is not an illegal issue but care should be taken on Embryos.IVF is a great technique for this stuff but there is wide difference between adopting an abandoned child in premature stage & adopting child after his/her birth . So, First think before taking any final step.

Thanks
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oh I’m not planning on adopting an embryo…I’m pregnant and all my husband has to do is breath on me and I fall pregnant 😃

I’m speaking of women who carry the cross of infertility and have this new option to adopt an embryo. The embryo would otherwise be murdered, so perhaps this practice is not such an immoral thing to do? 🤷

It’s a very tough subject to embark on…it’s not easy to say that it’s immoral point blank when these babies would otherwise be murdered. A baby is still a baby whether he/she is an embryo or 2 years old…just my view.
 
I sincerely hope that the Church decides on the answer soon.

I believe, and I heard other Catholics state the same, that allowing these abandonded babies to be born is a noble and good thing.

How they were conceived is not their fault, and to not be allowed to grow and be born seems incredibly unfair. 😦

I think it’s similar to having a life sentence in solitary confinement without the chance for parole. For a sin someone else committed.
 
Serap said:
I researched and the Catholic Church has no solid stance on this other than to say that it’s not sinful to adopt an embryo that would otherwise be murdered.

What do you guys think? I personally think that this is a great way for couples to become pregnant in a way that is not sinful. To me, it’s like adopting an abandoned child b/c that’s what these embryos are.

Just curious to see what other Catholics think about this form of having a child.
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While it is true that the Church had not spoken authoritatively on “embryo adoption” in the past, this changed in December 2008 as a response to the many questions the Vatican received on various subjects related to creation of embryos in various situations.

The Church condemns embryo adoption. The Church states there is no morally licit solution to frozen embryos at this time. See here.
 
I agree with the church stance that there is no moral option to the problem of frozen embryos at this time. However, there is a protestant movement to adopt embryos. I believe it is called ‘operation snowflake’, ‘snowflake babies’, or something of the sort.
 
Mrs_Sally said:
I agree with the church stance that there is no moral option to the problem of frozen embryos at this time. However, there is a protestant movement to adopt embryos. I believe it is called ‘operation snowflake’, ‘snowflake babies’, or something of the sort.
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Morality applies to all human beings - regardless of what they believe. While it is admirable that they are trying to do something - it is still immoral. But I suspect you know this. 😉

Until there is no longer a market for frozen embryos, no longer a possibility of ever creating more for any purpose whatsoever, I can not see the Church approving embryo adoption which only creates a demand for more and a viable market for “left overs”. If there was never a possibility of ever creating more frozen embryos, then I think the Church would allow the adoption (just my guess). Until that time - it is immoral to support and even indirectly encourage the practice of freezing.

~Liza
 
lizaanne said:
Until there is no longer a market for frozen embryos, no longer a possibility of ever creating more for any purpose whatsoever, I can not see the Church approving embryo adoption which only creates a demand for more and a viable market for “left overs”. If there was never a possibility of ever creating more frozen embryos, then I think the Church would allow the adoption (just my guess). Until that time - it is immoral to support and even indirectly encourage the practice of freezing.
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I had never thought of it this way. Thank you, Liza.

And a huge thanks to 1ke for providing the link to the Vatican’s website.
 
I have been asked about “snowflake baby” adoption recently, so am glad to have found this thread.

It is my impression that this would qualify as a remote cooperation with evil (bc of IVF and that the process not only skips the marital act, but treats embryonic human beings as a Product to be produced, manipulated, implanted, and discarded if not wanted).

Here’s Fr. Tad on the subject:
catholicnewsagency.com/new.php?n=14629

When CNA asked what he found particularly striking about Dignitas Personae, Father Pacholczyk singled out its discussion of embryo adoption.

“The treatment of embryo adoption was an aspect of this document that many people were hoping would be addressed, but nobody was really sure. So it was good to see that that subject area, which has been an area of much discussion over the past years, is being addressed.

“It appears that this document did not speak the ‘final word,’ perhaps, on embryo adoption. There appears to be still a little bit of ambiguity or openness, at least, in the way that it was phrased.

“But clearly, this document is moving in the direction of indicating that embryo adoption will not be likely to be acceptable as a means of trying to save frozen embryos.”

Also: catholicherald.com/opinions/detail.html?sub_id=10517

Thank you for the previous posts! This is an important topic and needs to be clarified for the faithful.

God bless,
Mimi
 
Another problem with this idea of “rescuing” embryos is that it creates a problem with the life-giving aspect of the marital act between spouses. It is one thing for a couple to adopt an already-born child as their own, but it is another thing entirely to adopt an embryo who will need to take up residence in another woman’s womb.

It’s one thing to engage in intercourse with the hopes of being gifted a child by God, then bringing that child to birth. But it’s another thing to have someone else’s already-created baby implanted in your womb, thus closing off the possibilities of God giving you your own children during that time. (And not just the 9-month pregnancy period, but keeping in mind all the embryos that may miscarry, etc…and pursuing this as the only means to build your family.)

These embryos - children - already exist for the Kingdom of Heaven.

I hope the Church never allows this, and I really don’t see how it ever could. It’s really no different than surrogacy, except in the end you keep the baby instead of giving it up.
 
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