Catholic Voice

Embryos cannot be protected in law unless we declare IVF illegal

 

In the wake of the frozen embryo case, there is a lot of buzz that we now need legislation to protect pre-implantation embryos.  Such legislation might sound good on the surface.  In the end it would serve only to galvanize the status in Irish law of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), a practice which many are surprised to learn is contrary to Church teaching.[i]  IVF nevertheless perpetuates the production of defenceless embryos by scientific rather than by sexual means.  It actually creates the problem.  We must therefore acknowledge that the only way to fully protect vulnerable embryos is to stop IVF.  Anything less inherently compromises the dignity of embryonic persons and should be declared illegal.   Nor can we opt to settle for a conscience clause or willingly promote lesser evils when it remains possible to strive for the greater good.  We must actively seek to strike at the root of the problem:  IVF in all forms.

 

‘. . . the so-called “simple case,” i.e. a homologous IVF and ET procedure [that is using the sperm and egg of a married couple] that is free of any compromise with the abortive practice of destroying embryos and with masturbation, remains a technique which is morally illicit because it deprives human procreation of the dignity which is proper and connatural to it.’[ii] [Bracketed text added to clarify ‘homologous’]

 

Please note that this article in no way condemns but rather is an attempt to educate couples, clergy, Catholics and all people of good will about the Church’s promotion of Natural Procreative (NaPro) Technology as an effective and moral alternative to IVF.  Said plainly, IVF is simply never necessary.  A recent discussion with a well-educated man who prepares couples for Holy Matrimony confirmed what seems to be the case by-and-large:  that the Church’s teaching which absolutely prohibits IVF is simply unknown in Ireland.  Even the document issued by the Bishop’s Committee on Bioethics could offer a clearer moral evaluation of IVF.[iii]

 

 

NaPro Technology:  A moral and more effective alternative to IVF

 

In short, IVF is never a necessary or legitimate option, but that does not leave couples hopeless.  Part of the problem, however, is that the good news about NaPro Technology is also widely unknown.  Yet NaPro offers real hope to couples finding it difficult to conceive—even when IVF has been tried and failed.  One couple from Omagh, for example, failed to give birth after several expensive rounds of IVF.  They became pregnant after only five months of NaPro treatment and now have three children.

 

No doubt infertility is one of the most difficult issues a married couple can face.  Couples feel forced to just accept the shattered dreams of a family that may never be.  It can be crushing to husband and wife alike.  In desperation, such couples may by default even resort to extremely expensive fertility treatments like IVF.  Yet IVF in even the best clinics has a 2/3 failure rate with an 80% embryo death rate[iv] which can leave couples more devastated than ever.  It can even drive them apart.

I extend to all couples struggling to cope with infertility my deepest, heartfelt prayers.  The good news is that it is entirely possible for couples to remain faithful to Church teaching and at the same time seek medical assistance to treat (rather than circumvent) infertility.

 

In fact, Catholic doctors[v]—motivated by their fidelity to the Church’s teaching and by their solicitous care for couples experiencing difficulty in conceiving—have developed NaPro Technology. 

 

 

NaPro is more Faithful, Fruitful & Financially Feasible than IVF

 

The reason NaPro Technology is so effective is actually quite simple:  it identifies and deals with the actual cause of infertility which may involve both male and female factors.  IVF, alternatively, is not concerned with curing infertility but with bypassing it.  It is also worth noting that IVF is much more difficult on the women involved whereas NaPro fosters the marital relationship.

 

There are at least three distinct advantages to NaPro over IVF:

 

1. NaPro is FAITHFUL, that is that it respects Church teaching[vi] that procreation must never be separated from a specific marital act between a husband and wife.  (IVF, however, makes babies without intercourse and raises a whole host of serious moral questions[vii] including, but not limited to the deliberate destruction of human embryos.[viii])

 

2. NaPro is FRUITFUL, that is more babies are born to couples who choose NaPro over IVF.  (NaPro enjoys a 50-80% chance of success compared with IVF’s 21.1% and even couples who have failed to conceive with IVF have a reasonable chance of success with NaPro.  There is also twice the risk that an IVF baby will be born with a birth defect.[ix])

 

3. NaPro is FINANCIALLY FEASIBLE, that is it costs less than each IVF cycle.  (NaPro costs roughly 1,000 – 1,500 per year, although it is possible to conceive in less time; IVF costs around 3,000 – 5,000 per cycle.  Cost may vary in either case.)

 

 

Get informed & Get active!

 

In the ensuing debate over legislation purporting to ‘protect’ embryos, we will be reminded that one needs to act according to one’s conscience.  For some, that means doing what merely feels right over what is objectively right.  Conscience, however, is the uniquely human ability to grasp objective moral truths as they are manifest in the natural moral law and to correctly apply them to particular human actions.  Clergy have the solemn duty to help the faithful, the government, and all people of good will, to form their conscience according to the natural law which transcends any one religion and pertains to what is truly human and good.  At the same time, all people are obliged to correctly inform their conscience prior to acting.  When it pertains to moral matters, ignorance is anything but bliss. 

 

Three principles must always guide one’s conscience in the issues at hand:

 

‘With regard to the treatment of infertility, new medical techniques must respect three fundamental goods:  a) the right to life and to physical integrity of every human being from conception to natural death; b) the unity of marriage, which means reciprocal respect for the right within marriage to become a father or mother only together with the other spouse; c) the specifically human values of sexuality which require “that the procreation of a human person be brought about as the fruit of the conjugal act specific to the love between spouses.”’[x]

 

No doubt we will be bullied by a barrage of emotional stories about the plight of infertile couples.  We will be introduced to couples who are convinced that IVF saved them from childlessness.  Get the facts and do not be afraid to share them.  NaPro can boast of much more.  A good start is to check out www.fertilitycare.net.

 

The Scriptures teach us that, ‘My people will suffer for lack of knowledge,’ that ‘We possess the prophetic truth as something altogether reliable,’ and that ‘The Spirit we received is no cowardly Spirit.’  It is not too late for each of us to strive to promote the greater good, to strike at the root, and to weed out the sin of IVF.  Let’s put the freeze on IVF, not on embryos!

 

 

 

This feature is categorised under Life Matters