Thomas Griffin 2/27/24
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In December 2020, a patient in an Alabama hospital exited his or her room and entered the cryogenic nursery (where frozen embryos are kept). The patient removed several embryo’s but the subzero temperatures of the container caused the patient to drop them leading to the death of the embryo’s.
The parents of these embryo’s later sued under the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act in Alabama law. While the original ruling in 2021 stated that the law does not apply to these embryo’s there has been a ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court this February overturning the lower court’s dismissal.
Supreme Court Justice Jay Mitchell noted that Alabama’s Wrongful Death of a Minor Act “applies to all unborn children, regardless of their location.” If life begins at conception, as science has undoubtedly proven, then it shouldn’t make a difference how old or where the human life is currently located.
Mitchell continued by adding his disagreement over the lower court’s prior ruling: “It is not the role of this Court to craft a new limitation based on our own view of what is or is not wise public policy. That is especially true where, as here, the People of this State have adopted a Constitutional amendment directly aimed at stopping courts from excluding ‘unborn life’ from legal protection.”
Mainstream media outlets have picked up on this story because they are appalled by the continuation of the Pro-Life agenda. Practically speaking, this law has caused a few hospitals to cease their practice of IVF (in vitro fertilization). Now, we are told, there are parents who desperately desire to have children and they might be refused that possibility. While this would become the case if IVF was not available, it is critical to ask what in vitro fertilization does and whether or not it is ethical.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Tom Parker cited Scripture in his remarks and he also stressed the American proclivity to connect our laws as well as what is good and true to our Creator. The sanctity of life is fact because “all men are endowed” with the gift of life “by their Creator,” as the preamble of the Constitution states.
The Catholic Church’s teaching against the morality of such medical procedures has been both misunderstood and ignored. Whether we like it or not faith is connected to the dignity of life because we are given life by God.
Some have no idea what the Church teaches while others know that the Church is against IVF but use the process anyway. From the outset, we must state clearly that any children who are conceived from IVF have the same human value as anyone else. There is no such thing as “lesser human beings.” The Church does not teach that such individuals have a diminished human dignity.
It would seem proper, however, to at least be willing to investigate what these procedures accomplish and how they do so. Eggs must be retrieved from the mother and sperm from the father. In order to retrieve the eggs, doctors use ultrasound technology to harvest them. In order for men to give a sperm sample, the most common practice is for them to masturbate. If the sperm count is too low then there can be a procedure performed to harvest the sperm.
The first step is already problematic. Sexual love must always be sacrificial and expressed towards the other, not oneself. The process for sperm retrieval means that most men have to use their bodies in a purely mechanical and narcissistic way. Their body is used as a means to an end. They do not express total self-giving love to their spouse through the unification of their bodies. Instead, the couple is willing to demean the dignity of their bodies and the marital act in order to achieve pregnancy.
When sex becomes “by myself” or is disconnected from the embrace of the other it is convicted of selfishness despite the good intentions that might be involved. Yes, masturbation is a serious sin. Its common use is to seek pleasure in a selfish way that brings no fruit to a human relationship and no prospect of conceiving a human life (the reason to have sex in the first place). Yes, most men and women struggle their entire lives with it. But that does not mean that it is good for us nor does it mean that it is a healthy way to treat one’s body or one’s spouse.
Once the eggs and sperm are harvested, the eggs are fertilized and the creation of human embryo’s occurs. There are almost always more embryo’s created than necessary because doctors know that they will have to implant several embryo’s in the mother. This is due to the fact that it is difficult for the embryos to implant on the uterine wall and survive to full gestation.
In the hope for one baby to live, IVF is content with allowing countless other human beings to die through every procedure, in every cryogenic lab across the world while millions of embryos remain trapped in a frozen state until their death (expiration) over 10 years later.
The theme is consistent: we can perform actions that are either evil in themselves or produce evil effects if that means that we have a chance to get what we want. Now, in this case, what the parents want is a baby to love and care for. That is one of the most admirable and important things a person can ever desire. However, the desire for that should not be heeded no matter what the costs will be.
Christ does not invite us to do whatever want so that we can achieve whatever we want. He invites us to do the good and carry crosses while we receive the healing and help that we can receive without compromising our relationships, bodies and the lives of others.
There are also great Catholic clinics across the country (like the Gianna Center for Women’s & Fertility) that seek to heal the root causes of infertility rather than provide a quick fix that will hurt human lives and relationships. In most cases, what appears to be infertility is an unhealthy condition that needs time to be investigated and healed through a deeper understanding of the woman and her body.
As the news continues over the issue of IVF let us remember that every single human life has infinite dignity and value. Let us pray for all of those who struggle with infertility and deeply desire to have children. And, let us also remember that simply because we have the capacity to do something or achieve some desire does not automatically mean that we should do so. Jesus calls us to something more than that, and it is the route of sacrificial love.
Thomas Griffin is the chairperson of the religion department at a Catholic high school on Long Island where he lives with his wife and two sons. He has a masters degree in theology and is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Empty Tomb Project: The Magazine.
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