Human sexuality
and
In Vitro Fertilization
Fr. James McTavish FMVD
13/04/2015
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ESSENTIALS
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Union
Procreation
“The two shall become one”
“Go forth and multiply”
Human
Divine
Physical nature
Vocation, mission, eternity
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Infertility
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If 100 just married couples begin having sexual
relations (with no previous use of
contraceptives) then within one year, 80 % of
the women would be pregnant.
Of the remainder, 10 % would be classified as
subfertile
But 10 % would be infertile.
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Problems in the male account for 25% of cases
of infertility
In the female 40 %
And combined male/female problems in the
remaining 35%.
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Infertility is a growing problem. Some
probable causes include;
Delayed marriages and later childbearing
 Sexually transmitted diseases
 Pollution
 Diet
 Lack of exercise
 Previous contraceptive use leading to sterility
 Sterility from previous abortion
 Falling sperm count in males (medicines, alcohol
etc)

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I.V.F.
In
Vitro
Fertilization
“Test tube babies”
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Louise Brown, 1978
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Dr Edwards, IVF pioneer
“I wanted to find out exactly who was in
charge, whether it was God Himself or
whether it was scientists in the
laboratory.“
And what did he conclude?
"It was us," he smiles triumphantly.
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Today there are more than 3 million IVF babies
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Success rate of IVF?
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Success rates vary and are often exaggerated
To attract more clients
Probably around 20-25 % successful
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How much does it cost?
Average cost of total treatment
$10,000 - $25, 000 (American dollars)
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Industry generates $ 2 billion per year.
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THE TECHNIQUE OF IVF
1.
2.
3.
4.
There are generally four major steps in the
process of IVF:
Collect eggs from the woman
Obtain sperm from the man
In the laboratory place eggs and sperm together
to allow for fertilization, to create embryos.
(ICSI-Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection since
1990’s.)
Transfer embryos into uterus of woman
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THE TECHNIQUE OF IVF
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2
1
3
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THE MORAL ISSUES
The spread of technologies of intervention
in the processes of human procreation raises
very serious moral problems
(Donum Vitae, Part III).
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1. Collect eggs from the woman
The woman is given drugs to hyper-ovulate
(produce many eggs). The drugs can cause side
effects such as abdominal pain, nausea etc.
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2. Obtain sperm from the man
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Obtaining sperm by masturbation may be
morally objectionable
Sometimes donor sperm may be used
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3. In the laboratory place eggs and sperm together to
allow for fertilization, to create embryos
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Embryos are created in the laboratory (the test
tube) thus human fertilization occurs apart from
sexual intercourse and outside the human body.
The unitive-procreative dimension of the
conjugal act is lost.
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The destruction of embryos
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Many embryos created. Healthy ones kept but
defective embryos are destroyed.
Healthy embryos can be transferred to woman
or they can be frozen for use at later date.
Sometimes they are experimented on.
“The human being is to be respected
and treated as a person from the
moment of conception”
Pope John Paul II
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The problem of frozen embryos
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In USA there are >400,000 frozen embryonic
persons, a kind of “hell of ice”.
In thawing them 50 % will die.
Worldwide there are up to 1 million frozen
embryos
What to do with the
frozen embryos?
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4. Transfer embryos into uterus of woman
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Many embryos implanted in mother’s womb
(usually 2-4) to increase chance of pregnancy.
Should too large a number of embryos start to
grow, the ‘excess’ embryos are usually aborted
(called “pregnancy reduction”).
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CONCLUSIONS
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Why the Church says ‘NO’ to IVF
1. Separation of the unitive-procreative
dimension of the conjugal act
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The inseparable connection:
union and procreation
The Church's teaching on marriage and human
procreation affirms the inseparable connection, willed
by God and unable to be broken by man on his own
initiative, between the two meanings of the conjugal
act: the unitive meaning and the procreative meaning.
By safeguarding both these essential aspects, the unitive
and the procreative, the conjugal act preserves in its
fullness the sense of true mutual love and its ordination
toward man's exalted vocation to parenthood
see Humanae Vitae 12
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CONCLUSIONS
2. Massive destruction of human life
Currently the number of
embryos sacrificed, even in
the most technically
advanced centers of artificial
fertilization, hovers above
80%.
(Footnote 27, Dignitas Personae)
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CONCLUSIONS
3. The child must be a gift not a product
The child has the right ‘to be the fruit of the
specific act of the conjugal love of his parents’.
CCC 2378
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The child becomes a manufacturing
product and not a gift
A child …”cannot be desired or conceived as
the product of an intervention of medical or
biological techniques; that would be equivalent
to reducing him to an object of scientific
technology.“ Donum Vitae II, B,4,c
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‘Product’
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Genetic testing
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A kind of quality control selection
Where is it going?
To create the perfect baby – disease free, blond
hair, blue eyed, good footie player …
See ‘Gattaca’ video clip
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Pastoral support
“The community of believers is called to shed light
upon and support the suffering of infertile
couples…Spouses are called to find in it an opportunity
for sharing in a particular way in the Lord's Cross, the
source of spiritual fruitfulness…Physical sterility can be
the occasion for other important services to the life of
the human person, for example, adoption, various
forms of educational work, and assistance to other
families and to poor or handicapped children.”
(Cf. DV, II, B, 8,d)
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“Although the manner in which human
conception is achieved with IVF and ET cannot
be approved, every child which comes into the
world must in any case be accepted as a living
gift of the divine Goodness and must be
brought up with love.”
Donum Vitae II, B5
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“You formed
my inmost being;
you knit me in my
mother's womb.
Fearfully and
wonderfully
made!”
Psalm 139
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The Church is announcing a big
‘YES’ to life!
The Church’s mission to protect the poor…”implies
courageous opposition to all those practices which
result in grave and unjust discrimination against unborn
human beings, who have the dignity of a person,
created like others in the image of God.
Behind every “no” in the difficult task of discerning between
good and evil, there shines a great “yes” to the recognition of
the dignity and inalienable value of every single and unique
human being called into existence.” (Conclusions, D.Pae)
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Thank you!
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Questions
1.
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3.
If you are asked as a Catholic ‘on what basis
does the Church say no to IVF?’ can you now
explain it?
How do you understand the inseparability of
the unitive and procreative dimensions of the
conjugal act?
What is your ethical opinion about embryo
destruction and freezing?
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