"Why the Church Would be so Ridiculous as to Oppose IVF"

"Bad Catholic" Marc Barnes does a wonderful job of articulating the consistency of the Church's defense of the dignity of each person, and the truth of life and love in his post, "Why the Church Would be so Ridiculous as to Oppose IVF."

The Church opposes the confusion of love and economy. In some cases, our culture nods her head in approval. After all, this is the reason it’s a sin — and a heinous one — to promote loveless sex, sex which views a man as a sperm-bank and woman as a functioning uterus. This is one of the many reasons the Church condemns rape. This is one of the many reason that the Church is so heroic in opposing gendercide — the intentional abortion of baby girls. These evils are all evils of economy, that Wal-Mart category that counts the costs, that meets demand, that owes and is owed, and that has as much to do with love as porn has to do with a culture free from sex-trafficking — that is, nothing at all.

But when the Church opposes IVF for the exact same reasons, the culture rage quits. I understand the anger, I really do, for there is nothing so emotionally painful as infertility, nor anything so understandable as the use of artificial reproductive technology to alleviate that pain. But let’s take a step back and look at the thing.

It's well worth the read to see the link that love, life, dignity, fruitfulness and marriage share. It's a delicate issue, certainly, but Marc Barnes' articulation is a good place to start.