Right to a Child

Right to a Child

1. Moral Issues

   • Is a child a gift?
   • Do all men and women have the right to a child?
   • Do women of any age have the right to a child?
   • Who should pay for IVF?
   • Is having a child by artificial methods playing God?

2. Christian Ethics

   • SOL
     • important if some of the embryos are used for foetal research or are simply disposed of if unwanted.
   • The child is a gift from God
     • There are concerns about older women and the development of saviour siblings.
       • Some Christians argue that women should have the same rights as men and that age should not be a barrier.
       • Other Christians say that they should just accept their infertility as God did not intend them to have children.
   • The Sanctity of marriage
     • a child should be raised in the context of a heterosexual, permanent relationship between parents.
       • This approach prohibits homosexual couples or single women from using sperm donors or surrogates to become parents.

3. Natural Law

   • Any means other than natural conception would be rejected.
   • The idea of masturbation to obtain sperm is wrong.
   • Preservation of life and the belief that all life has equal status
     • The destruction of embryos goes against these primary precepts.
   • Is an absolute theory
     • Do not take into consideration the consequences of actions.

4. Utilitarianism

   • Would weigh up the pleasure and pain involved.
   • All actions are judged by consequences
   • The happiness of the greatest number would consider the cost of the health service and whether money could be better spent in life-saving operations.
   • Preference would consider that no-one's happiness is more important than another's so the happiness of the couple is considered.
   • Doesn't protect the status of the embryo
     • Doesn't see it as sacred in any way.

5. Kantian Ethics

   • The categorical imperative demands that people are treated as ends not means.
     • This would apply to the embryo if it is considered to be a person and to others involved, such as a sperm/egg donor and surrogates.
   • All humans should have the same moral treatment.
   • Danger of treating the creation of human life as just another consumer good.
   • Can you universalise IVF to every infertile couple?