Questions to the Moralist - Personal Web Server - Boston College

and then have the zygote planted into the wife's uterus. They are asking me whether the
Catholic Church would authorize such a procedure.
Fr. Bretzke replies:
The simple answer is "no"; the relevant document is Donum vitae, the 1987 Instruction of
the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on Reproductive Technologies. This
document essentially considers morally illicit all these procedures (IVF, AIH, ICSI,
GIFT, etc.). This document, though, does not claim to bind as an infallible teaching of
the Magisterium, and some moral theologians would argue that the couple in these
circumstances could proceed with this attempt at assisted reproduction. But if they're
asking what the Catholic Church teaches on this matter, the answer is a clear-cut "no" to
the request.
The link to the CDF document is here below:
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con
_cfaith_doc_19870222_respect-for-human-life_en.html
Hope this helps,
Fr. Bretzke
Dear Fr. Bretzke,
In my hospital, I'm a very active member of our Ethics committee. I've been perusing
your book again because I'm trying to find the Church's position on this: I know that if a
mother's life is in danger, a pregnancy can be terminated. But I think I read somewhere
also that if there is absolutely no chance that a baby will live, such as in the case of
anencephaly, then the pregnancy can be terminated even though the mother's life is not in
danger but because of the emotional distress to the mother to carry a baby to term,
knowing it will die.
Did I read that in your book? I know I heard it somewhere. Sure would appreciate your
help. Thanks, and I hope all is well.
Fr. Bretzke replies,
Thanks for the question. No, you didn't read that in my book. It is a case that is still
debated among moralists, and I think it would probably be morally justified to terminate
the pregnancy in that sort of case, though the official Church position would probably
argue for letting the baby come to term and then allow it to die.
Fr. Bretzke
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