Question of Faith | Fr. David Endres

Q: Why does the Church oppose in vitro fertilization? Aren’t all children gifts from God?

Openness to children is an essential part of marriage and family life. The Church recognizes children as gifts and affirms couples’ desire to conceive. It is understandable that spouses, especially those who struggle with infertility, seek methods to increase the likelihood of having children. Even with good intentions, however, not all methods of conception are moral.

The Nature of Procreation

Sex is part of God’s design for humanity. Within marriage, it expresses love and self-giving between spouses. It serves the good of the couple and brings new life into the world. These two meanings of marriage—the unitive and the procreative—cannot be separated without undermining the marital bond.

The Church understands procreation as more than a biological act. God is the ultimate source and sustainer of life, so procreation is a cooperative act between the spouses and God.

Methods of Conceiving

Through modern science, new ways of procreating have emerged. Many are accepted uncritically in our culture if they achieve the desired end of having a child. Yet, methods such as surrogacy and in vitro fertilization (IVF) are not morally neutral. They are contrary to God’s plan for marriage and family life. During in vitro, egg and sperm are united outside the womb and then implanted. It mechanizes reproduction and approximates in a laboratory what occurs through the marital act.

Reproduction in a lab is inconsistent with the rights of children and spouses. Children have the right to be conceived through a natural, human act, not through a technical or scientific process that dissociates sex from procreation. Spouses, too, have a right to become parents only through each other and not through the intrusion of a third party (Catechism of the Catholic Church, nos. 2376-2377).

Dignity of the Person

In vitro may appear to be “pro-life,” but it has a hidden cost: the creation of multiple embryos—often five to ten— of which most are frozen, discarded, or selectively reduced (the “weakest” embryos are terminated) from within the womb. Because embryos are human beings from conception, they should be treated with respect, not as disposable.

Every child, including those conceived through in vitro fertilization, possesses inherent dignity as made in the image and likeness of God. Protecting embryos from abandonment and destruction is, therefore, a matter of justice and respect for life.

In vitro also undermines the understanding of children as gifts. As the Catechism states, “A child is not something owed to one, but is a gift” (CCC, no. 2378). Children should not be seen as products to be acquired. Whether intended or not, artificial means of conception can lead to children being viewed as commodities. In addition to in vitro’s high cost, some doctors make a further business of designing children through genetic manipulation, embryo selection, and surrogacy, along with forms of artificial insemination that use donors’ eggs or sperm with preferred traits.

Moral Alternatives

For infertile couples, moral alternatives exist. These approaches work with the body rather than replacing or bypassing the marital act. Natural Procreative (NaPro) Technology assists couples by treating underlying health issues—such as hormonal deficiencies or endometriosis—while respecting the integrity of marital procreation. These may help some couples to conceive.

The Church values the gift of children, but not at any cost. In the case of in vitro, the good of having children is not pursued in a way that respects the dignity of all involved. However, there are moral alternatives, for conceiving and through adoption, that respect spouses and children and honor God as the source of life.

Father David Endres is professor of Church history and historical theology at Mount Saint Mary’s Seminary & School of Theology.

This article appeared in the April 2026 edition of The Catholic Telegraph Magazine. For your complimentary subscription, click here.