Is donor insemination a moral act?

Is donor insemination a moral act?

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prodromos

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I disagree with that reasoning. This is true for the many adopted children and no one claims that adoption is immoral on those grounds. Besides all that, this goes into another topic on whether incest is innately immoral. For example, Abraham married his half-sister. Was this immoral of them?
A single anonymous sperm doner could potentially have hundreds of progeny who have no idea they have siblings. With adopted children there are generally clear records available of their true parentage and the number of potential siblings is not significant enough to be an issue.
 
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Apex

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A single anonymous sperm doner could potentially have hundreds of progeny who have no idea they have siblings. With adopted children there are generally clear records available of their true parentage and the number of potential siblings is not significant enough to be an issue.

You never addressed my question about whether incest was innately immoral. If you are going to claim that one of the moral issues with sperm donation is the incredibly small possibility of two biological siblings unknowingly getting married, then you have to prove that incest is always morally wrong in this situation.

Plus, this can be avoided with genetic testing. You can just as easily claim that it is immoral for an adopted child, who doesn't have clear records of who his biological parents are, to get married without first getting a genetic test done. What would you say?
 
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prodromos

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You never addressed my question about whether incest was innately immoral. If you are going to claim that one of the moral issues with sperm donation is the incredibly small possibility of two biological siblings unknowingly getting married, then you have to prove that incest is always morally wrong in this situation.
I can't see how guaranteeing that your offspring will sufffer all their lives from genetic disorders is in any way moral. It is pretty much premeditated child abuse. Apart from that it is pretty much universal in that all cultures reject marriage between blood siblings.
Plus, this can be avoided with genetic testing. You can just as easily claim that it is immoral for an adopted child, who doesn't have clear records of who his biological parents are, to get married without first getting a genetic test done. What would you say?
The majority of adopted children know they were adopted so would be more likely to have tests done with their potential marriage partner. There have been some recent cases of sperm doner offspring having unknowingly married their siblings, so it is a real issue with serious consequences.
 
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Open Heart

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It is apparent we define "sex" differently. However, I do not wish to go down another semantic dead end. Thanks for adding your opinion.
You apparently don't think masturbation is sex. Let me guess... Clinton did not have sex with that woman. You are right. We have nothing to discuss.
 
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Apex

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I can't see how guaranteeing that your offspring will sufffer all their lives from genetic disorders is in any way moral. It is pretty much premeditated child abuse. Apart from that it is pretty much universal in that all cultures reject marriage between blood siblings.

So, you think anyone with an elevated risk of passing on a genetic disorder to their offspring is morally wrong in reproducing? Does this include people with sickle cell anemia too? What about women who are over 45 years of age? They have a 1 in 35 chance of having a child with down syndrome.

Source: March of Dimes - Down syndrome risk
 
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LinkH

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Let's discuss the biblical references. Where would you like to start?

I Timothy 5:8
But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.

Ephesian 6:4
And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
 
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Angel Wings 1288

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Definition from American Pregnancy Association:
Donor insemination is a simple procedure that uses a syringe to place sperm into a woman's vagina to assist her in getting pregnant. The sperm is normally obtained from someone other than the woman's husband or partner.

Secondary questions for all those who would say this is a moral act.

1. Does the woman need to be married?
2. Does the woman's husband need to be infertile?

I’ve fathered three children with donor insemination, but none of it was my intention. On three different nights, demons from hell used these odd wire devices which they attached to my testicles, then collected my sperm. Afterwards, they found women who were fertile and impregnated them. The children that I inadvertently fathered are called cambions.

You may wonder what would be their reasons for doing this. It’s because hell has a huge population of damned spirits. Even with billions of human bodies to host them (so they can avoid pain in hell), it still isn’t enough. Since demons can’t reproduce, they find unwilling fathers like myself and use our sperm to impregnate unwilling mothers. Creating a new human provides a body for many different demons.

I don’t think any form of non-family donor insemination is moral, namely because the mother’s husband or future husband will get his genetic lineage/family tree cut off. Sure, the child will take his last name, but he or she won’t contain any of his genes. If the husband is infertile, then he should use his father's or brother's sperm if he wants a child, which will enable his family lineage to continue even if he's not the father of the child.

By the way, I’m not crazy, nor is my story about fathering three cambions fictitious. I swear in my heart of hearts that I’m telling the truth.
 
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Apex

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I Timothy 5:8
But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.

Ephesian 6:4
And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

Let's look at your first verse. I had asked for biblical support for your assertions that, and I quote you, "It is immoral to produce children with another man's wife. It is immoral for a man to donate sperm to produce a child that he knows he will not raise and does not intend to raise."

In the full context of 1 Timothy 5, we see that if a widow was to qualify for care from the church, her practical circumstances and Christian witness were to be examined. On practical grounds she must be all alone (v. 5), having no family and consequently no one to take up the support formerly provided by a husband. Furthermore, she must be at least sixty years of age (v. 9). This age was probably the culturally recognized age of retirement, as well as, practically, an age at which remarriage was unlikely. Presumably, at this age the temptations that faced the younger widow (v. 11-15) would have ceased to be a serious concern.

Among Paul's readers were those who were believing children or grandchildren of a widow. For them, making provision for the widow was an essential expression of genuine faith. Not only is care for the widowed mother or grandmother a logical recompense for her faithful service, but in the obedience to God’s will that it reflects, this care is pleasing to God. Disobedience amounts to rejection of the faith. The judgment that such a one is worse than an unbeliever (v. 8) is harsh, because that one has consciously broken Christ's love command.

How do you think this supports your original assertions? To me, this just supports taking responsibility to financially care for your family if possible. However, family is not defined here as only "genetic" kin. I would even included (non-genetic) adopted kin into this equation. Love for those under your roof is what mattered.
 
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LinkH

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Apex,
Choosing to have a child of your own 'genetic kin' and to not provide for it-- of your own choice-- is immoral. It's not providing for one's own.

And if you just give your kid away to someone else to raise, you aren't teaching the child, raising him 'in the nuture and admonition of the Lord.'

I suppose someone could donate sperm and be in the child's life? But why purposefully make a kid a 'bastard'-- pardon the harsh sounding archane language?
I can understand why kids are normally born out of wedlock. But in this case, the father doesn't even get to enjoy the momentary pleasures of being with a woman out of wedlock. He's just making a kid which, in most cases, he knows he isn't going to raise. Why would someone do that?

And why break your own heart? Can you imagine having a child out there and not getting to know the child?
 
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Paidiske

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I can understand why kids are normally born out of wedlock. But in this case, the father doesn't even get to enjoy the momentary pleasures of being with a woman out of wedlock. He's just making a kid which, in most cases, he knows he isn't going to raise. Why would someone do that?

And why break your own heart? Can you imagine having a child out there and not getting to know the child?

At one point, I seriously considered becoming an egg donor (which is much much less common than donating sperm. Most people who want a donor egg can't get one).

Why? Because I knew someone who was unable to produce her own ova, who wanted to have a child. Because I could give her that. She was married - there was no suggestion of me being in any form a "parent" to that child - it would have been me giving her the gift of fertility.

You do have to have a certain amount of detachment to be able to do it. You have to be able to donate your gametes and then say "That isn't my child. I have given someone else the gift of being able to have a child."

As it happened I didn't meet the medical criteria and the situation passed.

I imagine that for some men the motivation might be similar; giving the gift of fertility to a family member or friend (or someone of less intimate acquaintance) out of selfless desire to see that person have the joys of parenting.
 
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Apex

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Apex,
Choosing to have a child of your own 'genetic kin' and to not provide for it-- of your own choice-- is immoral. It's not providing for one's own.

And if you just give your kid away to someone else to raise, you aren't teaching the child, raising him 'in the nuture and admonition of the Lord.'

I suppose someone could donate sperm and be in the child's life? But why purposefully make a kid a 'bastard'-- pardon the harsh sounding archane language?
I can understand why kids are normally born out of wedlock. But in this case, the father doesn't even get to enjoy the momentary pleasures of being with a woman out of wedlock. He's just making a kid which, in most cases, he knows he isn't going to raise. Why would someone do that?

And why break your own heart? Can you imagine having a child out there and not getting to know the child?

Is true parentage based on genetics or relationship?

I have a young sister-in-law who was adopted by my wife's family. She is their daughter. Or would you look this little girl in the face and say otherwise?
 
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LinkH

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Is true parentage based on genetics or relationship?

I have a young sister-in-law who was adopted by my wife's family. She is their daughter. Or would you look this little girl in the face and say otherwise?

And if your niece met her birthparents, should they look the girl in the face and say, "You are not my daughter"?

I'm talking about the biological father not acknowledging the child or not treating the child as his own.

Adoptive parents who raise a child who was rejected, 'given up', etc. by his/her parents or whose parents died may be doing a good work. But how is it ethical for the father to sire a child he has no intention of raising?
 
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Apex

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And if your niece met her birthparents, should they look the girl in the face and say, "You are not my daughter"?

I'm talking about the biological father not acknowledging the child or not treating the child as his own.

Adoptive parents who raise a child who was rejected, 'given up', etc. by his/her parents or whose parents died may be doing a good work. But how is it ethical for the father to sire a child he has no intention of raising?

You didn't answer the question. Is true parentage based on genetics or relationship?
 
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LinkH

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Apex,

I would certainly consider genetic parentage to be 'true parentage.' I believe 'Honor thy father and mother' applies to adoptees in how they should behave toward birth parents, children whose parents abandoned them, etc.

But that doesn't mean I reject the role of adoptive parents. Christians have received the Spirit of adoption.

But I have also learned that the Roman concept of adoption wasn't exactly the same as the modern western version, but I've heard it also could involve a biological son being recognized as a legal son with all the rights and privledges. Adults could be adopted and adoptees would normally keep up relationships with the biological family.
 
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dreadnought

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Definition from American Pregnancy Association:
Donor insemination is a simple procedure that uses a syringe to place sperm into a woman's vagina to assist her in getting pregnant. The sperm is normally obtained from someone other than the woman's husband or partner.

Secondary questions for all those who would say this is a moral act.

1. Does the woman need to be married?
2. Does the woman's husband need to be infertile?
No, I don't believe donor insemination to be moral.
 
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