As part of Respect Life Month, we’ve chosen four weekly themes. This week’s theme is IVF, NFP and Contraception.
When a couple is struggling to conceive, or trying to avoid conceiving a child, the church encourages them to use methods that honor the dignity of human life and the sanctity of marriage. For avoiding conception, Natural Family Planning (NFP) is fully approved by the church, it helps couples respect one another and work with God’s design for procreation. All artificial contraceptives are intrinsically wrong.
When struggling with infertility, reproductive technologies are permitted when they help, not replace, the conjugal act. For example, treatments that improve a couple’s natural fertility are encourages, whereas procedures like IVF or surrogacy, which remove the conjugal act, are not morally acceptable. However, couples that have already begun IVF are encouraged to give all embryos their proper dignity, just as they would to a naturally conceived embryo.
More resources are available on our website at https://portlanddiocese.org/respect-life-month
