Emily started her new job today as a nanny for an obstetrician. She is a single mom who adopted a frozen embryo. In vitro fertilization is growing thus leading to over 400,000 frozen embryos in IVF clinics across America. After a couple decides to use IVF they have to supply he clinic with 12 eggs from the female and sperm from the male. They combine the two in a laboratory dish (in vitro) and after the fertilization has accord the couple then can choose from the embryos which ones they want to use. A majority of couples use the procedure because they are having fertility problems but this still presents a problem for the remaining fertilized embryos. Some couples use the procedure so they can choose specific traits in their child. Albert Mohler said “The desire for a baby of a specific sex is not new, and it ranges from a mild preference to an absolute determination — whatever the costs in money and morality. Any technology that creates custom human embryos undermines human dignity.” The Christian worldview should see this as a major problem when most Christians define human life at conception. A decision has to be made by the couple after pregnancy, what to do with the unused embryos. Either the couple can put them up for adoption, save them to use at a later date themselves, donate to stem-cell research (which is un-lawful, so the embryo sits in till SCR is allowed), or destroy the remaining embryos. In one decision couples are allowing the killing of up to ten human lives. With all that said, Emily’s new employer had a heart to save these frozen embryos. I have heard of IVF before but I was not fully aware of the huge number of frozen embryos. This single mom who was getting past the age of fertility decided to adopt. After being denied by several countries for adoption she turned to frozen embryo adoption. This is an extremely noble undertaking and she IS saving a human life. The longer these embryos sit in a frozen state the probability of them taking in the woman decreases drastically. This is an option for adoption that most infertile couples do not know about and what better undertaking then saving a human life.
