Rejecting IVF in favor of accepting infertility as a cross leads to authentic fruitfulness and fulfillment
Source: Nathanael Blake. "How Saying No To IVF Is Saying Yes To Fruitfulness." March 26, 2026. thefederalist.com
The Gist
The author argues that couples struggling with infertility should reject IVF because it's morally wrong, and instead accept their situation as a spiritual challenge. Using one woman's story as an example, he claims this approach leads to greater happiness through adoption and spiritual growth than trying to force pregnancy through technology.
Conclusion
Saying no to IVF and accepting infertility as a cross to bear leads to greater spiritual fruitfulness and authentic fulfillment than pursuing technological reproductive solutions
Premises
- IVF involves morally problematic practices that are intrinsically dehumanizing and life-destroying
- Leigh Snead's experience demonstrates that rejecting IVF despite infertility can lead to fulfillment through adoption and spiritual growth
- All Christians are called to bear crosses, and infertility is one such cross that can lead to spiritual fruitfulness
- Natural fertility treatments within Catholic moral teaching are preferable to IVF, even if less successful
- Accepting one's circumstances rather than fighting them through morally questionable means leads to peace and unexpected blessings
- Alternative forms of fruitfulness (adoption, spiritual guidance) can provide the fulfillment that biological parenthood was meant to provide
Assumptions
- Catholic moral teaching on reproduction and sexuality is correct
- Human life begins at conception, making IVF's destruction of embryos morally equivalent to killing
- Spiritual fulfillment is more important than achieving desired biological outcomes
- Personal testimony and individual experience can serve as valid evidence for broader moral principles
- There is divine purpose or meaning in suffering and limitation
- Natural processes are inherently more moral than technological interventions