While the pro-life conversation is already heated by nature, few topics draw as much division in this sphere as surrogacy. Some believe that the practice commodifies children and rents the wombs, while others believe it to be a compassionate way to help a couple have a child. For those of us who believe that Scripture is the inerrant word of God and look to it as the moral guidepost by which we should model our lives, what does the Bible have to say about surrogacy?
While Scripture never explicitly says the word “surrogacy,” there are examples of it in practice in the Bible, as well as verses to note regarding the nature of surrogacy and what it suggests about God’s design for procreation. Scripture records ancient family-unit practices involving surrogates and the results.
It’s also worth noting that this topic must be addressed with care. Many people, both Christians and not, have participated in surrogacy, making it an even harder conversation to navigate. Ultimately, we must meet all people with both truth and grace, and make sure that our words align with what Scripture has to say about both surrogacy and people in general.
Key Takeaways
- The Bible may not use the word “surrogacy,” but it speaks clearly about God’s design for family and the sanctity of life.
- Scripture’s examples of surrogate-like arrangements reveal the consequences of pursuing children outside of God’s intended order.
- A biblical view of surrogacy requires balancing truth and grace while recognizing that children are blessings, not possessions.
Types of Surrogacy:
A basic understanding of surrogacy is needed when approaching the topic. The word “surrogate” is often used in front of other titles like “father” or “brother” to describe a relationship that is adoptive in nature. However, for the sake of this article, we are discussing surrogacy in the medical sense, which comes in two forms: traditional and gestational. In traditional surrogacy, the surrogate becomes pregnant using her own egg, either through natural conception or artificial insemination with sperm from the intended father or a donor, making her the child’s genetic mother. In gestational surrogacy, the surrogate carries an embryo created through in vitro fertilization (IVF), typically using the intended mother’s egg and the intended father’s sperm. Because the surrogate’s own egg is not used, she has no genetic relationship to the child.
Traditional Surrogacy in the Bible
In the Old Testament, there are instances in which a wife who was unable to bear children gave her female servant (or handmaid) to her husband so that she could bear children on the wife’s behalf, including Rachel and Bilhah, Leah and Zilpah, and Rachel and Hagar. A strong biblical case can be made that, although Scripture records this practice, it does not present it as God’s ideal for marriage and family. Genesis 2:24, for example, explains that marriage is between one man and one woman, saying “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Rather than explicitly condemning it in every instance, the Bible contrasts God’s design with the consequences that follow when people depart from it.
Additionally, God makes it clear in Genesis 1:28 that procreation should occur between husband and wife, as He commands Adam and Eve to “be fruitful and multiply.” Any instance in Scripture in which a married couple involved a third person in the marriage or procreation process resulted in jealousy, anger, and ultimately, division. We see this happen with Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar.
God had promised Abraham and Sarah children, yet both were entering their old age and still had not conceived. Doubtful of God’s plan, they took matters into their own hands by arranging for Abraham to sleep with their Egyptian slave, Hagar, to conceive a child. Once Hagar became pregnant, Sarah grew jealous of her and treated her poorly, leading Hagar to run away to the desert. Scared, alone, and pregnant, Hagar encountered the Lord, and He blessed her, though He also spoke of what would become of the child in her womb in Genesis 16:12,
“He shall be a wild donkey of a man,
his hand against everyone
and everyone’s hand against him,
and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.”
Hagar gave birth to a boy named Ishmael, and the Lord’s prophecy was fulfilled. Yet God kept His promise to Abraham and Sarah, who conceived and later gave birth to a boy named Isaac. The Bible records that the division between Ishmael and Isaac gave rise to two distinct family lines whose relationship was characterized by conflict. Could all this fighting have been avoided if Abraham and Sarah had been patient and waited on God’s timing?
Similar arrangements can be found in the Old Testament with Rachel and Bilhah, and Leah and Zilpah. Rather than resolving the sisters’ rivalry, these arrangements became part of an ongoing pattern of jealousy and conflict within Jacob’s household. But what does this mean for us? While the practice of a husband sleeping with a servant for children may no longer be prevalent in the modern Western world, surrogacy as we know it similarly diverges from God’s original, monogamous design for procreation. When certain things are taken out of God’s design, the results can be catastrophic.
Gestational Surrogacy in the Bible:
Gestational surrogacy is not mentioned in the Bible either, nor was the technology available at the time to complete the practice as we see it today. The story of Jesus’s conception, however, does align with gestational surrogacy to some extent.
Jesus is the son of God, yet He is also human. Fully God and fully human. He had a mom and a dad and came to this earth like any other human being with one exception: Mary was a virgin. Jesus was bestowed upon her immaculately by God, conceived by the Holy Spirit. Some theologians argue about whether Jesus possessed the same DNA as Mary, His God-given, earthly mother.
Biologically, a child conceived from a woman’s ovum receives genetic material from that woman. Since the Christian tradition teaches that Jesus was truly conceived in Mary’s womb and truly born from her (Luke 1:31; Gal. 4:4), His human nature was derived from Mary. Therefore, His human body would have shared genetic material with her. Scripture indicates that Joseph was not biologically related to Christ and acted more as an adopted father, given that the Holy Spirit conceived Christ. Regardless of where you stand in this theological debate, one thing is clear: Jesus was bestowed upon Mary. His conception follows the God-ordained family order of one man and one woman coming together in God’s name to bring forth a child.
Scripture regards children as gifts, heritages from the Lord. Surrogacy implies that a child is a right, commodifying both a child and a woman’s womb regardless of the physical, psychological, and moral repercussions for both. The Bible tells us to judge people and decisions by their fruit, or the results of such actions (Luke 6:43-44). On a surface level, surrogacy doesn’t sound so bad, and some even go as far as to say that it is Christ-like in its self-sacrificing nature. The fruit of surrogacy, however, should be heavily considered when examining the practice’s moral accountability. One should be very hesitant to label surrogacy as morally acceptable.
Surrogacy Today
Surrogacy as we know it today has resulted in a dark business that caters to couples desiring a child while being detrimental to the child and the surrogate woman involved. For starters, gestational surrogacy relies on in vitro fertilization, which comes with its own risks for both the surrogate mother and child. Additionally, the lack of regulation around surrogacy has resulted in catastrophically dangerous situations for the children involved. In Pennsylvania, for example, a man named Brandon Mitchell obtained a child with his partner via a surrogate, despite having been convicted in 2016 for sexual abuse of children and possession of child pornography. This isn’t the first time something like this has happened, and it most likely won’t be the last due to how unregulated the surrogacy business is.
Based on available data, research indicates that surrogacy also affects both the child and the surrogate mother psychologically. The emotional strain on women to immediately surrender the child they have carried in their womb for the last 9 months comes with emotional complications. In fact, surrogate mothers in the U.S. can also receive $25,000+ in compensation for “pain and suffering” associated with the process. Children may also experience emotional or psychological questions surrounding their biological origins and genetic identity later in life.
Additionally, in many surrogacy arrangements, contracts give the intended parents the authority to decide on abortion if they change their minds or if their child does not fit their desires, regardless of the surrogate mother’s wishes. Although surrogate mothers generally retain some control over the decision to abort, disagreements with the intended parents can lead to legal or financial consequences. In some cases, surrogates have even been offered money to terminate a pregnancy. For example, surrogate mother Crystal Kelley was reportedly offered $10,000 to abort the baby in her womb after prenatal testing revealed that the fetus had serious congenital disabilities.
Conclusion About Surrogacy in the Bible
Surrogacy is a very sensitive topic that must be handled with grace and care. It is honorable for a married couple to desire children, but it is not honorable to assume that we have the right to children by whatever means necessary. While commodification may not be the intent of every couple, the practice’s results should prompt reconsideration.
Some people compare surrogacy to adoption, seeing as they both involve raising a child that the woman in the relationship did not deliver. However, adoption is self-sacrificing in nature, providing a home for a child who needs one. It helps a child already in a difficult situation. Surrogacy creates that difficult situation, often with little regard to what is best for the child. Bottom line is that children are a gift, not a right. Everyone should regard these little ones as blessings worthy of love and respect, from conception to beyond.
