In my blog post Personhood-What Is It, I said that to have personhood, is to have the intrinsic value of a human being with all the rights and responsibilities that go along with being human.
The Christian worldview, the worldview of the Bible, holds that God, with the creation of mankind, gives mankind special intrinsic value. A name for this intrinsic value, in modern language, is personhood. Mankind is created in a special way that is different from animals. Genesis 1:26-27 says,
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
Before reading this, if you and your spouse have gone down the path of IVF, you may find this difficult to read. This blog posting suggests that the path of IVF involves a husband giving up, at least part of his leadership and a wife submitting to someone other than her husband. Also suggested is that this step is outside of God’s design for marriage. These conclusions can be debated. In marriage, husbands often allow others to, in a sense, take the lead in various decisions that impact upon their wives. … Read the rest
Why would I write on In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) and the image of God. The bible teaches that mankind are made in the image of God. In Genesis 1:27 it says, “God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” God created them, both male and female in His Image. In Genesis 1:26 God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.” The bible teaches that there is only one true God. … Read the rest
To date In Vitro Fertilization involves the destruction of tiny human beings. Conception (the joining of the egg and the sperm) occurs in a glass dish. For each successful pregnancy, many conceived human lives are lost along the way. This means that for a doctors to become involved in IVF that they need to live with their involvement in the destruction of early tiny humans.
How is it possible for a doctors to arrive at the point where they would be willing to involve themselves in such destruction of tiny human beings? … Read the rest
Worldview and Ethical Issues from a Biblical Perspective
