All is incompatible with the biblical meaning of conception. A child carried by a woman in pregnancy is to be received by her as a gift from God to be nurtured, and loved, but in surrogacy the child has become a commodity conceived solely for the purpose of giving it away. Surrogate motherhood violates the One Flesh union of marriage by inviting a third party to bear the child. Donor and surrogate conceptions and pregnancies subject the child to risk of identity confusion and uncertain lineage, a significant aspect of family and community life. Surrogacy differs from adoption in that with adoption a child is not conceived for the purpose of giving the child away , but rather is unintentionally conceived and is left without someone to raise the child.
Adoption is a generous and hospitable act that is consistent with the Christian faith.
More than any other technology, surrogacy employs all that is objectionable in reproductive methods, treating the child as a commodity to be produced, then rejected, and sold by the mother. There is a similarity between selling the use of one s body for conception and selling the use of one s body as a prostitute. Having said this, it is also necessary to speak subjectively about the spiritual care of couples. Childless couples need care and support but not approval for choices they make that are incompatible with the biblical meaning of the One Flesh meaning of marriage and conception. Pastors need to minister to the need that drives a couple to do what they do as well as make them aware of the limitations God imposes on us.