Here’s a dilemma for those who support abortion.
Imagine that an IVF embryo was inserted into the wrong womb. The clinic notifies both parties. The biological mother wants the baby, but the gestational mother wants to abort the baby because it is not hers. What do you do?
Pro-choice logic dictates that the unborn become valuable and are deserving of protection when the mother wants the baby, but pro-choice logic also dictates that a woman’s right to bodily autonomy cannot be violated. If the gestational mother is forced to carry the baby to term, her right to bodily autonomy is violated. If the gestational mother is allowed to abort the baby to preserve her right to bodily autonomy, the right of the biological mother to determine the value of her offspring is violated. Which right claim trumps the other?
This isn’t so much an unanswerable moral dilemma as it is a test to see what pro-choice advocates believe to be the more important principle: bodily autonomy or the mother’s choice to keep her child. That said, genuine, natural rights should not conflict with one another. The fact that these two rights conflict shows that one or both are not natural rights. One, or both, is fictitious.
Thinking to Believe 
August 8, 2022 at 2:01 pm
Because both are attempting to use an ungodly path of procreation, then both should seek advice from an ungodly advocate. If I had someone come to me about getting a divorce, other ways of having a baby other than the way God intended, or a child’s gender assignment, I would let them know that I was not available to help them. People should know not only about their rights but also the responsibilities that come with it.
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August 8, 2022 at 3:32 pm
Your situation is flawed in that we don’t have the ability to remove the implanted fetus/child from the womb of one woman and then reimplant it into the second. Either way, the woman in whose womb it currently is would have the decision to either carry the child to term or to terminate the pregnancy. Lawsuits would I’m sure ensue.
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August 8, 2022 at 3:37 pm
Abortion is a medical procedure and as such is a decision made by the woman and her family with consultation of their physician. In the vast majority of cases it’s performed, 95%+ even by PP stats, it is not for any of the “hot button” propaganda reasons, but simply for convenience. This is horrific and unacceptable to most of us who value that unborn life. But it’s not our decision to make. We can of course make our judgment or discernment on the merits and morality, but again… it’s not our decision to make.
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August 8, 2022 at 4:57 pm
Barabbas Me,
Slavery is a business and economic decision and as such is a decision made by the business owner with consultation of their tax adviser. In the vast majority of cases, it is not for any of the “hot button” propaganda reasons, but simply for economic advantage. This is horrific and unacceptable to most of us who value black lives. But it’s not our decision to make. We can of course make our judgment or discernment on the merits and morality, but again… it’s not our decision to make.
Would you agree with this logic? If not, then why think it applies to abortion? If abortion is so evil, why should it be legal for anyone to do it? Why should a mother be allowed to murder her unborn child for any reason?
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August 8, 2022 at 4:58 pm
As for my situation, it’s not flawed. The fact that the embryo can’t be transferred is what causes it to be a dilemma, because either the woman carrying the child has the right to abort it, or the natural mother has the right to a living baby. It can’t be both.
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August 9, 2022 at 2:46 am
“If the gestational mother is allowed to abort the baby to preserve her right to bodily autonomy, the right of the biological mother to determine the value of her offspring is violated. Which right claim trumps the other?”
Oh, there’s no question about which trumps which. Nobody has the right to force another person to use their body for anything against their will. Period. Forcing a woman to carry a fetus to term is hardly different from slavery, which is also about one person forcing another person to use their body for something against their will. Even if one were to use slaves to save the lives of others doesn’t mean that slavery is justified.
Also, imagine how horrifying it would be for a woman who has been trying so desperately for potentially years to have her own baby that she has resorted to the time and expense of IVF…only to discover she’s carrying an embryo that isn’t even her own. What a profound personal violation that must feel like.
“That said, genuine, natural rights should not conflict with one another. The fact that these two rights conflict shows that one or both are not natural rights. One, or both, is fictitious.”
I really don’t see how this a moral quandary or a conflict of natural rights. The biological mother should have no say in this matter because it isn’t her bodily autonomy being violated. If you can’t force a person to donate blood to save a life, and you can’t even force a CORPSE to donate an organ to save a life, how is it justified to force a woman to donate her own bodily resources to save a life?
This is why I think the pro-choice position is the more moral one. With the pro-life position, you are forced to give birth, regardless of how awful the circumstances or your position on bodily autonomy. But with the pro-choice position, it doesn’t matter whether you value bodily autonomy more or the life of an embryo more, because either way you you can make the best decision for yourself—rather than having a decision forced upon you.
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August 10, 2022 at 1:35 pm
Jason, what do you mean by natural rights?
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August 19, 2022 at 7:46 pm
TR, interesting but it would be more interesting if the biological mother wanted the gestational mother to have an abortion and the gestational mother wanted to keep the baby even though it wasnt biologically hers.
but in your scenario the gestational mother should be allowed to abort — the baby is an invader.
this is the problem most dont understand about abortion ………. not ALL abortions are condemned in the bible but neither are ALL abortions allowed in the bible.
so ………. most pro-choice would allow a women to abort a baby she willingly made with a man even if that man wanted the child. while some pro-life would force a women to deliver a baby even if conceived from rape/incest or even if the mother’s life was in danger.
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October 13, 2022 at 11:48 am
mizpeh1, by natural rights I mean rights that belong to humans simply because they are human (the origin of these rights is a separate question, but I think the only proper foundation for such rights is God). Such rights are in contrast to rights that humans invent (such as the right to vote, the right to drive a car, etc.). Governments can give and take away the latter, but not the former.
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