RETRACING THE ISLAMIC PROHIBITION ON GENETIC GESTATIONAL SURROGACY (UTERINE SERVICE) FOR MARRIED COUPLES: SCIENTIFIC AND ANALOGICAL PERSPECTIVES

Abstract

Assisted reproduction involving a third party (sperm, ova or uterus) in procreation has invited fierce debate among Muslim scholars all over the world and the two main theological schools of Islam – Shi’ah and Sunni – have responded to it differently. In Shi’ah Islam, it is permissible, while in Sunni Islam, it is prohibited and this prohibition enjoys endorsement from leading religious clergies (ulama) across the spectrum. This paper opens a novel paradigm regarding prohibitions on availing uterine services to gestate an embryo (baby in the early developmental stage post-fertilisation) created from the gametes of the married intended couple for developmental purposes (genetic gestational surrogacy) from analogical and scientific references in conjunction to Qur’ānic citations. It considers that wet nursing and gestational surrogacy are societal services and share undeniable biogenesis characteristics. The argument is novel in our knowledge and has not previously been so comprehensively given in written form with such explicit scientific evidences. The parallels between genetic gestational surrogacy and wet nursing/foster motherhood are discussed, with reference to mainstream arguments on the purity of lineage, sanctity (hurmat) of surrogate women and sacredness of the womb. Key aspects of gestational surrogacy and wet nursing are elaborated alongside departure points between contemporary surrogacy and Islam-inspired surrogacy.