NRR 202-204

INSEMINATION WITH MIXED SEED

QUESTION:

At a discussion on the question of artificial insemination, a physician said that if she (the physician) finds that the sperm of the husband is not potent enough (a low sperm count), she requests that the brother and the father of her patient’s husband bring in their sperm. The three sperm are mixed and injected in the wife. Would this be permitted in Jewish law? (Asked by Sonia Syme, Detroit, Michigan.)

ANSWER:

THE QUESTION of artificial insemination has already been discussed in the Conference Yearbook, Vol. 62, 1953, and in Reform Responsa, pp. 212 and 217. Since then the whole question has received increasing attention from Halachic authorities, the reason being, of course, that the practice is becoming widespread.

It is worthwhile noticing that some of the fullest and most competent discussions on the matter are taking place in Israel under the general auspices of the historic Or-thodox hospital, Shaare Zedek. The hospital has what one might call a resident Halachist, Eliezer Waldenberg, and he has published a series of volumes. The recent ones are mostly on such questions as artificial insemination, determination of death, etc. In addition to Rabbi Waldenberg, the doctors connected with the Shaare Zedek Hospital conduct a regular seminar on medical Halachic questions. They deal with the latest medical procedures in relation to the Halachah. These seminars are published in pamphlets called “Healing” (Assia). In addition, the editor of the seminar, Dr. Abraham Steinberg, has written two small volumes on these questions (Lev Abraham). Thus all the important other authorities are here cited, as well as providing a unique combination of expert medical competency and Halachic knowledge.

In general, one may say that the situation is as follows: By and large, the authorities insist that the seed, if possible, be that of the husband. To some extent there is some relaxation, but no clear permission for the seed coming from an unrelated donor; although it is accepted, since the seed does not come by actual sexual contact, that the woman receiving the seed from an unrelated donor cannot really be considered an adulteress, though there are some questions as to whether the husband should divorce her or not, and also some questions as to the stage of her menstrual cycle at which these injections should be given.

Let us say, then, that artificial insemination is firmly permitted if the seed comes from the husband. But now the specific question is, suppose that his seed is mixed with other seed. This very question was discussed by Moses Feinstein in his Igros Moshe (Even Hoezer #71). He even used, in Hebrew letters, the word “booster,” which means, in this case, strengthening the seed with seed from other donors. Moses Feinstein absolutely forbids this, and so do all the authorities, because it would not be known who could be considered the father. As a matter of fact, Moses Feinstein also objects to this procedure on the ground of deception. The woman believes it is her husband’s seed when actually the effective sperm is not from her husband at all.

In the question asked here, the process is much more unacceptable than that of a booster of the husband’s seed with the seed of some unknown donor. Here there is added to his seed the seed of his brother and his father, and to the extent that the added seed is the effective seed, which it is meant to be, to that extent it is an incestuous relationship, for the woman is impregnated by the seed of her living husband’s brother and/or her husband’s father, a totally forbidden incestuous relationship. No wonder this is forbidden by the laws of the state of Michigan; such a mixture should be forbidden by every other state. But it must be stressed again that aside from these especially forbidden mixtures, all mixtures of seed seem to be generally prohibited by all the Halachic authorities who have written on the subject.