Christians, Muslims kick against surrogacy …as medical experts calls for cultural, religious shift

The conversation around fertility in Ghana is shifting as The Walking Egg Medical and Fertility Centre makes headlines for its breakthrough surrogacy cases.

The Medical Director of the facility, Dr Nana Yaw Osei, is now calling for a cultural and religious shift in the narrative, asking religious leaders to see assisted reproduction not as a challenge to faith, but as a vital solution for childless couples seeking to build their families.

Surrogacy remains controversial in deeply religious societies, with assisted reproduction often viewed as interference with divine will.

However, Dr Osei, a practicing Christian, insists that faith and medicine are not opposed.

According to Dr Osei, advancement in reproductive medicine has made parenthood possible for many couples once considered hopeless, yet social and religious attitudes have been slow to change.

“Growing up, if a couple could not conceive, it was considered the end,” Dr Osei said in an interview with The Spectator, but added that, “today, science has changed that reality, but society and faith have not fully accepted it.”

 “Medicine does not and cannot replace God,” he emphasised, citing that “It is an expression of the knowledge and wisdom God has given humanity. Compassion must guide how we treat people who are struggling with infertility.”

He noted that Ghana has taken steps to recognise surrogacy under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 2020 (Act 1027), which allows children born through assisted reproduction to be legally registered. While the law provides a basic framework, it does not fully address critical issues such as egg and sperm donation, embryo handling, or the distinction between traditional and gestational surrogacy.

“These gaps need attention to protect surrogates, intended parents and the children,” he mentioned.

Dr Osei said many women seeking surrogacy have lost their wombs through fibroids, cancer or childbirth complications and should not be further burdened by stigma.

“One of the most painful encounters in my career was with a woman who lost her uterus and felt God had abandoned her,” he said.

He called on churches and mosques to engage medical professionals and adopt a more informed approach to infertility.

“Surrogacy is not about convenience, it is about restoring hope and dignity to people who want a family,” Dr Osei stated.

However, sharing an Islamic perspective on surrogacy, Imam Alhaji Saeed Abdulai, an Islamic Scholar said the Islamic religion prioritises lineage, dignity and family stability, and in the process making surrogacy impermissible.

He explained that: “Surrogacy involves a woman carrying a child for another couple, a process which is unacceptable in Islam which makes lineage (nasab) and marital bounds very central.”

Quoting Qur’anic texts to support his claim, Imam Alhaji Saeed said the majority of scholars prohibit surrogacy because it mixes lineage and violates marital exclusivity (Fiqh Academies, OIC).

“The Prophet Mohammed said: “The child belongs to the (marital) bed” (Bukhari, Muslim), safeguarding clear parentage.

“So, for another woman to carry a pregnancy and eventually give birth for them clearly violates this clear instruction and admonition. This makes it impermissible,” he added.

Mentioning another Qur’anic text, he stated what Allah said in Qur’an 58:2: “Their mothers are only those who gave birth to them,” affirming biological motherhood.

What this clearly mean is that a couple can make the necessary efforts to have kids but as long as they resort to surrogacy, the surrogate mother would be recognised as the biological mother of the child and not the wife of the union.

According to him, Islam approaches reproduction as a sacred trust governed by divine guidance.

Procreation in Islamic law, he explained, was inseparably linked to lawful marriage, moral responsibility, and the preservation of lineage (ḥifẓ al-nasab), making surrogacy a critical ethical concern.

“The dominant and authoritative position among Islamic scholars is that surrogacy is prohibited (ḥarām), regardless of its form. This ruling has been affirmed by reputable international bodies such as the International Islamic Fiqh Academy (OIC) and Al-Azhar’s Council of Senior Scholars,” he explained.

The prohibition, he emphasised, rests on several foundational principles. “First, surrogacy introduces a third party into the reproductive process, violating the exclusivity of marriage. Second, it leads to confusion in lineage, which Islam strictly seeks to protect due to its implications for inheritance, guardianship, marriage eligibility, and social identity. Third, pregnancy itself establishes a form of motherhood in Islamic law, rendering any contractual reassignment of motherhood invalid (OIC Fiqh Resolution No. 16).

Thus, even gestational surrogacy, despite the absence of genetic linkage, remains impermissible.

Also contributing, a Resident Minister of the Ga West Model Presbyterian Church, Tetegu, Accra, Rev. Emmanuel A. Wiafe, says surrogacy conflicts with biblical teachings, Christian holiness and human dignity and should not be practiced by Christians.

According to him, although the Bible contains narratives often cited in support of surrogacy, such accounts were descriptive rather than instructional.

“The fact that the Bible mentions similar situations does not mean it approves of them,” he said.

Rev. Wiafe maintained that God’s design for procreation is rooted in marital intimacy between a man and a woman, describing childbearing as a divine gift, not a right to be claimed.

“Children are a gift to be received, not something to be demanded. Compassion must always be guided by holiness,” he stressed.

Addressing cases where women lose the ability to conceive through no fault of their own, Rev. Wiafe urged believers to place their trust in God rather than medical alternatives such as surrogacy, citing instances of unexpected childbirth as evidence of divine intervention.

He referenced the biblical account of Sarah, Abraham and Hagar, noting that although the arrangement produced a child, it also resulted in jealousy, conflict and emotional trauma.

“When humans try to play God, the consequences are often painful,” he mentioned.

Beyond theology, Rev. Wiafe raised ethical concerns, arguing that surrogacy risks commodifying the female body, which the Scripture describes as the temple of the Holy Spirit.

While acknowledging that medical knowledge was a gift from God, he cautioned that not every scientific capability aligns with holiness.

“We may have the right to do many things, but not everything pleases God,” he added.

By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu

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