Widowed wife gives birth 2 years after husband killed in Iraq Options

[Mommy]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071019/sc_af...womenscienceivf

Apparently, they visited a fertility clinic before he left for Iraq. They wanted children, but she had fertility issues. He was killed in Iraq, and she was artificially inseminated with the semen that they were going to have a kid together with. -Thats the summary of it all.

I can't imagine the heartache involved with losing a spouse in Iraq. I'm really sentimental to issues like this so I shed a tear reading this story. I'm happy for her, but at the same time I wonder if it's healthy. What an honor, though, to be the son of a fallen soldier, and bringing happiness to a widow. It's just really sad that this kid will grow up without a father. I know a lot of kids have to deal with this, but to throw a kid into this situation when it's unnecessary is what I'm unsure of.

Thoughts?

[Divergent Realit...]

how is it different from if she were pregnant with the child before her husband went to war?

[The Fanatic]

how is it different from if she were pregnant with the child before her husband went to war?

Well it is in an obvious way because she was fertilized after he died instead of before he died (if she were to become impregnated with his seed via whatever method necessary before he went off to war). However, I understand what you are getting at. To look at it from Jessica's moral perspective, is it acceptable to fertilize oneself artificially with the sperm of her husband who is now deceased and essentially no longer her husband. From this train of thought, one could argue that she conceived a child out of wedlock thus violating any moral convictions that person could hold in that respect.

To answer your question, I do not personally find it morally wrong for the widowed woman to conceive the child of her late husband. It is an honorable way to remember his sacrifice in the service of his country. However, I admit that this could possibly inflict some psychologically traumatic injury on the child. At least children who grow up in the typical single parent household know that their father/mother exists somewhere; even if they don’t have any particular interest in seeking a meaningful relationship.