Definition, Indications and Motivations
Surrogate gestational¹ motherhood can be defined as an arrangement where one woman carries a pregnancy to term for another woman who is either unable or unwilling to do so. There are two types of surrogate mothers. The one type is ‘partial surrogacy,’ in which the surrogate mother is also the genetic as well as gestational mother of the child. The other type is ‘full surrogacy.’ It involves the transferring of an egg fertilized in the laboratory (in vitro fertilization²) to a woman who then carries it to term and delivers the baby for the couple.

Green.   For a long time, this colour was a metaphor for money.  Recently, the brand has changed.  “Being green” is almost universally understood as being referencing the natural environment and engaging in practices that consciously protect it.

The evidence of the world “going green” was on display during the December 2009 Copenhagen conference.  With unprecedented build-up and under the spotlight of global media, world leaders took turns to publicly decry global warming and its catastrophic impact on the planet, all-the-while privately being unable to reach any meaningful agreement regarding a plan to counteract it.   Skeptics and “climate change deniers” considered this a good thing. Most environmentalists, on the other hand, were disturbed.   And given that many in the environmental movement express their concerns with language of religious zeal – even if in many cases this the religion of a secular fundamentalism – talk of the “world as we know it coming to an end” and apocalyptic predictions regarding what will be faced in our lifetimes were at least for a time the stuff of everyday news.

Rev. David Silversides is the pastor of Loughbrickland Reformed Presbyterian Church in Loughbrickland, Northern Ireland, UK.  This audio piece is published here with his permission.

Question:  How concerned should I be about the environment?

I believe your question is a good one. We hear a lot about the environment today. The media and politicians talk about “carbon footprints,” and oceanic pollution. Governments talk about reducing greenhouse gases and legislating environmental regulations. Since the Bible has a lot to say about the beauty of creation and being stewards of creation, it can get confusing how exactly to understand a Christian’s obligation regarding the environment.   In fact, a lot of propaganda comes to us designed to scare us into changing our behavior. The fundamental answer to the question is this:  “We should be as concerned about the environment as the Bible tells us to be.”  Allow me to give the following pointers for all of us: