Halachot and Customs
What Is the Halacha If a Surrogate Is Not Jewish: Is the Child Jewish or Not?
Question
Shalom rav,
What is the halacha in the case of a surrogate?
If an egg is taken from a Jewish woman and sperm from a Jewish man, and the child is carried by a non-Jewish surrogate mother, is the child Jewish or not? And why?
Thank you very, very much!!!
Answer
Shalom rav,
According to most opinions, the owner of the egg is the full mother of the newborn, and according to that, the child is Jewish. However, there are opinions that it is uncertain whether the owner of the egg is the mother or the surrogate.
Therefore, in practice, in the case of a non-Jewish surrogate, the infant must be immersed after birth for the sake of conversion in the presence of three observant men.
If the child is male, the intention at the time of the circumcision must be that the brit is being done for the sake of conversion, and this must take place in the presence of three observant men who know about it.
If the child is female, it should be known that she will be forbidden to marry a kohen, as explained in Shulchan Aruch, Even HaEzer (section 6, paragraph 8), that a female convert, even if she converted before the age of three, is forbidden to a kohen.
With blessings,
Hillel Meirs
