Q&A: Status of a Child Born from Sperm Donation
Originally published:
This is an English translation (via GPT-5.4). Read the original Hebrew version.
Status of a Child Born from Sperm Donation
Question
Hello Rabbi,
The rule in the Mishnah in Kiddushin says:
Wherever there is kiddushin and no transgression, the child follows the male
What is the law in a case of fertilization through sperm donation between a couple whose sexual relations are forbidden? Does the child follow the male (since there is no transgression here), or the female?
Best regards,
Answer
I don’t know. It requires looking into whether an answer can even be found for this at all (that is, whether the transgression is a condition or merely an indication—sign or cause). I can’t answer immediately right now.