Q&A: Ego or Altruism
Ego or Altruism
Question
Do you think that bringing children into the world is an altruistic act or a selfish one? I’d of course be glad to hear your perspective.
Answer
So this time, exceptionally, you want me to write דווקא my own opinion.
It is not an altruistic act, because there is no contribution here from you to someone else. The child himself would not have been in the world had you not brought him into it. And as for the world in general, it is doubtful that this contributes anything.
It is also not necessarily selfish. It depends on why you are bringing the child into the world. If it is because of the commandment, then there is no selfishness here (and perhaps there is some kind of spiritual rectification in the world).
It may be that you meant to ask about raising the child, not about bringing him into the world. Here there is already a beneficiary, and that can be altruistic. But it seems to me that here too the answer is not clear. It depends on why you are raising him. Even if it is done only for his sake, you have a responsibility to do so, because you are the one who brought him into the world.
Discussion on Answer
I have my argument about wrongful birth on that too (search for it here). There’s no room for such a claim.
Of course. It’s just that this time I deviated from my usual practice; besides, I already have my own opinion, so it’s more interesting to hear a different one. And as for the question: is it moral to choose on his behalf to bring him here without giving him the possibility of consenting?