I was wandering from place to place when I happened upon a wise man and said to him, ‘My teacher, Why is it that some families suffer the pain of infertility?’
And he said to me, ‘My son, it is because God loves them with a complete love, and this way they are able to expand the measure of divine mercy and loving-kindness shown them.’
– Yalkut Shimoni, pt. 2, 247:98, Tears of Sorrow, Seeds of Hope, p. 36)

Infertility is unfair. A young couple meets, falls in love and decides to marry and build a “Bayit Neeman BeYisrael,” a haven for Jewish life. They dream of a home filled with children, the joys and tribulations of raising kids, and family celebrations of birthdays, bar and bat mitzvahs. Everywhere they go, they encounter cute babies on billboards, cute babies on bus ads, and toothlessly cute babies on television spots. Until recently, the bystanders, they are now ready and excited to begin this journey themselves.  But, it is not to be.

A myriad of questions besiege the couple. Is it the young woman who is at fault? Was it something she inherited, contracted, ate or wore? Or is it the young man whose lifestyle may be the causative factor? Was it something he inherited, contracted, ate or wore? They are confronted by well-meaning advice givers who further add to the couple’s frustrations and difficulties. They select a treatment path and then question its validity. Are they seeing the right doctor? Is the treatment working? Will they be able to endure the endless procedures, failures and disappointments? Will they be able to withstand the pleading, “When are you going to make me a grandmother?”

Infertility evokes in the couple the question of why me? They observe the apparent ease in which their siblings and friends conceive. They read in the print media about all the teenagers who are saddled with unwanted pregnancies. The news is filled with the controversy of abortions and different modes of contraception. Why then are they having such difficulties conceiving?

It is somewhat comforting to know that generations of Jews come from a long line of couples who had fertility issues and challenges.

To read about the infertility challenges of our Jewish Matriarchs and other biblical women, Click here!