Assuming that scientists have pin-point proof of reincarnation and have developed sophisticated technology to analyze one’s action and determine what he/she will be re-born as, 90% accuracy.
Suppose a couple “A” gave birth to a boy they adore and cherish. The kid has some distinct birthmark that made him unique. Sometimes later he died and the parents are hoping he’s in a better place.
Later, another couple “B” gave birth to a boy, and he also have that birthmark on him. Several years later, couple “A” and couple “B” met and couple A notice the boy has a birthmark similar to their deceased child. Arguing who’s child does this belong to, both couples decide to take the boy to a new-age guru who specializes in past-life regression and techniques to know your past.
It turns out the boy’s past life parent were couple A, who has now migrated to couple B. The boy, who undergone advanced hypnotic or whatever technology in the future to determine past life, recalls evidence of his past life and vividly remembers being born to couple A.
The issue: Because couple A really wants this boy really bad, they claim that they are the real parent of the boy but somehow has died and his soul has been carry to another body. Couple B, on the other hand, claims the boy is really theirs as they are his parent in this life time and the couple B mother gave birth to him.
Both parents , A and B, fought court battle over this, over who the child should really belong to.
Couple B are his parents, biologically and ethically.
Couple A had their time with him, now it’s done. If they want to mantain a relationship with him, *and *he and his now-parents agree, then fine. But, just like a divorced couple who stay friends, or biological parents who gave him up for adoption, their relationship will be different. The fact that their relationship shift was caused by death and not choice is irrelevent
If they care about him as a soul and person, they will not interfere with his relationship with his now-parents, but may remain as favored aunt and uncle types.
Curious - are you speculating directed reincarnation or random? Did he choose his parents in each case? Because that would further strengthen the argument that his prior parents should back off and let his soul evolve in the way he’s chosen. It could also mean that he (and they) chose a premature death, if you follow the “Between lifetimes, we have perfect knowledge of our hardships and choose to accept them in order to grow spiritually or help others grow” school of thought. If they chose a short lifespan together and an early death, then the adoption analogy is even stronger.
Like perhaps Couple B killed him in his first incarnation, knowing he would then become their son, because they were too impatient to wait for him? Or perhaps knew that he would outlive them otherwise and never become their son? That’d be cool. (In a conflict/plot sense, not an ethical goodness…)
Ooh! What if they were infertile, but they had some sign that their child would be born with a birthmark in all his incarnations, but didn’t know specifics, so went around killing all children with birthmarks in order to hasten their conceiving a child?
