First of all, how do you know 5 (!) traditional priests? Wow.
Anyway, I'd be interested in hearing the 5 responses.
My gut thinks it might be best to skip the shower, but I don't agree that you shun the child/subsequent events once he/she is born.
I kind of agree that the couple are really low-class or ignorant to broadcast such a thing. If that’s going to be the centerpiece of the shower, it wouldn’t be right to attend, but I would not shun the child for the sins of its parents. If the child is a relative, that especially is not right. Instead, I’d acknowledge the birth of the child and do I could to pray for the couple and see that the child is influenced to become Catholic. Often, children end up leading the parents in such such matters.
As for correcting the couple, that requires much prayer and wisdom. If you come on like gangbusters, it’s likely to make them think you bear hatred for the child, and from then on, your influence will be nil. A baby shower or family gathering of any sort is neither time nor place to raise the issue. It sounds as if they are truly ignorant that IVF is wrong, that the male preparatory actions are wrong, that freezing embryos is wrong, and that “reducing” the number of babies conceived is wrong. IOW, people raised without moral standards or with low morals are ignorant. The same thing holds for someone who’s had an organ transplant or has donated their own or someone else’s organs in the belief that the donor is truly dead, therefore, it is a noble act.
I have a cousin who had a double lung transplant. (No, not Catholic.) Do I rebuke her for being alive and refuse to associate with her? You can’t undo a lung transplant. (Well, you can, but the doctor who does it is guilty of murder and my cousin and those that approve are guilty of ѕυιcιdє or aiding in ѕυιcιdє and murder!) What about her daughter? Her grandkids? Her husband? These are not people I see on any kind of regular basis, but I’ve often wondered where to draw the line.
Is it my duty to correct the sins of distant relatives? What about getting a list of people who have designated themselves organ donors on their auto licenses? I used to check people’s licenses all day when I was a cashier and they wanted to pay by check or credit card. Should I have corrected or rebuked each one, and if that wasn’t feasible, quit my job?
If even good priests disagree, what then? I’m no moral theologian, but I believe the Church says a Catholic must follow the advice of his confessor or go with one’s conscience. If a person has absolutely no idea, then he may safely follow the majority (Church) opinion.
BTW, I’ve thought about it and I personally know a total of nine traditional priests, those who know me by name. Unfortunately, three are deceased and three are stationed overseas on different continents, one is cancelled and is a hermit of sorts, location unknown since 2015. That leaves two accessible, one a fifteen hour drive away, and the one whose Mass I attend. He is located 2 1/2 hours away.