Bread for the Journey
~ 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time ~
The issue of stem cell research has once again come to the forefront in the news. This recently led a fellow Catholic to ask me, “Why is the Catholic Church so strongly opposed to the use of stem cell research since it can benefit the life and health of people with various diseases and illnesses?”
I would like to emphasize that our Catholic faith is not against the use of stem cell research in general, but the use of embryonic stem cell research in particular. Our Catholic faith is supportive of the use of adult stem cells and stem cells that come from the umbilical cord blood of new born babies as long as it does not harm a human being at any stage of development and proper consent is received. Studies have shown that the use of stem cells from these two sources offer a “better way to produce cells that can benefit people suffering from heart disease, corneal damage, sickle cell anemia, multiple sclerosis and many other diseases.”
Our Catholic faith specifically opposes embryonic stem cell research for three main reasons. First, it opposes the creation of human life through in vitro fertilization which creates human embryos in a petri dish within a medical or scientific laboratory. God’s plan for human life is that it is meant to come into existence through the expression of marital and sexual love between husband and wife.
Second, embryonic stem cell research leads to the destruction of embryos which are human life. In his 1995 encyclical “The Gospel of Life,” Pope John Paul II wrote: “Human beings obtained “in vitro” are human beings and are subjects with rights; their dignity and right to life must be respected from the first moment of their existence. It is immoral to produce human embryos destined to be exploited as disposable biological material.” In their recent document entitled, “On Embryonic Stem-Cell Research,” the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops stated: “It now seems undeniable that once we cross the fundamental moral line that prevents us from treating any fellow human being as a mere object of research, there is no stopping point. The only moral stance that affirms the human dignity of all of us is to reject the first step down this path.”
Finally, our Catholic opposition to the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research also flows from the fear that the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research could eventually lead to the direct federal funding of abortion. Once it is erroneously concluded that embryos are not human life, the greater the likelihood of federal funding for abortion since aborted fetuses are considered rich sources of stem cells. Even though aborted fetuses are rich in stem cells, it is important for us to keep in mind the scriptural principle, “we are not to do evil that good may come from it.” As I mentioned earlier in this column, there are moral and ethical ways for us to obtain stem cells from adults and newborn children that can greatly benefit the health and life of those in need, without resorting to the destruction of embryos and abortion.
I hope you found this column helpful. Have a great week!
~ Fr. Karl
