2 of 2

• To speak of "surplus" human life, as the lobby does, is morally offensive. No human life is dispensable, even if the intended use is good. Parental consent and donation of a "surplus" embryo provides no moral justification. If it did, we would have long ago gained permission to experiment on fetuses before they are aborted.

• Embryonic stem cells are not our only resource. The National Institutes of Health and advocacy groups downplay the potential of alternative research on adult stem cells, saying that they are hard to locate and may not multiply as well as "younger cells." But in early July, the Do No Harm coalition issued its own survey of medical research. The coalition concluded that the potential of adult stem cells "is as great or greater than the potential offered by embryonic stem-cell research." Embryonic stem cells may actually provoke an immune reaction in patients, form tumors inside a patient's body, and have not yet been successful in clinical trials.

• Science has a morally tainted legacy. Mengele's government-sponsored twin studies at Auschwitz and the government-sponsored Tuskegee study that allowed African-American men to die from syphilis serve as painful reminders that scientific research must be moral in both means and ends.

A clear principle has emerged from the global debates over human experimentation: It is immoral to perform research on people with "diminished autonomy." Those who are mentally ill, significantly disabled, or immature are not in a position to volunteer for a research experiment. They merit protection.

Our Christian faith obligates us to speak on behalf of the voiceless. A ban on federal financing for research that destroys human embryos—a ban that we endorse—is not enough. Privately funded, for-profit research that destroys or clones human embryos should also be outlawed. Fertilization clinics are creating too many human embryos. These unwanted embryos should be made available for adoption.

God's design for an individual life is evident from its initial cell, and we should protect that life at every stage. To be sure, stem-cell research should be pursued to help those who suffer; thus we urge President Bush to avoid any future decisions that condone the destruction of embryos and to increase funding for research on stem cells from morally acceptable sources.

Copyright © 2001 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

A ready-to-download Bible Study on this article is available at ChristianBibleStudies.com. These unique Bible studies use articles from current issues of Christianity Today to prompt thought-provoking discussions in adult Sunday school classes or small groups.

Media coverage of Bush's decision included The Washington Post, New York Times, and Christianity Today'sWeblog.

For more on the stem-cell debate, see Yahoo Full Coverage.

first page |  2 of 2

share this page

September 3 2001, Vol. 45, No. 11