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Schwartz and Rae impressed me as men of the highest motives, but in the end, their views struck me as utilitarian, like Keirstead's. All these men say they have worked through the ethics of ESC research enough to continue their work. But they answered my ethical probing with some hesitancy, suggesting they are not completely comfortable with what they are doing. That discomfort makes sense. Despite their attempts to fine-tune the ethics, perhaps they grasp intuitively that the issue is not exactly when an embryo becomes a "person," or is given a soul, or whatever word we use to indicate full human status. That point simply cannot be proven biblically, philosophically, or scientifically. It has not been given for us to know.

Perhaps they somehow grasp what many of us have been saying, that this tiny bit of life will, whatever its early status, inevitably become a person, and it is not our prerogative to interrupt that divinely ordained process, even for the sake of compassion. It's a matter of humility before this growing life and our gracious Creator.

Christine A. Scheller is a writer and editor in Southern California.

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Yesterday's article in this series was:

Stemming the Embryonic Tide | Pro-lifers face a scientific and public relations juggernaut.

The Coalition of Americans for Research Ethics collects news, commentary, public testimony, and facts about stem–cell research.

The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity has a collection of articles by its experts on stem cells.

The President's Council on Bioethics offers reports and discussions on topics from Aging to Stem cells.

Our weekly bioethics column, Life Matters, discusses stem cells and related life ethics issues. Nigel M. de S. Cameron's latest column was "Leon Kass, a Bioethics Legend, Steps Down."

More CT articles on stem-cell research includes:

The Stem-Cell Conspiracy | The Washington Post muddles a major breakthrough in adult stem-cell research, while the U.K. marches blindly on. (Aug. 29, 2005)

Post-Election Education | Pro-lifers weigh options after Californians fund embryonic stem-cell research. (Dec. 1, 2004)

The Politics of Stem Cells | Why do some scientists and politicians insist on exploiting embryos? (Nov. 17, 2004)

It's Not About Stem Cells | Why we must clarify the debate over harvesting embryos. (A Christianity Today editorial—Sept. 29, 2004)

California's Prop. 71 Stem-Cell 'Scam' | Supporters of cloning embryos for research have $11 million to convince state voters. (Sept. 29, 2004)

The Proposition 71 Stem Cell Scam | The biotech lobby is attempting to buy a law in California, Wesley J. Smith says. (Aug. 17, 2004)

When Does Personhood Begin? | And what difference does it make? (June 18, 2004)

Cloning Report Breeds Confusion | Does it open the door to 'therapeutic cloning'? (May 13, 2004)

More articles are available on our Science & Health and Life ethics.

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October 2005, Vol. 49, No. 10