Statements from the Vatican
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Evangelium Vitae
(The Gospel of Life)
Pope John Paul II, 1995
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Donum Vitae (Instruction on Respect for Human Life in its Origin and on the Dignity of Procreation)
Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 1987
Statements from the National Conference of Catholic Bishops
Statements to Congress
Fact Sheets
- Fact Sheet: Current Clinical Use of Adult Stem Cells
- Fact Sheet: The NIH Proposal for Stem Cell Research is a Crime
- Scientific Experts Agree:
Embryonic Stem Cells
Are Unnecessary for Medical Progress
- What is an Embryo?
- Does Human Cloning Produce An Embryo?
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Stem Cell Reality Check #1
Myth: "Embryonic stem cells are the most effective for treating disease"
Reality: Actually, they're not. Embryonic stem cells have not helped a single human patient or demonstrated any therapeutic benefit. By contrast, adult stem cells and other ethically acceptable alternatives have already helped hundreds of thousands of patients, and new clinical uses expand almost weekly.
- Stem Cell Reality Check #2
"A clear majority of Americans supports stem cell research"
Of course they do, but what type of stem cell research do they support?
"Stem cell research" refers to research using various types of stem cells. Stem cells that come from adult tissue, placentas, or umbilical cord blood can be retrieved without harming the donor. The only way to obtain embryonic stem cells, however, is to kill the living human embryo.
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Stem Cell Reality Check #3
Myth: "Excess embryos are going to be discarded anyway"
Reality: Not necessarily. Today, parents can preserve "excess" embryos for future pregnancies as well as donate them to other couples. Under proposed NIH guidelines, parents will be asked to consider having them destroyed for federally-funded research instead.
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Stem Cell Reality Check #4
Myth: "Human life begins in the womb, not the Petri dish"
Reality: Actually, it usually begins in the fallopian tube, but it can also begin in a Petri dish.
Communication Resources
Press Releases regarding Stem Cell Research from the NCCB
| On many occasions, Jesus healed those who were suffering from various illnesses. In our attempt to imitate Jesus and restore people to health, we need to show great respect for every human life. Stem cell research has the potential to restore people to health, but some forms of stem cell research also destroy the lives of others. Stem cells from adults have restored people to health without destroying other lives. In contrast, embryonic stem cell research
involves the destruction of one human life, whether conceived through in vitro fertilization or cloning, in an attempt to restore another's life.
In the United States today, Congress and the President are in the process
of determining whether the federal government will fund the latter type
of research. If this were to happen, tax dollars would support the destruction
of human embryonic life in order to restore the health of another. For
more information about the moral dimensions of this political debate,
see the NCCB resources recommended in the left column. If you would like
to express opposition to embryonic stem cell research through an on-line
petition, visit www.stemcellresearch.org
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