Catholic Bioethics Document Not A 'Battle Plan Of Resistance' To Obama Administration, NYT Opinion Piece Says

Main Category: Women's Health / Gynecology
Also Included In: Fertility;  Stem Cell Research;  Sexual Health / STDs
Article Date: 22 Dec 2008 - 3:00 PST

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A Roman Catholic document on bioethics released last week "ratchets up the church's condemnations of embryonic stem cell research, in vitro fertilization, the 'morning-after pill' and a host of other techniques it regards as violations of human dignity," John Allen, senior correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, writes in a New York Times opinion piece. However, the document is not a "battle plan for resistance to the incoming" administration of President-elect Barack Obama, according to Allen.

Allen writes that the document "has been in the works for years" and is "hardly a rapid response to the American elections," adding that the Vatican does not "want to be at loggerheads" with Obama because it is "more in sync" with Obama on "a range of matters" than it is with President Bush. According to Allen, the document could be viewed as "encouragement" for the "most ardent pro-life forces in America to let slip the dogs of war." However, the Vatican is "trying to strike" a "balance" between Obama's positions on abortion and stem cell research, which many Catholic bishops and "ordinary" Catholics believe are "troubling," and the "important areas of common ground" Allen says.

The Vatican "yields to no one in its pro-life commitments," Allen writes, adding that the document is a "reminder that there will be no 'truce'" or "strategic silence about the defense of human life from the moment of conception." Allen notes that "putting out a hard-nosed pro-life document right now, at least in the United States, may be the political equivalent of shouting 'Fire!' in a crowded theater." According to Allen, the "question" is whether the Vatican will find an "effective way to mobilize" U.S. Catholics "who hope to build bridges" with Obama (Allen, New York Times, 12/19).

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