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2019, Everyday Bioethics: Intersections (The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity)
New Genetics & Society, 2018
The million frozen human embryos accumulated in IVF clinic freezers across the United States have become premier targets for saving by groups committed to repurposing reproductive remainders. Based on twenty-seven months (2008-2013) of ethnographic research within a Christian embryo adoption program and an embryo biobank for stem cell research, this article examines the motivations and practices involved in transforming leftover IVF embryos from a remaindered to a repurposed state. A focus on saving illuminates how moral discourses, economic logics, and biomedical issues conspire in shaping futures as well as modes of care in the present. Embryo repurposing programs use similar saving practices for different reasons, assume responsibility for repurposing IVF embryos, and strive to transform them into revalued forms for new futures. Fluctuating factors beyond the cryopreservation tank multiply rather than stabilize embryo potential. As a dynamic, open-ended process, saving requires programs to adjust strategies over time and wait.
Clinical Ethics, 2010
NotaBene ISSN 1313-7859, 2017
This paper compares and contrasts conflicting religious perspectives on the moral status of the human embryos and their use in stem cell research derived from major monotheistic religions such as Catholicism, Judaism and Islam. I examine the validity of such religious arguments in debates on stem cell research and science policy more broadly through a critical analysis of Jurgen Habermas’s theory of the post-secular society, particularly the claim that the clash between science and religion in contemporary liberal democracies could be offset by adopting a new concept of ethical citizenship. This normative perspective mandates epistemic flexibility by both religious and secular citizens who ought to willfully engage in complimentary learning processes in order to transcend the inherent limitations of both non-reflexive religious beliefs and narrow secularist worldviews. My analysis of the role of religion in the stem cell controversy suggests that the value positions of participants in public deliberations are deeply entrenched and ideological differences often translate into conflicting epistemic claims about science. I argue that a meaningful dialogue between science and religious traditions on the issue is largely dependent on how compatible are scientifically derived assessments of embryonic status with the respective religion’s fundamental theological tenets about the beginning of personhood. It is also contingent on the degree of openness of each religious tradition to both rival traditions and scientific knowledge. Additionally, I illustrate how the stem cell controversy is not reducible to the conflict between religion and scientific knowledge on the value of human embryonic life, around which stem cell debates worldwide have often been framed, by undertaking a close examination of three bioethical issues central to the debate: (1) secular perspectives on the contested moral status of the human embryo; (2) the ethics of human cloning technology; and (3) concerns about the exploitation of women as major tissue donors in the global stem cell bioeconomy.
Background: The use of embryos in embryonic stem cell research (ESCR) has elicited ethical controversies as it entails the destruction of 5-day old human embryos to harvest stem cells. Objective: To explore the ethical positions of Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Catholicism concerning the use of (1) left-over embryos from in vitro fertilization (IVF) also known as 'surplus' embryos and (2) 'research embryos' which are created by scientists to conduct research using embryonic stem cells. Methods: The opinions of religious leaders of Buddhist, Hindu, and Catholic faiths in Malaysia pertaining to ESCR were examined via in-depth, semi-structured interviews while Islamic responses are collected from local writings related to the derivation of fatwa on this issue. Participants' responses on the ethics of human stem cell research are presented as a reflection of various scriptural texts of these four religions. These are presented and supported with the help of international bioethics literature and focus on the use of 'surplus' embryos and 'research' embryos. Results: Islamic ethics deviate from Hindu and Buddhist teachings regarding saving of research embryos that have been created specifically for research and are considered as human lives only after 120 days fertilization. Hindu and Buddhists also underscore the sanctity of human life, but give priority to the alleviation of suffering in living adult humans. They generally encourage ESCR. Research is a knowledge-seeking endeavor considered noble by Islam. This is also a concept within Hindu and Buddhist philosophy; in particular, when potentially beneficial research goals are the basis. Catholicism also emphasizes sanctity of human life, but stresses also the inviolability of embryos from the moment of conception. Conclusion: Embryonic stem cell research is permissible and encouraged according to Hindu and Buddhist perspectives in view of the potential benefits of such research to society, with some reservations. This is similar to Islamic views on the ethics of ESCR. However, Catholicism differs from all the other three religions; it appears to discourage research in this field because of the likely violation of a sacred principle in Catholic teachings.
Deeply informed by the biblical witness and his ecclesial faith, Aquinas held that Christ’s humanity is an instrument of divine agency. Because Christ’s human will is always aligned with his divine will, every human action of Christ gains divine efficacy by virtue of the fact that his humanity never ceases to be the instrument of his divinity. Here Aquinas builds upon Athanasius and Cyril of Alexandria in their use of the Greek word ὄργανον (i.e., organon, Ln., instrumentum) to highlight Christ’s humanity as a conjoined, living, and intelligent instrument. Aquinas’ understanding of the humanity of Christ as instrument of the divinity beautifully illumines the unity of the whole edifice of the faith. In particular this doctrine preserves the divine transcendence, human exemplarity and sacramentality, and soteriological significance of Christ and his actions.
This article considers the important question regarding the salvation of non-Christians in the thought of Gerald O'Collins, S.J., and Pope John Paul II, particularly with respect to their soteriology and Christology. I consider their interpretation of Gaudium et spes §22.8, but also deal with O'Collins's interpretation of Lumen gentium 16. I defend the Church's teaching that Jesus Christ's redemptive work is the full and sufficient means of salvation, and hence that the mission of the Church is to call all men to Jesus Christ who is the only mediator between God and man (1 Tim 2:5). Regarding the fate of the unevangelized, namely, those who through no fault of their own—the invincibly ignorant—have failed to respond to the Gospel, I argue for accessibilism and rejected inclusivism. I also underscore the importance of the distinction between the sufficiency and efficacy of Christ's atoning work, and in this connection the distinction objective and subjective salvation.
Frontiers in psychology, 2024
PhD thesis, 2022
in "Essays on Propertian and Ovidian Elegy" ed. T.E. Franklinos and Jennifer Ingleheart, 2024
Revista Portuguesa de História, 2013
Geschichte und Gesellschaft, 2002
Business, Management and Economics Engineering, 2023
Journal of English Teaching, Applied Linguistics and Literatures (JETALL)
Acta horticulturae, 1999
Nature Biomedical Engineering
Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation
Environmental Engineering and Management Journal, 2007
Nigerian Journal of Physiological Sciences, 2010