Embryonic cells in research and medicine - Is the Church against progress?
In episode eight of our Science and Faith series,we invited two guests, Prof. Paul Fairchild – a stem cell scientist and Professor of Immunology in Oxford, and Michael Wee – a Catholic bioethicist, to talk about the various types of stem cell research, how these differ from foetal tissue cell lines and their links to vaccine development.
Prof. Fairchild explained the different ways of sourcing stem cells and what diseases the scientific community hopes to treat using them. We also talked with Michael about which of these sourcing methods would be morally preferable. In addition, we engaged in an interesting conversation about why it is important to read beyond sensationalist headlines, especially when a controversial scientific topic is involved. In fact, Richard Dawkins and Benedict XVI were the protagonists of this last segment.
Then, we cross-examined Michael over the concerns Catholics have with regards to the use of drugs and vaccines developed using foetal cell lines, in particular we discussed ‘remote cooperation with evil’. Finally, Michael also commented on the Church’s stance on COVID-19 vaccines.
Prof. Fairchild and Michael Wee found common ground but agreed to disagree about some of the moral aspects of the use of embryonic stem cells and foetal cell lines in research and medicine.
Does the Church restrict or encourage stem cell research?
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Resources
The Anscombe Bioethics Centre: http://www.bioethics.org.uk
Oxford Stem Cell Research Centre https://www.stemcells.ox.ac.uk
Vatican Observatory Foundation https://www.vofoundation.org/faith-and-science/about/
Christians in Science https://www.cis.org.uk/resources/
Faraday Institute for Science and Religion https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk
Interactive Science and Faith workshops https://gatbb.co.uk
