The text of «Questions and Answers on Stem Cell Research» is posted at www.pacatholic.org/bishops’%20statements/qascr.htm.
The bishops note that the «Vatican Instruction on Respect for Human Life» says that «no objective, even though noble in itself, such as a foreseeable advantage to science, to other human beings, or to society, can in any way justify experimentation on living human embryos or fetuses, whether viable or not, either inside or outside the mother’s body.»
Dr. Robert O’Hara Jr., executive director of the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference, said, «At a time when public policy-makers are considering spending taxpayer money to finance various biomedical research initiatives, it is appropriate to consider the moral impact of such research.»
The text of the document is being translated into Spanish and will be available in a full-color booklet in both English and Spanish.