Church exec supports moratorium on embryonic cell research
7/19/2001
WASHINGTON (UMNS) - The top staff executive of the United Methodist social witness and advocacy agency is urging President George W. Bush to extend the moratorium on human embryo stem cell research.
In a letter dated July 17, Jim Winkler reminded Bush, who is also a United Methodist, of the denomination's policy calling for a complete and total ban on human cloning, including embryo cloning for any purpose, and "procedures that intentionally generate 'waste [human] embryos' which will knowingly be destroyed." The statement is found in the denomination's 2000 Book of Resolutions, which includes all current policy statements passed by the church's highest legislative assembly.
"The moral and ethical issues surrounding the beginning of life demand enormous caution in proceeding with activities that result in the destruction of human embryos," said Winkler, top staff executive of the United Methodist Board of Church and Society.
The church has been engaged in focused study of issues related to genetics and biotechnology since 1988, he said.
"As United Methodists, we have called for support of appropriate somatic cell research and treatment that respects human dignity," Winkler wrote.
Adult stem cell research and other genetically based research appear to hold promise in the search for cures to some, if not all, of the diseases that could be addressed by research using stem cells from embryos, he wrote.
"Finally," he concluded, "such practices seem to be destructive of human dignity and speed us further down the path that ignores the sacred dimensions of life and personhood and turns life into a commodity to be manipulated, controlled, patented and sold."
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