Pastoral Letter – Celebrating Human Life
Cherishing Life
It
is indeed positive to note that in our country, there has been an
ongoing debate with respect to the way in which a number of couples can
address the difficulty of infertilty. This gives witness just to what
extent we cherish human life. This is even more appreciated when one
realizes that in today’s age, in Europe, and in Malta too, a large part
of society is stingy with respect to new life, in the sense that the
birth rate is low.[1]
It is admirable that our society expresses such enthusiasm,
particularly in the case of those couples who are called upon to make
great sacrifices.
As Bishops of Malta and
Gozo, bearing in mind the cultural context of today’s society, we are
addressing this Pastoral Letter primarily to the Catholic community of
our country; but also to our Maltese and Gozitan brothers and sisters of
goodwill who genuinely hold Catholic teachings at heart.[2]
It is our duty as spiritual shepherds of this community to guide those
Catholics (in the first place, married couples who are experiencing
difficulty with procreation, as well as other persons who work in the
field of science, politics and the law), in order that they may form
their consciences rightly on a subject such as human life, a subject
which is so sacred and fundamental.
It is
normal for a newly wedded couple to desire children. It is often the
case that when faced with the problem of infertility, a couple feels
that it has failed. This sense of failure is aggravated if this
condition arises as a consequence of certain choices which the couple
would have made in the past.
As Bishops, we
empathize with these couples and we wish to remind them that the fact
that they are childless does not mean that their mission as a married
couple has been unsuccessful. We all know of couples who, in spite of
being childless, have proved to be worthy in other areas of their
lives. Yet this does not resolve their great desire to communicate
their love by becoming parents. For this reason, we appeal to men of
science to carry on with their research, leading them to seek solutions
which are ethically and morally good, in order that these married
couples may fulfill their genuine and valid desire to become parents.
In our appeal, we are reiterating that which His Holiness Pope Benedict
XVI stated a few months ago while he was addressing scientists gathered
to discuss the diagnosis and treatment of infertility. While praising
the intellectual honesty of the scientists who seek truth, he also felt
the need to make the following observation: “Scientism and the logic of
profit seem effectively to dominate the field of infertility and human
procreation today, even to the point of limiting many other areas of
research”.[3]
YES to Life
The
Church is the Institution which favours life more than any other
institution in the world. It insists that the value of human life must
remain untarnished and the Church defends it from the very moment of
conception, always striving to bring to light the unique dignity of the
human being. This is in accordance with the will of God, who alone is
the Lord of life. The Church recognizes that human life is not a
‘product’ which may be fashioned, built, used and brushed aside.[4]
The Church teaches that no one can “use” a person, at whatever stage of
his development, right from the first moment of his existence until the
moment of his natural death, whatever his condition. If this
fundamental respect is over-looked, science becomes man’s enemy. The
Church is fully aware of her duty to defend those who are vulnerable and
to give a voice to the voiceless. The Church strongly reiterates its
‘yes’ to life, particularly when life is at it’s weakest point, such as
when a person’s development is in its early stages.
It
is in this light that the Church, bearing in mind the principles of
natural reason, and confirmed by Revelation, has always insisted upon
the fact that science is to be at the authentic service of humanity.
Scientific development must progress within such limits which ensure
that fundamental respect towards the person is never lacking, otherwise
it becomes an enemy of the human being.
The Church has always taught that authentic service to humanity and the protection and promotion of his dignity cannot be guaranteed unless one abides by the principles of truth about mankind. This is explained very clearly by Pope Benedict XVI in his encyclical Caritas in veritate. In fact, the Church has always taken loving initiatives (Caritas) in favour of mankind in the light of the truth about the human person. Charity and truth go hand in hand; it is truth which ensures authentic charity.
The Church has the right and duty to proclaim its moral judgment upon research and upon technical methods used for human reproduction. By so doing, she is in no way interfering in the scientific field; rather she is fulfilling her mission of bringing to the attention of one and all, the ethical and social responsibilities which arise from any action taken in respect of human beings.
The Truth protects Life
What
is the ethical truth regarding in vitro fertilization (IVF) which the
Catholic Church, out of love for mankind, and together with all its
members, has the duty to proclaim as part of its mission?
According
to the teachings of the Church, any medical methods which are used to
cure infertility should be based upon a profound respect for the
following three fundamental values:
The
value of life and the physical integrity of every person. This must be
protected from the very moment of conception until the moment of natural
death of the human person, more so when the person is in a vulnerable
state. Any form of discrimination with respect to different stages of
life cannot be justified and must be upheld like any other form of
discrimination.[5]
“From conception, a life is begun which is neither that of the father
nor of the mother, it is rather the life of a new human being with his
own growth. It would never be made human if it were not human already”.[6]
Some months ago, this most important value was acknowledged at a civil
level, that is, human life must be safeguarded from the moment of
conception (embryos).[7]
The
value of conjugal unity. This unity is manifest in the respect which
the married couple foster for one another; in recognizing that in their
marriage, they have the right to become parents. The married man and
woman, through their reciprocal gift of love, bring one another to
perfection when they cooperate with the Creator in the conception and
bearing of children. For this reason, any couple which accepts a third
party to participate in the process of artificial fertilization is in
effecting constituting a rupture of their conjual unity, their conjugal
fidelity; it also obstructs the right of the married couple to become
parents exclusively through their mutual co-operative action.
The
value of human sexuality in marriage. The conception of a human person
should be the outcome of the mutual self-giving love of the married
couple This gift is realized through their sexual intimacy, an action
through which the man and the woman become “one body”. Therefore,
bearing in mind this value, the conception of new life cannot be treated
solely as a biological act. Neither can it be a technical process
which produces embryos as if they were objects. The gift of human life
should be eagerly accepted in marriage, which is the ideal and most
natural situation for conception to take place, through personal acts
which are exclusive and specific to married men and women. This is in
conformity with the teachings of the Church which state that “there is
an inseparable connection, established by God, which man on his own
initiative may not break, between the unitive significance and the
procreative significance which are both inherent to the marriage act”.[8]
Therefore,
every technical method which replaces the personal conjugal act fails
to respect the dignity of the human person and of the unity of marriage
and so this is not acceptable. On the other hand, such technical
methods are acceptable when they aid the personal conjugal act to
achieve its aim, that is to concieve human life.[9]
The natural law safeguards life
The
IVF method calls for the creation of several embryos in order for the
desired child to be born. Even though a number of these embryos are not
killed deliberately, but die a ‘natural’ death shortly after they are
concieved, the fact remains that several embryos are being sacrificed
and instrumentalized so that a child may be born. Both this procedure,
as well as the method in which human embryos are being selected in order
that a child may be born, confirms that the process, in itself,
infringes upon human dignity. Everything points to the fact that in
vitro fertilization methods, which at first glance seem to be at the
service of life, are in fact, actually a threat to human life.
At
times the scientific process involves the freezing of superfluous
embryos (concieved through IVF) which are not selected to be implanted
in the mother’s womb (cryo-preservation). The Church makes it clear
that it does not consider the freezing of embryos to be an acceptable
solution. The document, Donum Vitae, which was previously referred to
states clearly that: “The freezing of embryos, even when carried out in
order to preserve the life of an embryo – cryopreservation –
constitutes an offence against the respect due to human beings by
exposing them to grave risks of death or harm to their physical
integrity and depriving them, at least temporarily, of maternal shelter
and gestation, thus placing them in a situation in which further
offences and manipulation are possible”.[10]
Parents
can never concede to the freezing of their children. By so doing they
would be shirking their responsibility as parents. On the other hand,
if their ‘offspring’ is frozen without their consent, they would be
unfairly deprived of their responsibility as parents. Through the
freezing of these embryos, mankind is creating new orphanages. Besides
this, the future of these frozen embryos is very bleak. The embryo,
even while it is frozen, is still in possession of certain unalienable
rights. A democratic society is duty-bound to oversee that the laws
which protect these embryos are observed.
In
some areas, it is being suggested that in order to mitigate the dangers
of frozen embryos, such embryos which are not implanted in the mother’s
womb are put up for adoption. This is not a solution either because
serious complications of a medical, psychological and legal nature may
arise; this also poses greater ethical problems.
The
IVF process involves methods which at times considers the person, who
is still at the embryonic stage, to be merely “a mass of cells” which
may be used, selected and dispensed with. Many times, a significant
number of human embryos are sacrificed for the sake of the birth of the
desired child. Such in vitro fertilization practices constitute the
meditated and direct destruction of innocent human life. The Church
Magisterium has always considered this destruction of embryos to be
abortive. Blessed John Paul II teaches that: “Procured abortion is the
deliberate and direct killing, by whatever means it is carried out, of a
human being in the initial phase of his or her existence, extending
from conception to birth”.[11]
Therefore
the above-mentioned practices cannot be morally justified in any way
and under no circumstances. It is never morally permissible for a bad
action (in this case, the destruction of a number of embryos) to atone
for a good cause (in this case, the conception and birth of a desired
child). It is a well-known moral principle that the end does not
justify the means.
Human life should be
safe-guarded and its integrity promoted from the very moment of
conception. This obligation stems from the dignity of the human person
which is at the foundation of all human rights. Therefore, this is an
obligation which stems from the principles of natural law. Every person,
because he is a person, has an inherent dignity which must be
acknowledged and respected by others. For this reason, civil law would
be just or unjust not based upon whether it agrees or disagrees with the
religious ethical code, but if it is not in conformity with the human
ethical code. This human ethical code, also referred to as the natural
law, does not depend upon positive parliamentary legislation; even more
so, it cannot be tarnished or brushed aside by a majority vote in
parliament.
It is a fact that in our
country, the practice of IVF is widespread. It has just been reported
that during the last 22 years, 750 women became pregnant through this
method. It is also a well-known fact that where civil laws do not
regulate the practice of IVF, there is great disorder. In continuation
to what we stated earlier, we feel that civil law in respect of assisted
procreation should aim to safe-guard the three values we have already
mentioned, ie. the value of life and physical integrity of every person,
the value of the unitive aspect of marriage and the value of human
sexuality in marriage.
A law which does not
safe-guard these values is morally wrong. There are different levels
of ethical gravity emanating out of a law that does not respect these
values. For this reason, men of goodwill who are responsible to draw up
legislation are duty-bound in conscience to try and achieve the best
possible benefits, or as far as possible, to mitigate dangers.
Solidarity with couples who wish to accept the gift of life
The
Church, in deep solidarity with couples who are facing problems of
infertility, desires that science will continue to develop and offer
such technical methods which, without replacing the conjugal act, assist
the couple’s fertility processes. It is the hope of the Church that
couples who are combatting infertility will not taken advantage of
either psychologically nor financially, especially since their situation
already poses enough stress as it is.
The
Church is heavily committed in several ways to assist couples who are
facing such a situation and to offer proper guidance on the real nature
of their condition. First of all, the Church steadfastly encourages
couples not to concede to the temptation of taking “easy” solultions
simply because these seem technically possible. Not only are these
solutions morally wrong, but they are susceptible to danger in that they
are to the detriment of the physical and mental health of the couple,
most especially the woman. The Church is also committed to take
initiatives that are morally good, in order to assure the utmost respect
towards strengthening the couple and towards human life. Finally, it
would be extremely helpful if one were to embark upon a serious
scientific study with respect to the cause and prevention of
infertility.
For this reason, the Church
makes an appeal to all people and reminds them of their obligation to
form their conscience properly. An authentic Christian conscience is
formed in the light of the principles of natural law mentioned above and
in conformity with the teachings of the Church. Catholics with a
morally and correctly formed conscience are called upon to give witness
to the Truth of Love, and this love is confirmed by the same truth.
In
this respect we wish to address those couples who have overcome
infertility problems by adopting or accepting to foster children. Their
generosity is most exemplary and praiseworthy. These couples offer
hope not only to those children whom they have welcomed into their lives
and who are being reared with love and care, but also to those couples,
who similarly, are hoping to be parents.
The
Church holds close to her heart all those children who are born as a
result of IVF methods and confirms that they are still children of God,
even if the methods through which they were concieved go against Church
teachings and against human dignity. The Church urges the parents of
these children to trust in God’s mercy and to seek the road to
self-reconciliation, in line with their call and mission as parents.
We
pray for God’s blessing upon all married couples and families of our
country and also upon all those who cherish and labour in favour of
human life.
Today, 26th July, 2012 Memorial of St Joachim and St Anne.
+ Paul Cremona O.P.
Archbishop of Malta
+ Mario Grech
Bishop of Gozo
.Click here to view the Pastoral Letter in PDF version.
.
[1]In EU countries, the birth rate is 1.59, a litte higher than ten years ago, however in Malta is decreased from 1.77 in 1999 to 1.38 in 2010. See Eurostat,
http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/tgm/table.do?tab=table&init=1&language=en&pcode=tsdde220&plugin=0.
[2]
Joseph Mercieca and Nikol Cauchi, “Declaration on Artificial
Insemination”, 26th July 1995; ibid., “Declaration on Ethical Problems
Related To Assisted Reproduction”, 4th February 2005; ibid.,
“Declaration on the Protection of Human Life from Conception”, 1st July
2005; Joseph Mercieca, “The Dignity and Integrity of Human Life”, 21st
September 2005; Paul Cremona and Mario Grech, “Pastoral Letter for
Advent 2010, The place of the Crib in our families”, 27th November
2011; Mario Grech, “The sorrow of couples who are unable to bear
children”, 30th March 2012.
[3]
Benedict XVI, Address to the General Assembly of the Pontifical Academy
for Life, 25th February 2012, par. 2.
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/speeches/2012/february/documents/hf_ben-xvi_spe_20120225_acdlife_en.html.
[5] Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Declaration on Procured Abortion, 18th November 1974, par. 12.
[6]
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Donum Vitae, Instruction on
respect for human life in its origin and on the dignity of procreation:
replies to certain questions of the day, 22nd February 1987, par. I.1
which quotes from the Declaration on Procured Abortion of the same
Congregation, 18th November 1974, par. 12.
[7]
European Court of Justice, Oliver Brustle vs Greenpeace, 18th October
2011 decided that human embryos deserved to be respected with human
dignity.
[8] Paul VI,
Encyclical Letter, Humanae Vitae, 25th July 1968 par. 12. This teaching
is repeated in Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Donum Vitae,
Instruction on respect for human life in its origin and on the dignity
of procreation: replies to certain questions of the day, 22nd February
1987, p IIB4a
[9]
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Dignitas Personae,
Instruction on certain bioethical situations, 8th Settembru 2008, par.
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