Hybrid embryos were designed to provide stem cells to treat human diseases
Posted on 01/28/2008 5:52:31 AM PST by NYer
Scientists have accused Roman Catholic priests of spreading lies from the pulpit in an attempt to stoke up opposition to animal-human hybrid experiments.
A statement attacking the controversial Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill was read out to parishioners across the country last week.
The briefing, prepared by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, warned that the Bill would allow the creation of "half human, half animals" by combining eggs of women with the sperm of animals.
It added: "To do this would be a radical violation of human dignity."
But scientists involved in animal-human embryo experiments accused the church of "blatant inaccuracy".
Dr Lyle Armstrong, of Newcastle University, said the church's statement was "a gross and irresponsible misrepresentation of our position and our intentions".
Hybrid embryos were designed to provide stem cells to treat human diseases - not to create half-human, half-animals, he said.
He added: "We find their example of combining the egg of a woman with animal sperm even more distasteful and we wish to make it absolutely clear that our work does not involve this. We find it surprising and saddening-that the Catholic Church should resort to such blatant inaccuracy to support its message in these matters."
Under the Bill, which is going through Parliament, scientists would be allowed to create animal-human hybrids for medical research.
They would take an animal egg cell, remove the blob in the centre which contains most of the animal's DNA and replace it with the nucleus from a human cell, taken from a donor.
The resulting embryo is 99.9 per cent identical to the human donor - although it contains some animal DNA left over from the egg.
The Catholic Church has sent every parish a pack of information including the one-page briefing document which some priests have read to congregations.
Chris Shaw, Professor of Neurology and Neurogenetics, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, said: "The bishops' statement on hybrids is not a radical violation of human dignity as they claim - it is a radical violation of the truth."
A spokesman for the church said: "Far from providing misinformation in our parish briefing, all we have done is draw attention to what this Bill actually allows.
"Clause 4 allows licences to be given for the creation of hybrid and "interspecies" embryos, defined in the Bill as "an embryo created by using human gametes and animal gametes". This means half human and half animal."
That just doesn't sound like a good idea.
Historically this has turned out bad. Consider the story of the Minotaur.
Of course. They're going to take animal eggs and fuse them with human nuclei to create embryos.
Completely different.
They already exist. They're called "liberals."
Doesn’t help your cause to misrepresent the science. Poor taste.
Sounds to me like they aren’t getting into the weeds with the scientists on the minutiae of the methods, just reading and responding to the actual text of the law... as quoted above.
I'll have to read more about this....but presumably the mitochondrial RNA and other non-nuclear genetic information would belong the animal. All of the organelles of the egg would be the animal's. And what about all the epigenetic information? Does that get ported in too?
Scientists are getting ever more filled with hubris. It is quite depressing.
Yes, it is depressing.
Seems the scientists are calling the truth a lie — what they claim their “intentions” to be is not the same as what the law might allow.
Yet. But it's coming, just like everything else they denied when some liberal agenda was initially pushed.
Abortion leading to infanticide, tolerance of homos leading to the demand for gay marriage, you name it...
It is pure obfuscation for the governemnt flack to object that the intent is " - not to create half-human, half-animals." A hybrid embryo IS part-human, part-animal.
Whether it was created by fertilization or by cloning is a technicality. The resulting entity will be genetically human. Of course, these scientists don't even believe that human embryos created in the good old-fashioned way are humans, either: hence their NHS provides for 100% governemnt-paid abortions and IVF. They basically have no criteria for recognizing ANYBODY as human.
The bishops are right on this.
Cite the misrepresentation or withdraw your statement.
The Church will be cast as the villain of the peace not only for its attempts to halt cloning but also for its attempts to deny contraception and abortion to pregnant teenagers and for its attempts to safeguard the sanctity of marriage and to oppose the attempts of homosexuals to confer the same term on sodomy between consenting males.
For all of these things and others, the Church will be cast as a persecutor of the people.
Unfortunately, the British are unable see where their anti-life fetish is leading them. Using the unborn as just so many cellular spare parts, creating hybrid embryos and killing unborn children through abortion leads to a cheapening of all human life. Only last week we saw an extraordinary report in the British press from a group of doctors; Don't treat the old and unhealthy, say doctors.
Brave New World, indeed. The British assault on human dignity will create a monster which will enslave and brutalize them.
When people start calling each other liars in a debate, I generally find that it’s not true. There’s a disagreement, and likely a misunderstanding. Often, the parties to the disagreement exaggerate (or minimize) the facts to their favor.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.