The value of biomedical ethics "is measured by reference to both the unconditional respect owed to every human being at every moment of his life and the protection of the specific personal acts that transmit life."This principle, reaffirmed today by Benedict XVI, is the raison d'etre of natural law, even before Christianity, and its basis is in truth, which today “tends to be replaced with consensus, which is fragile and easily manipulated "
The Pope - who obviously does not care about such "consensus" – found in today's meeting with participants in the plenary assembly of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith an opportunity to reaffirm that "the Church, in proposing moral evaluations on biomedical research on human life, draws light both from reason and faith ", as it is his belief that "what is human is not only accepted and respected by faith, but is also purified, elevated and perfected by it".
These are passages taken from the instruction "Dignitas personae" published in 2008 by the same congregation, which Benedict XVI quoted and called "a new milestone in proclaiming the Gospel."
The Church, he argued, "in proposing moral evaluations of biomedical research on human life, in fact draws both from reason and faith." Thus denying the validity of "the widespread mentality, that faith is an obstacle to freedom and scientific research, because it would consist of a set of prejudices that vitiate the objective understanding of reality. Faced with this attitude, which tends to replace truth with consensus, fragile and easily manipulated, the Christian faith provides a truthful contribution to the ethical-philosophical sphere, by not providing ready-made solutions to specific problems, such as research and biomedical experimentation, but rather by proposing reliable moral perspectives within which human reason can investigate and find viable solutions. "
"There are, in fact, certain contents of Christian revelation that shed light on bioethical issues: the value of human life, the person's social and relational dimension, the connection between the unitive and the procreative aspect of sexuality, the centrality of the family based on marriage between a man and a woman. These contents written in the heart of man, are also rationally understood as part of the natural moral law and are welcomed even by those who do not identify themselves with the Christian faith".
Natural moral law, in fact, "is not exclusively or predominantly confessional”.
"Founded in human nature itself and accessible to every rational creature, natural moral law is thus the basis for entering into dialogue with all people who seek the truth and, more generally, with civil and secular society. This law, written in the heart of every man, touches one of the crucial issues of the same reflection on law and also challenges the conscience and the responsibility of legislators."
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