--- Hippocrates, The Epidemics
As I sat this morning with my steaming hot cuppa coffee, reading the newspaper, I turned to the opinion page. I know better than to do that... but the political cartoon caught my eye. The cartoon, by the artist Don Wright of the Palm Beach Post, had the headline "Guess which project will get all the money". Below the headline Mr. Wright had a drawing of a microscope with stem cells, under which was written "Making people whole again". Next to the microscope was another drawing, this one of a large U.S. missile, under which was written "Blowing them to smithereens", as if to imply that supporting the war and supporting stem cell research were two mutually exclusive endeavors.
I won't get into the morality of war (or immorality, as some see it.) It's my understanding that the United States banned the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. That's not to say there isn't any funding available for stem cell research as a whole... undoubtedly pharmaceutical companies and privately owned labs are conducting research in this controversial and potentially very lucrative field. What bothers me is that we are willing, as a society, to allow embryonic stem cell research to continue at all. There is an argument that this should be ethical because a majority of the embryos used in the research have been abandoned at various in-vitro fertilization banks. Embryos whose parents had difficulty conceiving, and resorted to very costly invasive methods to get their family. The leftover babies are persons in stasis... not merely stem cell sources to be harvested!
God said of the prophet Jeremiah that "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; and I ordained you as a prophet to the nations." (Jer. 1:5) Psalm 139 says that God formed our inward parts, and covered (wove) us in our mother's womb. "Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them." Psalm 139:16
It's clear from the Bible, which I hold to be the Word of God, that even before our substance was formed we were of great value to God. Isn't it interesting, that the Hebrew word there for substance, golem, means a wrapped and unformed mass, ie. as the embryo according to Strong's Concordance. It brings horror to my heart to think that we, in the name of situational ethics, can so casually discard those who are the least among us, using what they have of value as if it is ours to take.
But what about the millions of people who suffer with horrible diseases, looking toward stem cell research to cure them? Aren't their lives valued by God? Of course! The great news is that there is much research into cord blood stem cells, as well as adult stem cell manipulation.
I was reading today on Genetic Engineering News' website that a company called BioE is the first to clone and commercialize multipotent stem cell lines derived from human umbilical cord blood. The byline read: Rare Multi-Lineage Progenitor Cells Provide New, Viable Platform for Stem Cell Research Free from Public, Political Controversy Surrounding Use of Embryonic Stem Cells
This past April, in Leipzig, Germany, it was reported by the United Press International and the Washington Times that German scientists have developed a new technique and tools enabling them to extract embryo-quality stem cells from adult blood.
What? You mean we can get the benefits of stem cells without destroying pre-born human babies?
Why aren't we seeing these headlines? I don't know. I have my own theories on that, but I won't bore you all with them. The more of us who know of alternatives to embryonic stem cell usage, the better. My prayer is that our nation, even all nations who are dabbling in this research, will find that cord blood cells and adult stem cells will provide wonderful therapies for those who need it. May we all see the unethical horror of using our very own conceived babies as sources of medical "miracles". Pray - contact your legislators - stay informed. For loads of information, see http://www.stemcellresearch.org/
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