Research on Animal Embryos?

[Will8503]

Hello, I’m very pro-life, and I oppose the destruction of human embryos and fetuses. However, someone asked me what I believe about the use of animal embryos. I wasn’t sure what the Church taught about this, so I wanted to find out from Catholic Answers. Can anyone answer this question? Thank you in advance.

 

[aggiecatholic05]

i dont know of any official teaching, but since animal testing is ok even if it kills the animal i dont see why it would be a problem, assuming the animals/embryos are treated with respect due to their station and the possible benifits outweigh any suffering they may endure.

 

[The_Stig]

Not humans, so they can be used to further moral ends. We don’t believe in animal cruelty for cruelty’s sake or anything weird like that, but yes animal embryos can be used in science and agriculture.

 

[Will8503]

Thank you for your responses! It helps me alot.

But how would I argue this position to someone who is not Catholic? I had a friend once who asked me why I thought abortion is wrong, but killing an animal is ok. I know most people don’t equate an animal with a human being, but how would I use a non-religious argument to persuade a non-Catholic?

 

[The_Stig]

Well, your friend is, sadly, very stupid. Take heart, this is common now, and some can even recover from it. You’ll have to somehow educate your friend on the differences between people and animals, and if your friend is a functional atheist, this may be impossible. A little-known but very concise and effective essay against this sort of thinking was written by Charles Colson (non-Catholic) for the “Evangelicals and Catholics Together” book edited by Fr. Neuhaus. I don’t like the organization much, but the essays in the book are great, and Colson’s deals with this issue of the uniqueness of man very well.

good luck.

 

[Will8503]

I don’t think he is stupid, I just think he may not have heard our viewpoint before. Or maybe he hadn’t heard it argued in a persuasive way. There are alot of people out there who are willing to accept the truth, but unfortunately they don’t hear it because all of their friends, professors, etc. repeat the same nonsense that we are trying to refute.