Catholic official challenges letter to Bush on stem-cell research

Published: 2004-04-30

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- A Catholic official challenged an April 28 letter to President Bush, signed by more than 200 House members, which encouraged the destruction of new human embryos for stem-cell research. "Besides demonstrating a lack of respect for developing human life, that letter also relies on demonstrably false factual claims," said Richard Doerflinger, deputy director of the U.S. bishops' Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities. In a letter he wrote to members of Congress April 28, he described their letter to the president as "a sad commentary on lawmakers' level of knowledge on this issue" and urged signers to retract their signatures. A copy of Doerflinger's letter was released April 29 by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

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