Missouri bishops decry win for cloning, embryonic stem-cell amendment

Published: 2006-11-13

ST. LOUIS (CNS) -- Missourians "have lost a significant battle for the protection of human life," declared Archbishop Raymond L. Burke following the Nov. 7 passage of a constitutional amendment to protect human cloning and embryonic stem-cell research. Unofficial election returns from the Missouri Secretary of State's office Nov. 10 showed that Amendment 2 squeezed by with 1,077,276 votes in favor and 1,028,495 opposed. "The citizens of Missouri have succumbed to a false hope created by a campaign which has played on the desire of us all to help those suffering from deadly diseases and serious injuries," Archbishop Burke said in a statement. "The election campaign for the passage of Amendment 2 has shown us all how deeply rooted the culture of death is in our society," he continued. Bishop Robert W. Finn of Kansas City-St. Joseph said in a statement," We have lost a significant battle for the protection of human life," adding that Amendment 2 "will come to be regarded as the Roe v. Wade of human cloning."

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