Brazilian bishops denounce move to uphold embryonic stem-cell law

Published: 2008-05-30

SAO PAULO, Brazil (CNS) -- The Brazilian Catholic bishops' conference has criticized a decision by Brazil's Supreme Court to uphold a 2005 law that permits stem-cell research with spare embryos from in vitro fertilization. The bishops said in a statement that the court's May 29 decision "revealed a great divergence over the issue at hand," since the final tally was six votes for and five against the law. The split decision, they said, shows there are justices who have similar ethical positions as that of the Catholic Church and that the issue "is not a religious question, but one of the defense of human life from its conception." The bishops added, "All behavior that may constitute a threat or an offense to the fundamental rights of the human person, especially the right to life, is considered immoral." They also expressed their support of adult stem-cell research.

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