Vatican criticizes Nobel Prize award to in-vitro pioneer

October 05, 2010

The Nobel Prize awarded to Robert Edwards, the pioneer of in vitro fertilization, is “completely out of order,” a Vatican official argued.

Bishop Ignacio Carrasco de Paula, the president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, acknowledged the significance of the work that Edwards had done, opening “a new and important chapter in the field of human reproduction.” But he argued that the procedure—which involves the creation of many human embryos, only a few of which are implanted in a woman’s womb—creates a host of moral as well as legal problems.

“Without Edwards there would be no market for human eggs,” the bishop said; “without Edwards there would not be freezers full of embryos waiting to be transferred to a uterus, or, more likely, used for research or left to die, abandoned and forgotten by all.” He also pointed out the “confusion of assisted procreation: children with four or five parents; babies born from their grandparents.”

The International Federation of Catholic Medical Associations also expressed concern about the Nobel Prize award, saying that although in vitro fertilization has helped many couples to produce children, “it has done so at enormous cost.” The group pointed to the thousands of embryos destroyed in the process, “undermining the dignity of the human person.”

 

---

For all current news, visit our News home page.

---

 
Further information:

• IVF opened 'wrong door' to treat infertility: Vatican official (CNS)
• Life Academy Leader Responds to Nobel Choice (Zenit)
• Vatican: Nobel to IVF pioneer raises questions (AP)
• Vatican official criticises Nobel win for IVF pioneer (BBC)
• Vatican ethics expert Ignacio Carrasco de Paula slams Nobel Prize for IVF pioneer Robert Edwards (AFP)
• Vatican keeps up attack on Nobel committee over IVF (Reuters)
• Vatican criticises Nobel prize win for British IVF pioneer for being 'completely misplaced' (Daily Mail)