Tag: ncbc

Lessons in Catholic Bioethics: “Let’s Avoid the Term ‘Vegetative State’”

François-Léon Benouville, Christian Martyrs Entering the Amphitheatre, 1855.

by Joseph Meaney, PhD, KM, for the National Catholic Bioethics CenterJuly 15, 2024 Examining the Term “Persistent Vegetative State” The term Persistent Vegetative State (PVS) is commonly used to describe patients who are brain-injured and in a wakeful but unconscious state. Ethically, it is highly problematic and even pejorative to refer to living human beings… Continue reading Lessons in Catholic Bioethics: “Let’s Avoid the Term ‘Vegetative State’”

Lessons in Catholic Bioethics: Why You Cannot Destroy Human Embryos

by John M. Haas, PhD, STL, MDiV, for the National Catholic Bioethics CenterJune 7, 2024 Human Embryos are Living Beings Human embryos are living beings and yet some scientists, politicians, ethicists, and even theologians have fallen into the rhetorical trap of speaking about their “destruction” rather than their being killed. Logic and correct use of… Continue reading Lessons in Catholic Bioethics: Why You Cannot Destroy Human Embryos