A Critical Evaluation of the Vatican's Instruction on Respect for Human Life

Overduin Daniel Ch. , “A Response to the Vatican Document of IVF and Related Issues”. Lutheran Theological Journal, August 1987, 21: 2. 82–89. Dr. Overduin, in referring to the Instruction as a “significant and very useful document”, suggests that “Lutheran and other theologians and ethicists should take note of its contents, and assess its value for the teachings and life of their own Churches.”

The Tablet. March 14, 1987: 271.

The Tablet. March 14, 1987: 271.

Swann John Fr. , “The IVF Debate”, in Diocesan Newsletter, Catholic Archdiocese of Adelaide, South Australia, March 1987: 13.

Riga Peter J. , “The Vatican's Instruction on Human Life”, The Linacre Quarterly, August, 1987: 16.

Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. “Declaration on Procured Abortion”, 12-13: AAS 66 (1974) 738 cited in the Instruction on Respect for Human Life in Its Origin and on the Dignity of Procreation, St. Paul Publication, Australian edition, March, 1987: 21.

Instruction on Respect for Human Life. I: 1.

Evidence to Senate Select Committee, pp. 682-683. Dr. Kerin is now Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, University of California. Lost Angeles, and Co-director, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre. Beverly Hills, Los Angeles.

Report of Senate Select Committee (Australia), “Human Embryo Experimentation in Australia”, para 2.21.

Report of Senate Select Committee (Australia), “Human Embryo Experimentation in Australia”: para 3.22.

Smith R. Gregor , “Dietrich Bonhoeffer”, in A Dictionary Of Christian Ethics, Mcquarrie John ed., (SCM, London, 1981), 33.

Bonhoeffer Dietrich , Ethics, Eberhard Bethge, ed., (SCM Press Ltd., London. 1955), second impression, 1971: 131.

Instruction on Respect for Human Life in Its Origin and on the Dignity of Procreation, St. Paul Publications. March 1987, 11: 5.

O'Neil C. , Saunders D. M. , “Assessment of embryo quality”, Lancet, 1984, ii: 1035: Yovich J.S., Stanger J. D., Yovich J.M., Tuvik A.L., “Quality of embryos from in-vitro fertilisation”, Lancet, 1984 I: 457; Mohr L.R., Trounson A.O., Leeton J.F., Wood C., “Evaluation of normal and abnormal human embryo development during procedures in vitro”, in Beier H. M., Linder H. R. eds., Fertilisation of the human egg in vitro, (Springer: Berlin 1983), 211-221; Trounson A.O., Sathanantan A. H., “The application of electron microcopy in the evaluation of two-to four-cell human embryos cultured in vitro for embryo transfer”. In Vitro Fertilisation and Embryo Transfer, 1984, 1: 153-165. All of these papers are cited in Fleming John, Iglesias Teresa, “Human Fertilisation In Vitro Compared With Nature”, Lancet, 1985, i: 168.

Fleming Eglesias , op. cit., which cites “Committee to Consider Social. Ethical and Legal Isues Arising from In Vitro Fertilisation; Report of the disposition of embryos produced by in vitro fertilisation (Waller Report)”. Melbourne. Government of Victoria. Australia, 1984, 1: 21.

For example, (but there are many others), Aitken R.J. , Van Look P.F.A. . Lumsden M. , and Templeton A.A. , “Chromosome Abnormalities in Human Embryos After in Vitro Fertilisation”, Nature. May 26, 1983, 303: 336; cited in John I. Fleming, “The Exploitation of the Laboratory Generation”, Proceedings of the 1984 Conference on Bioethics, eds. J.N. Santamaria and N. Tonti-Filippini, St. Vincent's Bioethics Centre, 1984, 141-152

Fleming , and Iglesias , op. cit., 1.c.

The Instruction, 11: 5.

Chartier M. , Roger M. , Barrat J. , Michelon B. , “Measurement of plasma hCG and HCG activities in the late luteal phase: Evidence of the occurrence of spontaneous menstrual abortions in infertile women”, Fertil Steril, 1979, 31: 134–137. Miller, J.F., Williamson. E., Glue J., Gordon Y.B., Grudzinskas, E.G., Sykes, A., “Fetal loss after implantation”, Lancet, ii: 554-556; Edmonds D.K., “Early embryonic mortality in women”, Fertil Steril, 1982, 38: 44-53.

Kerin J. , Matthews C. , McEvoy M. , “IVF: Its contemporary development and future”, in Overduin D. Ch. , ed., “Proceedings of Conference on Bioethical Decision-Making”, Adelaide. Dietrich Bonhoeffer International Institute for Bioethical Studies, 1984: 37. RCOG Ethics Committee, “Report on in vitro fertilisation and embryo replacement or transfer”, London. RCOG, 1983: 13.5.

Fleming Iglesias , op. cit., 1.c.

Submission by Dr. Robyn Rowland. Senate Select Committee on the Human Embryo Experimentation Bill, 1985, Official Hansard Report 1986. 3: 1526.

The Instruction, 11: 5.