In this essay, we respond to Dustin Crummett’s argument that one cannot consistently appeal to body count reasoning to justify being a single-issue pro-life voter if one is also committed to the usual response to the embryo rescue case. Specifically, we argue that a modified version of BCR we call BCR* is consistent with the usual response. We then move to address concerns about the relevance of BCR* to Crummett’s original thesis.
{"title":"Basic Beliefs, the Embryo Rescue Case, and Single-Issue Voting","authors":"T. McNabb, Michael DeVito","doi":"10.5840/NCBQ202121221","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5840/NCBQ202121221","url":null,"abstract":"In this essay, we respond to Dustin Crummett’s argument that one cannot consistently appeal to body count reasoning to justify being a single-issue pro-life voter if one is also committed to the usual response to the embryo rescue case. Specifically, we argue that a modified version of BCR we call BCR* is consistent with the usual response. We then move to address concerns about the relevance of BCR* to Crummett’s original thesis.","PeriodicalId":86269,"journal":{"name":"The national Catholic bioethics quarterly","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70947657","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
North America is facing an ongoing, persistent opioid epidemic, and Vancouver, British Columbia, continues to be one of its devastating epicenters, with record overdose deaths in 2020. Roman Catholic health care organizations in Vancouver are compelled to pioneer potential solutions to this public health crisis—in solidarity and employing necessary strategies to help the most vulnerable in the communities served. While controversial, harm reduction strategies for intravenous substance use keep people alive until they are able to receive the help that they need to recover. An evaluation of the degree of cooperation involved in some harm reduction strategies indicates that they can be considered morally permissible and compatible with core tenets of Catholic bioethics.
{"title":"Harm Reduction for Intravenous Substance Use","authors":"Cara Connaughton, Jillian J. Boerstler","doi":"10.5840/NCBQ20212118","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5840/NCBQ20212118","url":null,"abstract":"North America is facing an ongoing, persistent opioid epidemic, and Vancouver, British Columbia, continues to be one of its devastating epicenters, with record overdose deaths in 2020. Roman Catholic health care organizations in Vancouver are compelled to pioneer potential solutions to this public health crisis—in solidarity and employing necessary strategies to help the most vulnerable in the communities served. While controversial, harm reduction strategies for intravenous substance use keep people alive until they are able to receive the help that they need to recover. An evaluation of the degree of cooperation involved in some harm reduction strategies indicates that they can be considered morally permissible and compatible with core tenets of Catholic bioethics.","PeriodicalId":86269,"journal":{"name":"The national Catholic bioethics quarterly","volume":"21 1","pages":"69-84"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70947720","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In this essay, I discuss the role that vocation plays in assessing the proportion of burdens to benefits in end-of-life options. I then look at the case of patients in a persistent vegetative state. What vocational considerations are relevant for persons considering what care to accept should they ever be in a PVS or for those caring for patients in such a state? Ultimately, I argue that the vocational shape of a patient’s life ought not to be a consideration for a caregiver in favor of removing artificial nutrition and hydration.
{"title":"Intention, Vocation, and Nutrition at the End of Life","authors":"C. Tollefsen","doi":"10.5840/ncbq202121343","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5840/ncbq202121343","url":null,"abstract":"In this essay, I discuss the role that vocation plays in assessing the proportion of burdens to benefits in end-of-life options. I then look at the case of patients in a persistent vegetative state. What vocational considerations are relevant for persons considering what care to accept should they ever be in a PVS or for those caring for patients in such a state? Ultimately, I argue that the vocational shape of a patient’s life ought not to be a consideration for a caregiver in favor of removing artificial nutrition and hydration.","PeriodicalId":86269,"journal":{"name":"The national Catholic bioethics quarterly","volume":"45 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70947772","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Discerning Persons: Profound Disability, the Early Church Fathers, and the Concept of the Person in Bioethics by Pia Matthews","authors":"C. Thomas","doi":"10.5840/NCBQ202121117","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5840/NCBQ202121117","url":null,"abstract":"<jats:p />","PeriodicalId":86269,"journal":{"name":"The national Catholic bioethics quarterly","volume":"21 1","pages":"177-180"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70946860","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Using cell lines like HEK 293 or their products—like many of the COVID-19 vaccines—involves no cooperation with evil strictly speaking, but it does involve appropriation of the benefits of past evil. Applying M. Cathleen Kaveny’s framework for assessing the permissibility of appropriating the benefits of evil, the duty to avoid using cell lines like HEK 293 or their products is weak and defeasible. Proper interpretation of Dignitas personae requires recognizing the crucial moral differences between the use of these cell lines—which does not perpetuate the injustice of abortion, imply approval of abortion, or involve significant risks of corrupting moral character or provoking scandal—and the direct use of fetal tissue or human embryos in research.
{"title":"Dignitas personae, HEK 293, and the COVID Vaccines","authors":"Melissa Moschella","doi":"10.5840/NCBQ202121110","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5840/NCBQ202121110","url":null,"abstract":"Using cell lines like HEK 293 or their products—like many of the COVID-19 vaccines—involves no cooperation with evil strictly speaking, but it does involve appropriation of the benefits of past evil. Applying M. Cathleen Kaveny’s framework for assessing the permissibility of appropriating the benefits of evil, the duty to avoid using cell lines like HEK 293 or their products is weak and defeasible. Proper interpretation of Dignitas personae requires recognizing the crucial moral differences between the use of these cell lines—which does not perpetuate the injustice of abortion, imply approval of abortion, or involve significant risks of corrupting moral character or provoking scandal—and the direct use of fetal tissue or human embryos in research.","PeriodicalId":86269,"journal":{"name":"The national Catholic bioethics quarterly","volume":"21 1","pages":"107-121"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70947140","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Often-cited papal pronouncements regarding organ donation emphasize the importance of gift giving and the consent of the donor. However, a critical reading reveals an ill-defined separation of living organ donation and donation after death. Given that a corpse cannot engage in gift giving, nor can it give consent, the family, acting as good stewards, is the proper decision maker for organ donation after death. A historical examination of relics and human anatomical dissection reveals that the Catholic Church has primarily favored the decisional authority of the family over the first-person consent of the dead. Given this history, family-based consent (as opposed to opt-in or opt-out criteria) is the best model to ensure the dignity of the dead.
{"title":"Protecting Autonomy and Dignity in Organ Donation Postmortem through Family Decision Making","authors":"Paul Riffon","doi":"10.5840/ncbq202121226","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5840/ncbq202121226","url":null,"abstract":"Often-cited papal pronouncements regarding organ donation emphasize the importance of gift giving and the consent of the donor. However, a critical reading reveals an ill-defined separation of living organ donation and donation after death. Given that a corpse cannot engage in gift giving, nor can it give consent, the family, acting as good stewards, is the proper decision maker for organ donation after death. A historical examination of relics and human anatomical dissection reveals that the Catholic Church has primarily favored the decisional authority of the family over the first-person consent of the dead. Given this history, family-based consent (as opposed to opt-in or opt-out criteria) is the best model to ensure the dignity of the dead.","PeriodicalId":86269,"journal":{"name":"The national Catholic bioethics quarterly","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70947378","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This essay argues against Charles Camosy’s proposal, found in his book Beyond the Abortion Wars, for premature induction of labor in a mother whose child is diagnosed with a life-limiting disease, such as Potter syndrome. This proposal is critiqued within the context of motherhood as sacrificial self-gift, which has been raised to new heights by the Incarnation and Resurrection of Christ, as witnessed by the motherhood of Mary.
{"title":"Motherhood as a Sacrificial Self-Gift","authors":"B. Dugan","doi":"10.5840/NCBQ20212116","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5840/NCBQ20212116","url":null,"abstract":"This essay argues against Charles Camosy’s proposal, found in his book Beyond the Abortion Wars, for premature induction of labor in a mother whose child is diagnosed with a life-limiting disease, such as Potter syndrome. This proposal is critiqued within the context of motherhood as sacrificial self-gift, which has been raised to new heights by the Incarnation and Resurrection of Christ, as witnessed by the motherhood of Mary.","PeriodicalId":86269,"journal":{"name":"The national Catholic bioethics quarterly","volume":"21 1","pages":"45-55"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70947505","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Gender ideology and medical interventions for so-called transitioning pose profound challenges for Catholic health care. Unfortunately, many institutions do not offer clear, specific policy guidance addressing these issues. This template policy is offered to Catholic health care institutions and systems to assist them in drafting such guidance. The template defines the mission of Catholic health care, summarizes Church teaching with regard to gender ideology, and identifies both licit and illicit clinical interventions for gender dysphoria. The template also offers guidance on practical issues, including name and pronoun use, sex-specific facilities, employee training programs, and health benefits. An appendix offers model language that institutions can incorporate into employment documents to maintain Catholic identity and mission.
{"title":"Template Policy for Catholic Health Care and Gender Identity","authors":"Jozef D. Zalot","doi":"10.5840/NCBQ20212117","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5840/NCBQ20212117","url":null,"abstract":"Gender ideology and medical interventions for so-called transitioning pose profound challenges for Catholic health care. Unfortunately, many institutions do not offer clear, specific policy guidance addressing these issues. This template policy is offered to Catholic health care institutions and systems to assist them in drafting such guidance. The template defines the mission of Catholic health care, summarizes Church teaching with regard to gender ideology, and identifies both licit and illicit clinical interventions for gender dysphoria. The template also offers guidance on practical issues, including name and pronoun use, sex-specific facilities, employee training programs, and health benefits. An appendix offers model language that institutions can incorporate into employment documents to maintain Catholic identity and mission.","PeriodicalId":86269,"journal":{"name":"The national Catholic bioethics quarterly","volume":"21 1","pages":"57-65"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70947705","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}