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POPE-FRANCE Jan-26-2009 (350 words) xxxi
Science must serve human dignity, pope tells French ambassador
By Carol Glatz
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Great leaps in science must always be guided by the desire to serve the inalienable dignity of the human person, Pope Benedict XVI said.
It is the church's hope that an upcoming debate in France on the revision of an existing bioethics law recognizes "the untouchable nature of every human life," the pope told Stanislas Lefebvre de Laboulaye, the country's new ambassador to the Vatican.
Welcoming the new ambassador Jan. 26, the pope praised the French parliament for having come to "wise and humane conclusions" concerning end-of-life issues when it upheld a ban on euthanasia and proposed increased efforts to care for the sick and dying, which included providing better palliative care.
"I hope this same wisdom that recognizes the untouchable nature of every human life may be at work during the revision of bioethics laws" in France this year, he said.
France's bioethics law was last modified in 2004 and covers artificial reproduction, research on the human embryo, human genetics and organ procurement.
The current law prohibits the creation of human embryos for research purposes or in order to create stem cells, but discussion is under way to reconsider the prohibition on therapeutic cloning.
The French bishops will be offering their contribution to this year's public debate, the pope said.
He said the recent Vatican document "Dignitas Personae" ("The Dignity of a Person") highlighted how important it was that scientific progress "be guided by the concern to serve the good and the inalienable dignity of the human being."
The pope also spoke of the current economic crisis affecting France and the rest of the world.
He asked that government measures aimed at addressing fiscal difficulties promote the social fabric of the community and protect the most fragile and vulnerable segments of society.
While the crisis is "a painful source of worry and suffering for many people," the pope said, it also offers an opportunity to rework financial structures and mechanisms so that they pay greater attention to human needs and reduce old and new forms of poverty.
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Copyright (c) 2009 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved.
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