Frozen Surplus Embryos: An Unanswered Question in Catholic Bioethics

冷凍剩餘胚胎：在天主教生命倫理上一個未解的議題

司馬忠(Maria John Peter Selvamani)

《哲學與文化》 38卷2期 (2011/02) Pp. 75-90

https://doi.org/10.7065/MRPC.201102.0075

摘要

由於人工生殖相關技術在美國的使用率增加，使得剩餘冷凍胚胎已累積超過五十萬個，如何去處理這些胚胎成為相當重要的問題。天主教會從一開始就反對人工生殖技術，認為冷凍胚胎是種不正義的情況而且無法被適當的解決。目前有二派天主教的倫理學者提出看法：一派提主議超低溫冷凍法保存胚胎是種異常的方式，所以在道德上可以被終止使用，讓胚胎自然有尊嚴的死亡；另一派學者則認為讓胚胎被領養是唯一可以拯救胚胎的方式。這篇論文主要是評估這二派學者的看法，因為現在有許多夫妻不願意將他們的胚胎被領養，而選擇讓剩餘胚胎自然死亡，所以本文建議把第一派學者的提議變成教會的正式立場。

關鍵字

冷凍胚胎 ； 天主教生命倫理 ； 胚胎領養

並列摘要

Increased use IVF and related techniques has led to an accumulation of over 500,000 frozen surplus embryos in US alone. What to do with them has become an important question. The Catholic Church has condemned IVF from the beginning and considers the problem of frozen embryos as a situation of injustice which in fact cannot be resolved. There are two streams of thought among the Catholic scholars: one proposes that the embryos can be allowed to die with dignity because cryopreservation is an extraordinary means, which can be morally with drawn and the other proposes embryo adoption as only means to rescue the frozen embryos. This paper evaluates these two positions and suggests the first position is more preferable as Catholic position, since many couples prefer to allow the embryos to die than to donate them for adoption.

並列關鍵字

Frozen Embryos ； Catholic Bioethics ； Embryo ； Adoption ； Ordinary and Extraordinary Means

參考文獻

Berg, Thomas V. "The Fate of Frozen Embryos" http://www.westchesterinstitute.net/with-good-reason/249 (Accessed on: December 7.2010)

Clark, Peter A.(2010).Frozen Embryos: Application of the Extraordinary/Ordinary Means Distinction from the Catholic Perspective.Internet Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics.12(2),9-9.

Eberl, Jason T.(2010).What 'Dignitas Personae' Does Not Say..National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly.10(1),89-110.

(Faith, Congregation of Doctrine of the "Instruction Dignitas Personae on Certain Bioethical Questions." (Sep. 8, 2008).).

Grabowski, John S.,Gross, Christopher(2010).Dignitas Personae and the Adoption of Frozen Embryos a New Chill Factor?.The National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly.10(2),307-28.