Author: Eric Johnson

I am not a bioethicist, nor do I play one on the Web. Moreover, the idea of human cloning is so repugnant that I’m not particularly interested in refuting it, any more than I want to think about refuting the idea of genocide or sex with furniture.
However, cloning is in the news, as it will be periodically for the next decade at least. We can’t ignore it. So I thought it would be useful — to myself, if no one else — to write a little “cheat sheet” listing the strongest arguments against cloning of any kind. No recourse to revelation necessary. Feel free to add your own in the comments box.
1. It will kill tiny human beings.
Whatever our differences about morality, virtually everyone agrees that it is wrong to deliberately end the life of an innocent human. Yet that’s what happens during embryo experimentation: scientists fiddle with the little one-celled creatures, and some of them die. They are indisputably human on a genetic level; they are individuals with a unique DNA structure; yet they enjoy virtually no protection under the law. (I’m avoiding the word “person” to describe embryos because a person is, technically, a being that thinks, wills, and acts, which embryos cannot do.) When you do something that deliberately ends a life, or something that you can be reasonably certain will end a certain number of lives out of a group, it’s called “killing.” Don’t shy away from using the word.
2. Humans should not be used as means to an end.
One would think we learned this lesson at great cost in the 20th century, but man must be constantly reminded. Every human being, because he posesses the dignity of an intelligent, created being, should be treated with respect. Doing medical experiments that kill tiny human beings in order to help other human beings is therefore wrong. When someone asks, “Do you really think these little cells are more important than my [brother, mother, daughter, etc.]?” the answer is, “No, they are equal. And just as we would not experiment on full-grown adults in order to help embryos, we shouldn’t experiment on embryos to help full-grown adults.” That’s true even if we are certain that we will gain positive results from embryonic experiments — and there’s no guarantee that those results will materialize.
3. We don’t know what we’re doing.
Did you know that biologists can’t even agree on how many genes there are? We are just beginning to research the human genome, as news stories used to say about genetic breakthroughs. Now they herald the potential cures that genetic experimentation can bring (and, it’s strongly implied, it almost certainly will bring them if people get over their petty qualms about how yucky cloning is.) Yet the more responsible news reports point out that any cures are years away, if not decades. We should remind people that all of this may be a dead end. We understand more than ever about cancer, for instance, but despite billions in research we have nothing like a cure for it.
4. We can’t produce clones anyway.
…at least not in the sense that people mean by “clone,” an exact replica of the original that will develop precisely as the original creature did. Maybe we can do it with bacteria — I’m not a biologist, either — but a complex vertebrate? Nope. Animal clones age more rapidly and have a higher rate of mutation and disease. Nobody knows why. Again, it’s not certain that we can overcome the obstacles. Ramesh Ponnuru has a much longer, better-written, and elegant argument against cloning on Tech Central Station, which I warmly commend to you.

Martyrdom then & now
Today is the feast of St. Stephen, the first witness murdered for the faith. We would do well to remember that for millions of Christians around the world, going to church is a dangerous act. If you had not heard, three Protestant girls were murdered by Muslim extremists on Christmas Day for the crime of worshipping the Incarnate Word.
In dozens of countries, Christians are the weak and vulnerable ones, not the dominant majority. Keep them in mind and pray for their safety, and thank God that you don’t have to be afraid when you go to church.

Rumors of war, con’d
[NOTE: In the original version of this post, I said that 20 Catholic bishops in Britain released a “peace” statement, when in fact the bishops in question were Anglican. The article I referred to was mainly about a Catholic priest, and the paragraph describing the statement is directly below a quotation from a Catholic cardinal, so you can see why I was confused. The British media do not always clearly label whose bishops are whose, but I should have checked first. Mea culpa. However, the misattribution didn’t substantially change my point.]
Besides ridding the world of a pre-eminent tyrant, a war against Iraq will thankfully end the idle speculation about its conduct. Every week or so, some group has a pre-fab anti-war statement signed by several worthies; they come from celebrities, religious leaders, political has-beens, etc. Sadly, our religious leaders’ statements are often indistinguishable from the others’, if you take out the occasional references to the Godhead. (Very occasional, in some of the statements.) The U.S. and U.K. are “rushing to war,” nevermind that we’ve been at war with Iraq for 12 years. We must ask permission of the International Community in the person of the United Nations, nevermind that we have done everything in Iraq — sanctions, no-fly zones, protection of Kurds and Shiites, driving them out of Kuwait — with the U.N.’s explicit sanction. And so on, and so on.
What I find mildly offensive isn’t that many clerics disagree with my views. On questions such as this, reasonable Christians can differ. My problem is that these statements rarely leave any room for such disagreement. Our own American Catholic bishops are an admirable exception to this, thankfully. Others are a mixed bag.
Twenty Anglican bishops of Great Britain have decided that a war on Iraq would be “illegal, unwise and immoral.” One signee, Archbishop David Hope of York, said that “The Christian tradition is unequivocally clear, namely that war as a method of settling international disputes is incompatible with the teaching and example of our Lord Jesus Christ. So the Christian instinct in every age is always programmed against war.”
I’m trying to reconcile these words with the last 2,000 years of history, and failing miserably. Plainly, the Christian tradition does not preclude the use of force between states. The burden of proof falls on those who propose to use force, because there should be an automatic preference against it. To state flatly that war per se contradicts the Gospel is false. The good archbishop should take up this matter with the authors of the Catechism, which not only says war is permissible under some circumstances, but that states can compel its citizens to fight.
The statement-issuers rarely consider the character of the Iraqi regime, either. The whole question of war revolves around how many civilians we might kill, not the objectives of the war, or the likely outcome. (N.B.: no air force in the world has the capacity to carry out WWII-style carpet bombings these days, so massive civilian casualties are practically impossible.) The hundreds and thousands of people that the current government executes are not considered, nor are the thousands of political prisoners. Any possibility of Iraq handing off deadly weapons to Al Qaeda is treated dismissively.
With luck, in the next month or so we will swiftly begin the end of Saddam Hussein. May the evil men who kill and torture the innocent find their rewards, whatever they may be. May the unwilling conscripts who make up their army surrender quickly and peaceably. Most of all, let God’s justice be done, whatever form that may take.

Prayer request for in utero Johnson
(I did manage to get the right Latin medical phrase this time.) My wife and I are expecting this year’s baby crop in about six weeks, so if you all would throw a few prayers our way, we would appreciate it. Saint Gerard is our favorite intercessor for such things, but any requests sent heavenwards are wonderful. (Hmm…”Utero” is a fantastic boy’s name. I’ll ask Paige what she thinks. I’m sure she’ll love it.)

I’m not that Eric Johnson
For the record, I do not star in the TV show “Smallville.”. Neither do I play the electric guitar, nor do I play NFL football. You may be looking for a Georgia state senator; you have not found him. Though some may wish I were, I am not in prison. I’m Eric Johnson, and the only place you can find me on the Web is right here on Catholic Light.