The Government has agreed to continue contacts with Catholic hierarchy after a "useful exchange of views" yesterday between the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and a six-member delegation from the church.
The hierarchy sought the meeting to express concern about an EU proposal to permit experimentation on stem-cells from human embryos.
The Catholic bishops are anxious to see the Government's proposals for legislation on assisted human reproduction which is currently under consideration in a Government-appointed commission.
The Government spokeswoman said that no meetings about these issues were planned with other religious congregations and that the Catholic Church was the only congregation to seek such a meeting with Mr Ahern.
He told the Bishops that the Government will not permit the use of EU funding to conduct any stem-cell research in Ireland that would be contrary to the Constitution.
The Tánaiste, Mary Harney, will attend a Council of Ministers' meeting where a final vote will be taken on whether to give funding of €300,000 to stem-cell research.
The EU Commission wants the approval for new guidelines, which permit experimentation on stem-cells derived from human embryos created in test-tubes, before 2002.
The Church leaders and Mr Ahern also discussed human cloning, euthanasia and the possibility of a reference to God in new EU constitution.
They were told the Government supported the inclusion of a reference to God and Europe's Christian heritage in the constitution if that was possible.
The Government spokeswoman said the Government was opposed to human cloning and would support a motion at the UN to ban cloning.
She said the Government had told the Church leaders it was totally opposed to euthanasia and favoured the provision of hospice care for the terminally ill.
Last night the spokesman for the bishops, Father Martin Clarke said the greater part of the meeting had been taken up by discussion on the stem-cell issue. The Government had "significant sympathy with the bishops' concerns", he said.
For their part the bishops now had a greater understanding of the practical and political difficulties faced by the Government on the matter. There was "a lot of common ground on the issue" and both sides agreed to ongoing communications about it.
Where cloning and euthanasia were concerned the Taoiseach and the bishops were "ad idem", Father Clarke said.
The Taoiseach was "totally opposed to both".
On the draft EU Constitution the bishops expressed their wish to see an explicit reference to God and Europe's Christian heritage in the preamble, but not to the exclusion of other faiths and those of no faith.
The Taoiseach had been "broadly sympathetic."
"It was a very good meeting", Father Clarke said.
