The reasoning behind a High Court decision last November that embryos conceived outside the womb in the IVF process were not deserving of personal rights has been described as "clever but shallow" by one of Ireland's leading moral theologians.
Fr Vincent Twomey, professor emeritus of moral theology at St Patrick's College, Maynooth, and editor of The Word magazine, said the decision was based on a distinction that was without scientific or philosophical basis.
He described as "frightening" the public silence on the issue since the High Court decision.
In an editorial in the January 2007 issue of The Word, he said "newly appointed High Court Justice Brian McGovern ruled last November that embryos conceived outside the womb [ in the IVF process] are not deserving of 'personal rights' and so do not fall under the protection assured by the pro-life amendment to the Constitution.
"However, he could not deny that 'special respect' was due to such human embryos and so encouraged the Government to legislate for the Pandora's box that is so-called 'assisted reproduction'. It is a clever but shallow distinction, not based on any scientific or philosophical grounds."
Fr Twomey dismissed legislation showing "special respect" to embryos as it usually amounted "to little more than the setting up of some commission, ethical committee, or other statutory body supposedly to monitor what is done to human embryos in laboratories. In fact, scientists more or less are given a free hand, provided they fulfil certain formalities."
Scientists, like everyone else, needed "to be kept in check by the authentic law," he said.
Fr Twomey claimed the law justified the treatment of some kinds of human beings as "less than fully human".
As a result, not only was incipient human life threatened, but so was the "very foundation" of the justice system.
"The public silence on this issue is frightening," Fr Twomey concluded.
