We had a pro-life victory in Massachusetts last week. That’s right. The Legislature voted to remove a measure allowing research on stem cells harvested from the dead bodies of unborn children from an economic stimulus bill.
Of course, the Boston Globe, in its unbiased way, bemoans the loss of “cutting edge” research, worries that biotech companies will now exit the state en masse, and chalks it up as a victory for the Catholic Church, as if it were a competition with a scorecard.
Scandal: Church 0, Society 1
Stem cells: Church 1, Society 1
Gay marriage: the battle is still on.
Of course, the Church doesn’t think that way. It’s not about wins and losses in a political arena. It’s about proclaiming a truth that applies to all people, regardless of their religion, because it is the law of nature set down by God.
Of course, the legislative action isn’t a ban on embryonic stem-cell research. And the provision wasn’t going to provide funding for the research. It was only an acknowledgement that Massachusetts welcomes such research. It’s still good that it didn’t happen.
I have to love how the Globe bends itself into knots to avoid the truth that embryos are human beings: “Nevertheless, some people believe the use of stem cells from human embryos that are grown for fertility treatments is wrong, because theoretically those embryos can develop into fetuses.” Theoretically? Embryos do develop into fetuses and fetuses become born children and born children become adults. That’s like saying that, theoretically, babies can develop into adults. Unless something intervenes to kill the child, there’s no theory about it.
We can pretty much thank Speaker of the House Tom Finneran for this. He is the Catholic fiscally liberal, socially conservative Democrat who is probably the most powerful man in the state right now. Thanks Tom.
