Archbishop, U. bioethicist discuss cloning

In a radio show broadcast from the Penn-affiliated Newman Center, experts spoke on cloning and genetics. Forget Galileo. The latest scientific controversy swirling through the halls of the Vatican revolves around something a lot smaller than the universe but just as complex: DNA, the chemical containing hereditary information. Hoping to iron out some of the theological and moral issues entangling the topic of genetics, Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua, the archbishop of the Philadelphia diocese, yesterday focused his weekly call-in radio show, Live with Cardinal Bevilacqua, on cloning and genetic testing. Bevilacqua decided to hold the show on Penn's campus at the University-affiliated Newman Center as part of a four-show series held in different spots around the diocese. Arthur Caplan, the nationally renowned director of Penn's Center for Bioethics, was also on hand, as was Rev. Kevin McMahon, a dean and theologian at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pa. The show is broadcast Mondays from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on WZZD-AM 990, a Christian music station. The discussion began with a more general foray into the Catholic Church's view on morality. "We teach the morality of God," Bevilacqua said. "While we support scientific research that aims at bettering humanity, we cannot support that which robs humans of their dignity." Bevilacqua then raised the possibility that genetic testing might lead to an increase in the number of abortions -- a procedure that conflicts with strict Catholic doctrine. "The Church is afraid that genetic testing might be used to promote abortion, whereby a fetus found to be genetically disabled is terminated," he said. The abortion scenario was powerfully illustrated in emotional testimony by one anonymous audience member who recounted that during his wife's pregnancy with their second child, doctors had identified a fatal genetic disease through testing. He explained that he and his wife decided to carry the fetus to term. Although their son died within two months, the couple remained at peace with their decision. "We know that it was the will of the Lord," he said. Caplan, on the other hand, maintained that genetic testing is essential to solving scientific and medical problems. "Often, testing, including testing of the fetus, is crucial in identifying a problem and procuring the correct treatment," he explained. McMahon agreed with the medical need-based reason, as long as any family-planning decisions stemming from the newfound genetic information were made "in the natural way." He added that the Church supported "low-risk informational testing" which might further more general genetic research like the Human Genome Project, the massive, 15-year project begun in 1990 to discover all human genes and map all 3 billion chemical parts of human DNA. All parties were in agreement, however, when the talk focused on the soon-to-be-mom and Scottish-cloned sheep Dolly. "While the Church approves of cloning for fruit and perhaps animals, human cloning is absolutely abhorrent to her teachings," McMahon said. And Bevilacqua added that "scientists and researchers should not play God." Caplan said "the moratorium on money for human cloning should be extended," noting the Clinton administration's ban on any federal research funds for human cloning. Nevertheless, all envisioned human cloning as a looming inevitability. Caplan pointed to Chicago scientist Richard Seed, who announced this year that he plans to clone a human even if that means moving to Mexico. One audience member articulated this fatalistic view: "It's going to happen. Religion can't stop the irrepressible march of science."