Church’s Magisterium

It is pertinent to point out that the teaching of Magisterium of the Church with regard to Dignity and Inviolability of the Human Person in general, and procreation in particular is exhaustive, clear and consistent.  Reference is made to three significant Documents, namely the Instruction issued by the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith ‘Donum Vitae’ (1987); Pope John Paul II’s Encyclical “Evangelium Vitae” (1995), and the Congregation’s Instruction ‘Dignitas Personae’ (2008).   The latter document treats specifically and in detail techniques known as IVF and the ethical-moral questions related.  It is clear that the document regards the procedure as abortive per se i.e. intrinsically, and not per accidens i.e.  accidentally.  Paragraphs 21 and 22 state this in unequivocal terms.  The Instruction, quoting the Pontifical Commission for the Authentic Interpretation of Code of Canon Law, defines abortion as the ‘deliberate and direct killing, by whatever means it is carried out, of a human being in the initial phase of his or her existence, extending from conception to birth’ (n.23).   To berate the point further is unnecessary.   What could be of further clarification is Dr Thomas Hilger’s recent intervention during a Rome conference on ‘The Management of Infertility Today’.   Considered as a world-leading expert on resolving infertility issues naturally, Dr Hilgers analyses what he calls the ‘ineffective and costly IVF built on the foundation of destroying life’.   One can access the talk on [1] www.drhilgers.com