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Christian Anthropology Versus the New Anthropology and the Quest for Human Perfection
Kraj, Tomasz (The Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow, 2014)
In the current debate, we witness a conflict between the Christian concept of man vs. concepts that justify in vitro fertilization (IVF), genetic enhancement, or the reassignment of sexuality. Modern concepts cannot disregard the historic perspective of the consistent doctrines that the Catholic Church has maintained throughout her 2000-year history and which constitute the precursors of contemporary bioethics. Although she has adjusted specifics occasionally to address new developments, she has always based doctrine on immutable core principles. The current conflict lies neither in the novelty of the new proposals, nor in a conflict between religious and lay worldviews, but rather in concepts of man and human perfection. Some human traits may be regarded as disordered and incompatible with a particular concept of human perfection. The new proposals tend to involve physical changes based on technological manipulation, with a goal of developing a superior being, while Christian proposals do not seek to manipulate man’s being, but to develop his existing potential within criteria of acceptable reason. The new proposals rely on a Cartesian view which constitutes a human as his mind (cogito ergo sum), which has dominion over his body including authority to reengineer it according to any project that mind conceives. In contrast, the Christian concept views the human subject as a unity of mind and body, which may not be reshaped to meet a questionable goal of human perfection. The technological tools within the new concepts are in no way superior to the more personal attributes like virtues, perfection of the human will, prayer, and ascesis within the Christian concept.
Czy współczesna antropologia uwzględnia wiarę?
Kraj, Tomasz (Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Papieskiego Jana Pawła II, 2013)
At present there are two predominant world outlooks on anthropology. On one side, there is Christian anthropology which takes faith into consideration. Taking faith into consideration means seriously considering such issues as: the linear concept of time, the Christian concept of man created in the image and likeness of God, the concept of human freedom, and the concept of human personhood rooted in metaphysics. The majority of contemporary anthropological positions reject the transcendent and metaphysical dimensions of the world, the existence of God, and the Christian concept of man. The main area of anthropological conflict is in bioethics. The main reason for the rejection of the Christian worldview is an infatuation with empirical science which results in categorical reductionism and scientism. It is said that empirical methodology is the only methodology which provides reliable knowledge about the world and man. The other reason for the rejection of the Christian concept of man derives from dualistic anthropology related to Descartes. It treats the human body as a raw material to be used to form the human being according to the ideas born in his/her mind. It may be particularly dangerous for man. The rejection of God and his plans for man exposes the latter to serious problems. To avoid them he should revise his epistemology and open himself to the integral truth about himself and the world. It is Christian anthropology based on the Christian faith which provides him this insight into truth.
Eksperymenty na ludzkich embrionach. Europejskie regulacje prawne
Kraj, Tomasz (Wydawnictwo Naukowe Papieskiej Akademii Teologicznej w Krakowie, 2007)
Recent discoveries in medicine have made the problem of human embryos protecting still more urgent. In the European Union as well, almost every state intends to pass a law concerning human embryos, especially regarding the limits of experimentation with them. There is also the proposal of creating a unique juridical area in the whole of Europe, i.e. the same law in all countries. Those countries which do not yet have such a law directly concerning human embryos (Poland among others) would like to join this idea. However, few countries have the same regulations. Some of them (e.g. Italy) want to protect human embryos and make nontherapeutic experiments illegal. Other countries (e.g. France, Germany) are more prone to support some kind of experimentation with human embryos. There are also countries (e.g. England, Sweden) which in practice place no restriction on experimentation. Apart from the law which passed in certain European countries, there are also some guidelines prepared by the main European institutions (the European Parliament, the Council of Europe, etc.) which should be used in the formulation of new laws concerning the manipulation of the human embryos and which unfortunately are already not taken into consideration by some liberal countries. The general tendency (also seen in the guidelines) is to make the law less and less restrictive with a resulting disadvantage for the human embryos (especially early embryos used for experimentation with embryonic stem cells). Countries like Poland have a dilemma: what should they do in order to make the same law in the entire European Union? To follow general European rules which involve all countries or to imitate those countries which have already passed a new law which, however, disregards these rules. This paper presents the general situation concerning experimentation with human embryos in the largest European countries and shows how difficult it is to bring about the proposal of an unique juridical area (at least in this field).
Nadużywanie słowa w bioetyce
Kraj, Tomasz (Wydawnictwo Naukowe Papieskiej Akademii Teologicznej w Krakowie, 2008)
The purpose of the founders of bioethics was to protect essential human values threatened by an uncontrolled development of biotechnology. Nevertheless, only a few decades later, we see these values being threatened by the same bioethicists. This is due to the peculiar way that some of them practice their profession. Instead of helping to explain new moral dilemmas to protect man they use a corruption of language thus hindering an objectively correct evaluation of specific problems. They do this in are two ways. Either they use some well known (or even historical) terms but disregard their contemporary meanings or they create new terms which obscure reality. Thus they remind us of ancient sophists who would use words to please their listeners. Their purpose was not to communicate truth but flattery as a preliminary step to manipulate their listeners. There is a well known work by J. Pieper which describes sophists' activity which helps to trace its similar forms within contemporary philosophy and ethics of which bioethics is a part.
The Role of Virtue Ethics... in Determining Acceptable Limits of Genetic Enhancement
Kraj, Tomasz (The Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow, 2013)
There are always new proposals concerning the application of new genetic technology. Some of them concern the genetic enhancement of man. There are four groups of such proposals, labeled as: better children, better performance, ageless bodies, and happy souls. The Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church, which distinguishes between therapeutic and non-therapeutic genetic manipulation, does not reject non-therapeutic genetic manipulation (genetic enhancement is such manipulation), but it does prescribe some requirements for its moral acceptance. However, these requirements are general and not very useful for determining specific moral limits for genetic enhancement of man. There are neither ready standards nor criteria for establishing those limits. The role of philosophers (theologians) then, is to ascertain those limits. It is possible to do that on the basis of virtue ethics in its version elaborated by St. Thomas Aquinas. His description of human perfection is of great help in establishing the morally acceptable limits of the genetic enhancement of man. Aquinas’s intuitions are confirmed by the observations of contemporary psychology.
Współczesna teologia moralna o szacunku dla ludzkiego embrionu w ujęciu Livio Meliny
Kraj, Tomasz (Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Papieskiego Jana Pawła II, 2013)
The current age is witnessing the depreciation of the value of innocent human life in the context of medicine and biotechnology. A principal issue concerns human embryos which may be conceived unnaturally through in vitro fertilization. Some of them are destined to be born and lead normal lives. However the majority of them are killed either through the very procedure of IVF or subsequently as subjects of various forms of experimentation. The Roman Catholic Church strives to protect human embryos. Her moral teaching addresses the problem continuously; however the most fervent teaching concerning this problem is John Paul II’s encyclical letter Evangelium vitae. This encyclical explains the great value of innocent human life with reference to three fundamental theological statements: that the humans are the only beings created in God’s image and likeness, that they were redeemed by the passion, death, and resurrection of God’s Son, and that they are called to communion with God. This special relationship with God creates the human’s dignity and gives his life its particular value. Nobody has the authority to dispose of his/her life according to his/ her individual inclination any more than he has the authority to decide the same in the case of others. The life of any innocent human being which starts with conception may not be violated and nobody may be justified in killing innocent people. The killing of human embryos is the most common case of such killing in the current age.
Znaczenie pojęcia „natury” w prawie naturalnym
Kraj, Tomasz (Wydawnictwo Pallottinum, 2011)
Progress in science and technology brings about new moral dilemmas. There are no ready solutions to the vast majority of them. Some dilemmas were not even thoroughly addressed within the broad resources of the moral teaching of the Roman Catholic Church. The Church Magisterium tells that we pursue solutions within the natural moral law. However, there are numerous misunderstandings, as well as misinterpretations, of that law in the contemporary moral debate. One of the main problems is the meaning of „nature” within the natural law: It is a matter of debate to what „nature” the natural law refers. It seems also controversial how some biological properties become morally significant. Some participants of the debate think that the natural moral law is identified with the biological properties which would be the error of the natural fallacy. This is just the exemplary misunderstanding which concerns the Church’s teaching about the natural law.