This Week's News: Dec 7 1999
- Adventist Ethicist Reacts to Embryo Stem Cell Research Proposal
- Russia: Constitutional Court Case Eases Restrictions on Non-Orthodox Religious Groups
- Anti-Smoking Campaigners Alarmed by Free Cigarettes in Mail Program
- Veteran Adventist Educator Honored for Work in Troubled Karen Region
- Bayak Becomes First Woman in Papua New Guinea to Receive Adventist Theology Degree
Adventist Ethicist Reacts to Embryo Stem Cell Research Proposal
Loma Linda, California, USA ... [ANN]
Guidelines for embryo stem cell research proposed by the United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) raise complex ethical issues deserving careful consideration from a Christian perspective, says Seventh-day Adventist ethicist Dr. Gerald R. Winslow.
The proposed NIH project, announced December 2, would explore the potential for using animal or human "master cells"-cells capable of developing into any kind of cell in the body-for treating a wide range of diseases, including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and juvenile diabetes. Opponents of the research object to the scientific use of pre-implanted human embryos, which have been originally developed as part of in vitro fertilization programs.
Winslow, Professor of Biomedical and Clinical Ethics at Loma Linda University in California, acknowledges the controversial nature of the debate but urges Christians to "avoid the simplistic answers characteristic of bumper stickers and to search more deeply for the principles that best reflect Biblical faith and the love of God."
Although he notes that the Adventist Church has not yet taken an official position on the issue of stem cell research, Winslow points out that the Church has already developed a considered, nuanced position on prenatal life and Christian ethics that gives guidance in this area.
"Earlier Adventist statements on abortion and assisted reproduction make it clear that Adventists are committed to the protection of prenatal human life," says Winslow. "Adventists believe that human life, at all stages of development, should be treated with respect." He adds, however, that within the Adventist guidelines already set down, "stem cell research may be ethically permissible if proper safeguards are put in place." Winslow cautions that articulating any comprehensive position on stem cell studies requires "careful consideration not only from the perspective of scientific and medical possibilities but also from the viewpoint of Christian principles."
The proposed NIH stem cell guidelines prohibit the development of human embryos specifically for research purposes and would require the informed consent of donors before unwanted embryos, developed for in vitro fertilization, are used.
"The NIH proposal to open the way for federal support of research in this area," says Winslow, "should prompt all Christians to reexamine their convictions about prenatal life in general and embryonic human life in particular."
(For further reference see the Adventist Church's "Guidelines on Abortion," adopted by the Annual Council in 1992; "Considerations on Assisted Human Reproduction" accepted in 1994 by the General Conference's Administrative Committee; and "Birth Control: A Seventh-day Adventist Statement of Consensus," voted at the 1999 Annual Council in Silver Spring, Maryland. These statements can be viewed at the official Adventist Church website
at: www.adventist.org.) [Bettina Krause]
Russia: Constitutional Court Case Eases Restrictions on Non-Orthodox Religious Groups
Moscow, Russia ... [ANN]
A recent ruling by Russia's Constitutional Court, easing some legal restrictions on non-Orthodox religious groups, has been cautiously welcomed by Seventh-day Adventist religious liberty leaders. Through its interpretation of a 1997 law regulating religious organizations, Russia's highest court held that the statute cannot be invoked to disband regional branches of churches that are registered in Moscow, even if the local groups cannot meet registration requirements.
Victor Krushenitsky, public affairs and religious liberty director for the Adventist Church in Russia, says that the status of the Adventist Church was not affected either way by the outcome of the case. But, affirming the Church's commitment to religious freedom for all, Krushenitsky greeted the ruling as a step forward in the struggle for religious tolerance in Russia, and for the equal treatment of all religions under Russian law.
"Of course such a court decision is a positive one," says Krushenitsky. He cautions, however, that the Court's November 23 ruling left the 1997 law largely intact and thus it "does not give full restoration" to religious liberty. He points out that, under the current laws, some religious groups are still unable "to own property, organize worship in public places, distribute literature or invite clergy to Russia from abroad."
The case involved a Pentecostal congregation in Western Siberia and a Jehovah's Witness group in Yaroslavl, Central Russia. In each instance, local authorities threatened the congregations with dissolution because they could not prove they had been established in the area for over 15 years, as required by the 1997 religion law.
Finding in favor of the religious groups, the Court said that the 15-year requirement does not apply to local organizations that have properly registered congregations in Moscow and that can demonstrate a presence in at least three other regions in Russia. Further, local religious groups that were registered prior to the passage of the stricter 1997 law will not be required to re-register, thus escaping the newer, more stringent, registration requirements. [Bettina Krause]
Anti-Smoking Campaigners Alarmed by Free Cigarettes in Mail Program
Phoenix, Arizona ... [ANN]
Reports that a leading United States cigarette manufacturer is sending out free samples in the mail has brought protests from anti-tobacco campaigners and the threat of court action from the Arizona Attorney General's office.
The mailing of packets of cigarettes is part of a promotion that the company says is only sent to adults.
But the mailing of free packets of cigarettes is being seen as a way of attracting new customers, especially among the young. The Arizona Attorney General has called such actions "thinly disguised efforts to target youth-to get kids who may pick them up in the mail first to get them to start smoking," according to press reports.
"The threat to young people of free cigarettes in the mail is one that must not be ignored," said Dr. DeWitt Williams, health director for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in North America. "We already see a rise in the number of smokers in the United States, after many years of reduction. Increased smoking is now seen especially in the younger age range, with the numbers of smoking teens showing a particularly alarming rise. After the government settlement with the tobacco companies, such promotions are alarming and show that cigarette damage to health-the number one preventable cause of death in the United States-is still a smoking gun."
Adventists have led the fight for better heath through the "Five Day Plan to Stop Smoking" and "Breathe Free" programs and remain committed to aiding the millions around the world whose lives and health are at risk from smoking-related illnesses. [Jonathan Gallagher]
Veteran Adventist Educator Honored for Work in Troubled Karen Region
Bangkok, Thailand ... [ANN]
Australian Helen Hall was honored for excellence in education on November 29 by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Education Department. Hall has lived and taught for the last 18 years in the refugee camps and villages of the Karen people on the Thai-Burmese border. She has helped establish two Adventist schools, Eden Valley Academy in Thailand and Karen Adventist Academy in Burma, which continue to provide education for hundreds of Karen children.
In presenting the General Conference Award of Excellence, Dr. Stephen Guptill, Adventist education director for the Southern Asia-Pacific Division, commended Hall for her 40 years of work in education and for her persistence in the face of overwhelming difficulties, including natural disasters, war and poverty.
Hall, who taught in Victoria, Australia, for 22 years before starting her work among the Karen people, says her life was changed by a 1977 trip to Asia where she saw first-hand the poverty and hopelessness of many of the children.
"It's my pleasure to be here," says Hall. "People have told me I'm crazy for living and working here, but I've never regretted it. This is where God wants me to be."
Hall cites the on-going border conflict between Thailand and Burma as one of the greatest challenges to her work. "We've had to move and rebuild the school seven times to escape fighting," says Hall. "Where possible, we salvaged what we could from the old building and then had to hand-carry everything to a new location."
The difficulties of her work are outweighed by the rewards, says Hall, the greatest of which is "seeing the young people grow and develop." She points out that of the 30 faculty members of the Eden Valley Academy, all but four began their education at the school.
Although Hall, aged 60 years, has officially retired, she continues to live and teach as a volunteer at Eden Valley Academy. She has no firm plans to return to her Australian home in the near future.
"It's in God's hands," she says. "There's too much to do here." [SPD Record/ANN Staff]
Bayak Becomes First Woman in Papua New Guinea to Receive Adventist Theology Degree
Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea ... [ANN]
Agnes Bayak has become the first woman in Papua New Guinea to graduate with a theology degree from Pacific Adventist University (PAU), says theology department head Dr. Ross Cole. While PAU, a Seventh-day Adventist university located outside Port Moresby, has awarded theology diplomas to a number of women, Bayak is the first to enter active ministerial service with a degree.
"We're proud of her," says Cole, "and we know that, wherever she serves, she will do a good job."
Bayak, who worked as a nutritionist with the PNG Department of Agriculture and Livestock before enrolling at PAU in 1996, said after the graduation ceremony on November 28 that she had "no regrets" and was looking forward to a life-long career ministering in the Adventist Church, reports one PNG newspaper. Her first posting is to Korobosea church, an English language congregation in Port Moresby.
Mrs. Carol Ferch-Johnson, leader of women's issues for the Adventist Church in the South Pacific region, welcomes Bayak's entry into pastoral work.
"The church in PNG has again demonstrated its capacity for growth and development by appointing Agnes Bayak to pastor one of its churches," says Ferch-Johnson. "We affirm Agnes as she takes up this appointment and congratulate the Church in PNG for its ability to recognize the God-given gifts and strengths that women can bring to pastoral ministry." [Bettina Krause]
Top Stories
