2 - 1998

Biomedicin and Genetic Engineering

Dialoque

 


 

EDITORIAL

For months the churches, social groups and large parts of the population in Germany have been involved in a discussion on the opportunities and limits of modern medicine, particularly bio-medicine. Should medicine be allowed to do all that is technically possible today? That is a question that stirs up passions regarding specific medical and pharmaceutical research projects.
The discussion is particularly controversial in that not only medical and ethical issues but also the economic interests of the pharmaceutical industry are at stake. Small wonder then that the different sides in this debate are often incompatible. The opponents apparently only agree on one thing - that the state should have the responsibility to promote medical research as best it can, but also to set clear ethical limits. However, the government’s efforts to introduce binding minimum standards for medical and pharmaceutical research on a European level have really heated up the discussion now.

In this issue of ECUMENICAL DIALOGUE we will document opinions on three different issues that played a major role in the debate over the last few months:

  • The question whether genes discovered in genetic research that are undergoing tests to identify their effects and therapeutic and pharmaceutical fields of application should or ought to be patented like inventions.
  • The question about the goal, purpose and justification of antenatal diagnosis that can identify genetic defects and disabilities of the embryo at an early stage of pregnancy, and
  • The Council of Europe’s Convention on Biomedicine and Human Rights of April 1997, in short Bioethics Convention, which led to fierce debates with its minimum standards regarding research projects on people who are unable to consent and on embryo protection.

On request, we can send you the official statements (in German) of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) and the German Bishops’ Conference on these topics - including joint statements of both churches. But, true to ECUMENICAL DIALOGUE’s policy, we would like to provide you with some insight into the discussion currently preoccupying the German Protestant churches - sometimes in conflict with the official church opinions. As always, we are grateful for any response on your part.