Embryos: Europe Is Awakening

Jan 30

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allStagesButtons

I have written several times in the past that the strong abortion debate in the United States will unavoidably cause the same discussions to be started in Europe. It’s not that there are no pro-life organisations in Europe, or that the matter is completely absent from the public debate; but certainly we are several steps behind.

Now I have known, courtesy of His Hermeneuticalness,  of the One of Us appeal to stop our money being used for the destruction of embryos.

This is one of the new European Citizens’ Initiatives aimed at reaching 1 million signatures. When an ECI reaches that objective, its object can be directly brought to the attention of the Commission, which has the power to initiate EU legislation in the matter.  I know the idea that you need one million signatures to attract the attention of politicians and technocrats is not really smart, but I think this is made to make clear only those initiatives should be launched which have a real EU breadth and can command the attention of the public in several European countries. The initiatives must also be limited to those matters in which the Commission can propose legislation; which are, as everyone here in the UK knows, far too many.

In this case, if you visit the site you will notice the multi-lingual experience. Whilst in Europe we are undoubtedly less advanced than in the United States, it is beautiful to see how the stronger pro-life movement in the United States starts to cause a certain stir here in the Old (as in: old) Continent.

If you are more technically or legally inclined, you can jump here to read about the decision of the European Court of Justice  in the case Bruestle vs Greenpeace (astonishingly, Greenpeace seems to be able to do something good at times…).

I found these lines particularly enlightening:

[Al]though [the EU] seeks to promote investment in the field of biotechnology, use of biological material originating from humans must be consistent with regard for fundamental rights and, in particular, the dignity of the person.” Id. at ¶ 32. Therefore “any human ovum after fertilization, any non-fertilized human ovum into which the cell nucleus from a mature human cell has been transplanted and any non-fertilized human ovum whose division and further development have been stimulated by parthenogenesis constitute a ‘human embryo’ within the meaning of Article 6(2)(c) of the Directive.”

It is a sad reality that for the vast majority of Europeans abortion is a given, a reality of life accepted without question. It will take time before more and more people start to think that this situation must change, and I am very much afraid that the biological factor will play a role as the hippies generation is largely irretrievably lost. Still, it is beautiful to see a new conscience concerning the protection of life emerging.

Mundabor

Posted on January 30, 2013, in Catholicism and tagged , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. 2 Comments.

  1. catocon | January 30, 2013 at 10:33 pm

    Mundabor,
    you write: “the strong abortion debate in the United States will unavoidably cause the same discussions to be started in Europe.”
    I have to disagree. The abortion debate in the US seems to be rapidly ebbing, losing its strength. Even “conservatives” appear to have realized that any kind of serious pro-life stance is toxic for their re-election prospects. Two perfect test-cases for this can be found in the senate races of Missouri and Indiana in 2012. Two conservative states with a nominal pro-life majority and a history of electing “pro-life” representatives and senators. As long as they only pretend to be pro-life, that is.
    More than three in four Americans basically favor the status quo on abortion.
    Of course, pro-lifers tend to have more children. This is said to have an impact on the long-term prospects of the pro-life movement. But the problem is, even if pro-lifers have more children than “pro-choicers”, their children will be almost uniformly “pro-choice” – the influence media, entertainment industry and the education system is much too strong to be overcome by your average familiy. There are many children of pro-life parents. There are few serious pro-life young adults.

    The pro-life side has, as usual, won the rational argument. But it has lost the debate for generations. Most of those who call themselves “pro-life” now, do so because their “right” to an abortion is secure and they would like to have some minimal restrictions on the practice of some abortions – partial-birth abortions, for example. If someone should criticize abortion as such, they will become staunch defenders of child murder. They are not pro-life in any meaningful sense of the term. At least ninety percent of voters fall into this category – including the majority of professional pro-life activists (who accept abortions in some cases in order to be seen as “reasonable” and “moderate” and “compassionate” even while they condone murder for a few pieces of silvery recognition.)

    And if the situation is bad in America, it is infinitely worse in Europe. In Germany, many “pro-life” groups do not even oppose legal abortion at all! They merely take the “Bill Clinton position” of reducing the number of abortions. The Church is completely silent on the matter. The last annual March for Life in Berlin drew less than 3000 people and was not attended by Woelki or any other bishop. (Of course, Fr. Schmidberger and the unmentionable society of utter heretical reactionaries was there – what a contrast.)

    Abortion is not a reality uncritically accepted by most people. For many, it is a right, possibly even the only sacrament left, and they are silent on the matter not because they are uneasy about it (having effectively sold soul and conscience long ago) but because they are resting perfectly safe in the knowledge of having attained the right. They see no reason to fight for it, because hardly anybody fights against it.

    The situation will not change in the next generation or the one after it, either. The only systematic exception to the development of pro-life children into pro-choice adults through schools, entertainment and media are homeschoolers. But they hardly exist outside the USA. Homeschooling is actually illegal in Germany – the increasingly totalitarian atheist state knows it needs to re-educate the children into perfectly modern, perfectly molded ants, spiritual enough to worship the devil and materialist enough to worship the world. I see homeschooling as the last refuge of Christian families if they wish to have Christian (and pro-life) children. But it is prohibited in Germany and under assault in many other countries.

    The fight against abortion needs to be continued to the bitter end. But the end – at least on this issue – will almost certainly be bitter, unless the tide changes completely, which is always possible. But I do not see any signs of a changing of the tide, though I am on the lookout all the time.

    • Mundabor | January 31, 2013 at 6:50 am

      Catocon, the polls published in the last weeks seem not to match with a trend clearly observed for years. Of course, pro-lifers are in the minority, but it is a strong minority, not – as you say – a tiny one like in Europe (by the way, in Italy it is different; Germany is, I must say, truly rotten to the core).

      I think the biological solution will work in the US and from that the debate will – as per my post – move to Europe. I am afraid the Germans might be the last to move.

      M