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Catholic Medical Ethics
Many parishioners at St. Thomas More work in many different fields of medicine, and experience daily ethical questions. This channel is intended to be a source of reliable information and advice on Medical Ethics from a Catholic viewpoint. It will include information on local lectures, discussions and events, and links to teaching documents from the Vatican, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Diocese of Raleigh and Catholic Universities and Publishers.
Please email suggestions and comments to Jim Hynes, Director of Elementary and Adult Faith Formation.
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Resources for Catholic Teaching on Medical Ethics
'As a gift from God, every human life is sacred from conception to natural death.'
Advance Directives Document Now Available from the Diocese of Raleigh
The Diocese of Raleigh is pleased to make available to you an important resource regarding the legal and medical issues related to planning for the end of life. The process of planning for the end of life can sometimes be complicated and difficult and this document will assist you in creating a legal document that reflects your wishes for the end of your own life or that of your loved ones. The Advanced Directive resource expresses the Catholic teaching about the sanctity and beauty of life and is designed to be a planning tool to assist you in making the practical decisions that must be made at the end of life. This comprehensive Advance Directive resource includes a Healthcare Power of Attorney with definitions, instructions and the appointment of a health care agent and is applicable to North Carolina state law.
We direct you to website where you can find and download the Advanced Directive document with forms as well as a power point presentation summarizing the key points of the Advanced Directive document. http://www.dioceseofraleigh.org/docs/respect_life/advance-directive.pdf.
Dignitas Personae (The Dignity of a Person)
An Instruction from the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) on ethical issues arising from biomedical research, provides guidance on how to respect human life and human procreation in our heavily scientific age, published in English on December 12, 2008.
As background to this document, here are several of its precursors:
Donum Vitae - "The Gift of Life" from the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 1987
Evangelium Vitae - "The Gospel of Life" from Pope John Paul II, 1995
Humanae Vitae - "On the Transmission of Human Life" from Pope Paul VI, 1968Issues
Abortion
Aging
Arms Trade
Cloning
Contraception
Disabilities
Death Penalty
End-of-Life issues
Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services - from the US Bishops
Fetal Research
Health Care Policy
"Life Giving Love in an Age of Technology" - On Fertility Treatments
Natural Family Planning
Reproductive Technolgy
Torture
War
"Women Deserve Better" CampaignInstitutions
National Catholic Bioethics Center
Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University
Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Culture
Center for Health Care Ethics - St. Louis University
Catholic Health Association
Pontifical Council for Health Pastoral Care
Guild of Catholic Doctors - England and Wales
Catholic Medical Association - of the USA and Canada
Southern Cross Bioethics Institute - Australia
Institute of Catholic Bioethics - St. Joseph's University, PhiladelphiaArticles
Death, Taxes and Catholic Bioethics
The Gospel of Life
Why Bioethics Matters -
Medical Ethics - Lectures and Events
Catholic Medical Association North Carolina Events
The Diocese of Raleigh has released a series of bioethics videos to educate the faithful on the ethical components of often-complicated biological and medical situations. The talks are each approximately an hour in length. The series explains Catholic teaching on the dignity of the human person on topics such as stem cell research, infertility, end of life issues, and abortion. They are designed as a series, but each talk also can stand alone. A guide with a summary and discussion questions is available on the Human Life and Dignity website. Parishes may also contract with the speakers to do these talks “live” by contacting MaryBeth Phillips at the Pro-Life office 919-719-8267.
Last Updated: September 3 2014