Matthew the Poor: Towards Modern Birth Control Methods in the Coptic Orthodox Church

The paper is focused on the Matta el-Meskeen (Matthew the Poor) and his reflection of selected bioethical issue: birth control. The paper deals with the forming stages of the bioethical discussions within the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt. The research is based on Matthew the Poor´s articles and books. The first part presents his teachings about theosis as an key concept of his theology in general and bioethics in particular. The second part brings analysis of his birth control reflections and presents his observations about the role of the Church and the state in the decision making process of Christian believers.

SOWING GM CROPS: POPULATING BIOETHICS IN THE MALAYSIAN BIOSAFETY ACT 2007 THROUGH PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

The bioethical issue is one of the concerns on genetically modified (GM) crops. One of the features to acknowledge this bioethical issue is through public participation. Through public participation, any concerns relating to the application and the release of GM crops could be integrated in the biosafety decision making process. The role of public participation is essential as it is a foundation of responsible democratic governance. It advocates public consultations by creating opportunities for transparency, informed and representative decision-making processes. This paper appraises the provision on public participation in the Malaysian Biosafety Act 2007 as to the extent to which bioethical issues could be integrated in the biosafety decision making process. The paper also proposes suggestions on good governance of public participation based on the relevant international legal agreements so that it is properly enforced and serves the desired objective of Biosafety Act 2007.

"Meditations on Drugs": A Buddhist Ethical Approach to Pharmaceutical Cognitive Enhancement

Purpose: The purpose of this project is to explore the moral permissibility of pharmaceutical cognitive enhancement through the lens of Buddhist ethics and to examine what relevance Buddhist ethics can bring to the western discourse of pharmaceutical cognitive enhancement. This will also help to bring about a more global perspective towards this particular bioethical issue.Methodology: This project has a two-pronged methodology: a literature review of the western bioethical discourse on pharmaceutical cognitive enhancement and a qualitative analysis of the participants, Buddhist monks and nuns, who were interviewed.Results: The moral framework that emerged from the interviews coincided with the framework that was derived from the literature review. Buddhists also seemed to prefer alternative forms of cognitive enhancement such as mediation and education to the biomedical or pharmaceutical. However, they saw little inherently wrong with the pharmaceuticals themselves so long as they are used in moderation and all other contexts are considered.Conclusions: What this project brings to the discussion of the bioethical issue of pharmaceutical cognitive enhancement is a consideration for another alternative form of enhancement, primarily meditation. It also brings in a new moral framework that is not found within the West. By considering ethical issues from a Buddhist lens this develops a more global perspective on the issue, which is certainly needed, as it is possible that pharmaceutical cognitive enhancement will likely not remain as a bioethical issue that is only found in the West.

L’etica della sperimentazione sull’uomo dal processo di Norimberga ai comitati di etica

L’articolo analizza come la rivista “Medicina e Morale” ha affrontato nella sua storia il tema dell’etica nella sperimentazione clinica, che rappresenta una parte molto ampia e complessa della bioetica ma anche della deontologia medica. Gli aspetti che questa tematica comprende sono ormai numerosissimi e la letteratura prodotta ingentissima. L’etica della sperimentazione ha ricevuto particolare vigore e attenzione in seguito a diverse sperimentazioni non etiche che hanno profondamente turbato l’opinione pubblica e reso necessario un forte ripensamento nell’ambito della ricerca clinica. In generale, dagli anni ’60 agli anni ’80 del XX secolo, ha prevalso nella letteratura un intenso impegno e interesse nella elaborazione dei principi di riferimento e nella riflessione teorica relativa a varie questioni (quali il consenso informato, il significato etico della ricerca clinica, la tutela dei soggetti vulnerabili, l’accettabilità del rischio). Dagli anni ’90 in poi si è invece intensificata – probabilmente per le esigenze nate in seno ai Comitati di etica che proprio in quel periodo hanno iniziato a diffondersi massicciamente – la elaborazione di codici, regolamenti, linee-guida che ha orientato lo sviluppo della disciplina più in senso procedurale e con un approccio etico-deontologico. In particolare, Medicina e Morale è stata sempre presente su queste tematiche, fin dagli inizi della sua storia, costituendo una voce originale nel dibattito, oltre che uno strumento di diffusione (in particolare nell’era pre-internet) di documenti nazionali e soprattutto internazionali. La Rivista ha rappresentato, soprattutto nell’ultimo trentennio, un vero punto di riferimento a livello nazionale ed in alcuni casi anche internazionale, proponendo a volte orientamenti originali, che sono stai poi accolti nell’ambito di linee-guida e di normative. ---------- The article deals with how the journal “Medicina e Morale” has faced ethics in clinical trials, which represents a very large and complex bioethical issue, but also deontological one. This area comprises many questions and the literature is huge. It has risen after unethical clinical trials that have shocked the public and have produced a big rethinking about it. In general, from the ’60s to the ’80s of the XXth century, an intense commitment and interest have prevailed on the elaboration of the reference principles and on theoretical reflection on various issues, such as informed consent, the ethical significance of clinical research, the protection of vulnerable people, the risk acceptability). Since the ’90s onwards the development of codes, regulations, guidelines – that have guided the development of the discipline in a procedural and also deontological sense – has increased, probably due to the large diffusion of ethics committees. Particularly, the journal “Medicine and Morale” has always been present on these issues, since the beginning of its history, creating an original voice in the debate, as well as a dissemination tool (especially in the pre-internet era) of national and especially international documentation. The journal has been, especially in the last thirty years, a real national, and sometimes international, benchmark, offering original suggestions which are then accepted in guidelines and regulations.