The new No. 1 issue for Roman Catholic bishops in Charlotte and Raleigh is embryonic stem cell research.

In last fall’s national election, Michael J. Fox’s poignant endorsement of embryonic stem cell research set off dueling television ads that argued the point. Now, the bishops are urging parishioners to fight any efforts by the North Carolina legislature to fund it.

Just what we need in time for the next election – another political litmus test, one that could spread beyond North Carolina.

Church bulletins present “A Call to Action” from Bishop Peter Jugis of Charlotte, explaining the church’s opposition. Jugis and Bishop Michael Burbidge of Raleigh want Catholics to “help defeat this legislation that would destroy innocent human life.” The lessons include scientific “myths” and “facts.”

Just what I like, a good debate. To have a debate, however, you need to look at an issue from every angle.

You need to consider that proponents of embryonic stem cell research also value lives, lives they think might be saved through medical breakthroughs.

You need to ask questions, such as, what will be the fate of the frozen embryos that are routinely discarded from fertility clinics?

You need to not close your ears to people of good will who disagree.

Debate is not something the church has always welcomed, as Galileo learned in his spat with Pope Urban VIII over theories of the universe. However, that was in the 1600’s, dogma under the bridge.

Church and state separation in America barely kept the debate civil, as Catholics fought to prove themselves loyal to both. By the time John F. Kennedy brushed aside images of a pipeline to the Vatican on his way to election as U.S. president in 1960, the issue of theological vetoes of political policy had been settled.

Cut to today.

The thousands – of many faiths – who recently marched in Washington to protest on the 34th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion would say certain issues are as political as they are personal. What could be more basic than the issue of life?

There is a consistency about the Catholic Church’s view, a virtue, as a Catholic, I’ve always admired. Life is sacred, from conception to the grave, simple as that.

But even simplicity becomes complex when confronted with the human factor. That’s why many in the church today question a ban on condom use when one partner is HIV-positive.
I welcome learning about the church’s teachings on stem cell research, about promising experiments that don’t require embryonic stem cells. I also expect discussions of the death penalty, since Jugis has called for a moratorium on that punishment in North Carolina.

What I’m afraid will happen is a repeat of the public pummeling of Catholic politicians who – whatever their private beliefs – don’t vote the church’s way. During recent elections, the issue was abortion and denying Holy Communion was the punishment Jugis and other bishops across the country favored.

Even Catholics not running for anything were terrified that exercising their right to vote could get them banished from the church they loved.

It’s a theological and political power play, and it’s not pretty.