Some key members of the Pontifical Academy for Life (PAV) are revolting.
Their targets are the dicastery’s leaders who are accused of “systematic betrayal” of Christian values and also of collaborating with certain programmes that do not follow the Church’s teachings.
They are prepared to take their protest to the highest levels because they claim “the situation is extremely serious.”
Critics within PAV represent a small minority whose actions could prevent the entity from moving on with its mission.
One of PAV’s critics is Professor Josef Seifert, President of the Senate of the International Academy of Philosophy in the Principality of Lichtenstein.
Last 10 April he sent a long letter to PAV’s President, Opus Dei bishop, Ignacio Carrasco de Paula, in which he underlined his “deep feeling of sadness” and “enormous concern” over “the great danger” of the Academy potentially losing its “full and pure commitment to the truth.”
According to Seifert, last 24 February, the Academy experienced what was probably “the worst day in the history of the PAV.”
On that day, a conference was held in Rome to deal with the issues of fertilisation and infertility treatment. The opinions exchanged can be split into eight points.
According to the professor, most of the messages published that day, five out of seven, not only lacked any link to Catholic morality, but only referred to methods such as the pill, artificial insemination and in vitro fertilisation.
Furthermore, he continued, the ethical judgements of the five speakers constituted “a direct assault on Church teaching and on the truth.”
Seifert then stated: “The journalists who will report on this conference or a PAV publication of these papers, which I hope will never occur, will spread the exact opposite of the Church’s teaching as something promoted by our Academy. The outside image of the Academy and of the Church was gravely hurt and harmed by this event.”
The President of the Family of the Americas Foundation and the World Family Organisation, Mercedes Arzú Wilson who is also a member of the Pontifical Academy for Life added herself to the list of critics. She expressed her opposition to certain declarations, to the Catholic Information Service.
There have also been some tangible consequences to the Academy’s internal crisis, such as the cancellation of the International Congress on Stem Cell Research which should have taken place between 25 and 28 April in the Vatican.
According to official statements, the meeting was cancelled because of a lack of funds but in reality it was because of disputes among the body’s members.
Critics of the conference on infertility opposed the stem cell congress, claiming that speakers of this second initiative included individuals who were renowned for their advocacy and practical use of embryonic stem cells in research.
Scholars who are also in favour of human cloning.
All of them representing positions that go against the teachings of the Church.
As such, the Congress sparked a dispute within the Roman Curia which naturally led to the event being cancelled by orders from high up.
The decisions allegedly irritated some Academy officials and caused a permanent rift with critics. Instead of resolving the crisis, the situation worsened it.
In this context, indignant academics want to express their disappointment at Pope Benedict XVI and at his main collaborators.
Hence why they are mobilising to protest against the bad alliances that have formed within the dicastery; alliances which could “destroy Church teachings, particularly those of John Paul II on life, love, human sexuality and the family.”