Catholic Bioethics and the Gift of Human Life: Celebrating the Beauty of Being

by William E. May

William E. May Never has the gift of human life been more threatened. Euthanasia, in vitro fertilization, genetic counseling, assisted suicide, living wills, persistent vegetative state, organ transplants... modern science has brought complex bioethical decisions about life into every Catholic household. Now, Professor William E. May fearlessly tackles these hot-topic issues, examining them in light of papal encyclicals, statements from the United States Bishops, and probing analyses from leading orthodox theologians. About the William E. May is the Michael J. McGivney Professor of Moral Theology at the John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family. He is an internationally known theologian and coauthor of Catholic Sexual Ethics, Second Edition and author of An Introduction to Moral Theology.

Genres: Catholic, Religion, Philosophy, Nonfiction

340 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Professor Emeritus of Moral Theology

Michael J. McGivney Professor of Moral Theology
B.A., M.A., Philosophy, The Catholic University of America
Ph.D., Marquette University

For many years an editor of philosophical and theological works, chiefly with the Bruce Publishing Company, Professor May taught moral theology at the Catholic University of America from 1971 until joining the faculty of the Institute in 1991. He is the author and co-author of many books, among them Sex, Marriage, and Chastity: Reflections of a Catholic Layman, Spouse, and Parent (1981); Catholic Sexual Ethics (revised ed. 1998; co-authored with Ronald Lawler and Joseph Boyle); The Teaching of Humanae Vitae: A Defense (1988; with Germain Grisez, John Finnis, John Ford, and Joseph Boyle); Marriage: The Rock on Which the Family Is Built (1995); Catholic Bioethics and the Gift of Human Life (2000); and most recently, An Introduction to Moral Theology (second ed, 2003). He is the translator of Ramon García de Haro's Marriage and the Family in the Documents of the Magisterium and of Livio Melina's Sharing in Christ's Virtues, and the editor of The Church's Mission of Evan­gel­ization. He has contributed chapters to over a dozen other books, including three titles in the Philosophy and Medicine series. The author of over 200 articles in such journals as The Thomist, Anthropotes, Scripta Theologica, Annales Teologici, National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, and Linacre Quarterly, he is the recipient of many awards, among them the Pro Pontifice et Ecclesia Medal and the Cardinal Wright Award from the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars. Professor May served as a peritus at the 1987 Synod of Bishops and was a member of the International Theological Commission from 1986 through 1996. In 2003 he was appointed a consultor for the Congregation for the Clergy.

Reviews

[Jenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great examination of some current bioethical issues. The author does a good job of presenting different sides of the argument and explaining the logic behind them, the reasons why others have refuted these arguments and backs everything up with copious foot-/end-notes and references to Catholic Church documents.

The book serves both as a good reference and a great introduction to the complexity of these issues, such that you learn how to think about these issues and the moral principles surrounding them.

[Haley · Rating 3 out of 5]

May provides a very good overview of Catholic bioethical and social teaching concerning the sciences, with his citations of Catechism and church documents providing a very good springboard for anyone looking to read further into Catholic bioethics. However, with this being a third edition, I worry May's age is starting to show: some of his arguments for or against some medical procedures are loose at best and unhinged at worst (see: craniotomy discussion). He also resorts to consequential arguments that either have failed to come to fruition or are simply weak in themselves, which leads to the not infrequent and annoying fallback of "the Church says so." While pleading authority isn't totally without cause - if you are an orthodox Catholic, the Church saying so will indeed be a fair reason to direct your life one way or another - the fact that he also tries to use scientific and ethical arguments shows that the rigor of his arguments if so often lacking that his only respite is to plead authority.
Overall this book acts as a decent foray into Catholic bioethics, but I would hesitate to use many of May's arguments in any serious scientific, logical, or ethical discussion.

[Nicole Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't read all of this book, just the chapters on contraception, and I skimmed the ones on abortion. But it was extremely helpful. The style is a bit strange, he focuses a whole lot on opposing arguments without making it absolutely clear that these are, in fact, others' opinions and not his. But once I understood what was going on, I learned a lot of good, solid apologetics.

To my friends: I own this book, so if anybody would like to borrow it I could probably swing that. :)