Pope affirms stance against abortion and scientific research on embryos

Vatican City – In a statement that is seen as the Roman Catholic Church’s latest stance against abortion and scientific research on embryos, Pope Benedict XVI has said that God sees embryos as "full and complete" humans.

"The loving eyes of God look on the human being, considered full and complete at its beginning," the Reuters has quoted the pontiff as saying.

Quoting Psalm 139, "Thou didst see my limbs unformed in the womb, and in thy book they are all recorded", Pope Benedict said the Bible teaches that God already recognizes the embryo as a complete human – a view that suggests that abortion or manipulation of these embryos amounts to murder.

"It is extremely powerful, the idea in this psalm, that in this 'unformed' embryo God already sees the whole future," Benedict noted, adding "In the Lord's book of life, the days that this creature will live and will fill with works during his time on earth are already written."

During the last Christmas Eve Mass, the Pope had also raised the issue, stating that the love of God shines on each child, "even on those still unborn."

Besides being against abortion in all cases, the Catholic Church also opposes stem–cell research which extracts useful cells from unused embryos left over from fertility treatments.

The United States Congress is presently debating whether to expand federal funding for this kind of research, which scientists say could provide cures to many debilitating diseases.