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	Bishop Joins Challenge to Stem-Cell Initiative By Bill Tammeus The Kansas City Star December 15, 2005 http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/local/13409729.htm Kansas City's Catholic bishop has joined the five other Missouri bishops in a challenge to the wording of a proposed state constitutional amendment on stem-cell research. Bishop Robert W. Finn of the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph said in a statement issued Wednesday that the proposed amendment "is deeply flawed, very deceptive and confusing." Missouri bishops have filed a motion to intervene in the case. The Cole County Circuit Court in Jefferson City will consider the case today, but it is unknown whether the bishops' motion will be considered. Proponents of early, or embryonic, stem-cell research have been gathering signatures for an initiative petition backing an amendment that would be voted on in November 2006. The amendment seeks to guarantee that such research remains legal in Missouri. Scientists think such research can lead to cures for Parkinson's disease, juvenile diabetes, spinal cord injury and other ailments. Late last month the Alliance Defense Fund of Scottsdale, Ariz., filed a lawsuit in Cole County Circuit Court seeking to block the language used in the petition drive. The lawsuit argued that the ballot language associated with the amendment was deceptive and unfair and should be tossed out. The case was filed on behalf of five individuals and of Missourians Against Human Cloning, a group created by the executive director of the Missouri Catholic Conference. Finn said the bishops wanted proponents "to reword their amendment so that it clearly indicates its intention to promote SCNT (somatic cell nuclear transfer), which is human cloning. Earlier, a spokesman for Secretary of State Robin Carnahan called the petition language fair. Researchers have testified that most scientists don't consider cells created by SCNT to be human beings.
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