Abortion, euthanasia, stem-cell research, cloning, reproductive technologies, life-sustaining treatment and other controversial topics will be at the centre of a new course in bioethics to be offered in the next academic year by the Faculty of Theology at the University.
Faculty Dean Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Agius thinks that the course will offer an objective perspective of the subject by bringing together a diverse group of specialists in different areas.
"Though the course is being offered by the Faculty of Theology, we are not discussing bioethics merely from a Catholic point of view," he says.
He admits that his firm belief in Catholic values makes it difficult to explain diverging viewpoints without bias but his students are eager to commend him for giving a fair and balanced picture.
Ruben Borg, an MA student at the Faculty of Theology, says that Prof. Agius does not mince his words and is more than willing to engage in a critical debate.
"Theology has strengthened my faith and deepened my spirituality," says Mariella Spiteri Gonzi, another MA student, "but in the beginning it had shattered a lot of my beliefs and I was very confused."
"The ideal student is one with a thirst for knowledge... critical, motivated and ready to challenge and be challenged," Prof. Agius says.
He argues that theology has an important role in policy-making and insists that ethicists, philosophers and theologians should provide guidance rather than restrictions to the progress of science.
Prof. Agius is a member of the European Group of Ethics, an advisory body to the European Commission, and of the National Bioethics Committee. He is often consulted on edge-of-life issues at Mater Dei Hospital.
He says that these experiences helped to confirm his belief that science and religion are not at war but can complement and strengthen each other.
He is proud of the number of women, mature students and lay people who have in recent years shown interest in theology and encourages diversity within his lectures to create an interdisciplinary approach.
The Masters of Arts in Bioethics will start by discussing anthropological issues that are at the centre of bioethics but will also focus on public policy, research, legal issues, the meaning of pain and suffering, just allocation of medical resources and the media.
"Biotechnology is going to revolutionalise our future and change our quality of life as human beings. The role of ethics is, therefore, to question what science sometimes does not question and guide biotechnology on the right path. The role of ethics is to prove that not everything that is technologically possible is morally permissible," he says.
Taking stem-cell research as an example, Prof. Agius explains that, though it can result in the eradication of incurable diseases, it is only ethically permissible if it respects human dignity at all its stages.
He brings up a number of issues that are hotly debated within philosophical and theological factions in the Church including assisted reproduction, the issue of withholding or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment to PVS (persistent vegetative state) patients and the exact beginning of life.
He insists that the bioethics course was not set up to produce defenders of the Church's position when it comes to these issues but to help build a bioethical culture in Malta: A society which dialogues in a professional and philosophical way.
The course is mainly targeted at health workers and those involved in the caring profession as well as lawyers, philosophers and whoever else is interested in the subject.
This year, the Faculty of Theology is launching two other courses, Masters of Arts in Spirituality and Masters of Arts in Spiritual Companionship.
To learn more about these and other courses visit www.um.edu.mt/theology or phone 2340 2767.