This publication, representing the doctoral dissertation of Rev. Fr. Anthony Okechukwu Nnadi examines the healthcare system in Nigeria in the light of the Catholic social teaching. He supports that the allocation of health care resources is not only a matter of organization, but is also an ethical problem. The debacles and failure of the Nigerian health system, result from many factors including lack of will to implement the right policies on the ground, corruption among the leaders, lack of justice, lack of respect for the dignity of each human person, mismanagement, and insufficient consideration and application of ethical principles in the administration of common good, especially in the distribution of health care and social resources. For the distribution of health care resources, this doctoral dissertation suggests that priority be given to the basic health care needs of Nigerian citizens especially those who have no means of satisfying these needs themselves.In this context, the research affirms that great attention needs to be paid to ensuring that the principle of human dignity is completely respected in each and every policy in this important area.This doctoral thesis is an ethical vision of social reality in Nigeria. It proposes the person-centred Catholic principles as a possible way forward in the distribution of health care resources in Nigeria. It does not imply substituting the economic, political and health care experts in offering technical solutions in their areas of competence. The author is convinced that healthcare allocation is also an ethical issue that needs to be governed by ethical principles.The key factors for choosing this theme are based on the author’s knowledge of the deplorable condition of the health care system in Nigeria and his desire to save human lives. Rev. Fr. Anthony Okechukwu Nnadi believes that we are all stewards of human life. This implies a moral obligation to protect the dignity of the human person, which is inseparable from protecting human life.
This book discusses the ethical dilemmas relating to the use of frozen human embryos. During an IVF process, after fertilization of the eggs, the embryos that are not needed immediately can be placed in the freezer to be preserved for future use. Regarding the fate of frozen human embryos, the possibilities include: i) donating them for stem cell research or for treatment of disease; ii) using them as a means for treatment of infertility; iii) permitting their destruction; iv) allowing them to thaw and die; v) allowing them to continue to stay in the freezer and vi) utilizing them in a form of prenatal adoption. As the book reveals, it is only the proposal to adopt the embryos that can be considered in terms of moral permissibility because the rest do not respect and protect the dignity, integrity and life of the human embryo. The book focuses on the proposal for prenatal adoption. The anthropological dimension of adoption reveals that the ethics of adoption is based on gift and acceptance and that adoption is a concrete manner of expressing love and solidarity. Thus, an abandoned child is received with love to be permanently a member of the adoptive family. The husband and wife who did not beget the abandoned child, generate him/her through the intrinsic generative power of their love. With this, it was demonstrated in this book that prenatal adoption is compatible with the dynamic of adoption. Prenatal adoption as Dignitas personae reveals is praiseworthy because it protects and saves human lives, but it presents various problems. Based on the declarations of the Catholic Magisterium, there is a prolific Catholic debate on the morality of prenatal adoption. Some agree it is morally permissible, while others disagree. Most arguments in the Catholic debate are centred on whether prenatal adoption separates the unitive and procreative meanings of marriage. This book proposes a reconsideration of prenatal adoption, sticking strictly to the Magisterial prudential judgement.
The book takes a practical look at the complexity of the nature of violence/terrorism in Nigeria, in the light of the Catholic social teaching on non-violent resistance. With the critical analyses of some policies/strategies used to address the problem of Boko Haram terrorism in Nigeria, the book explores a range of questions: Does severe punishment work effectively as deterrence against possible involvement in terrorism? Does applying “lex talionis” reduce or exacerbate recidivism? What are the right mechanisms to stop terrorism/violence in Nigeria? This book is convinced that nothing is resolved through violence, and that, violence begets violence, alluding that, responding to terror with terror is a retaliatory method that is self-defeating. On the whole, it has been noted that the principle or law of retaliation (Lex Talionis) alone cannot stop armed insurgency in Nigeria, thus, the book suggests non-violent resistance as the best way to address terrorism and violent conflicts. Non-violent resistance does not mean condoning violent attacks against innocent civilians. Based on the Christian ethical principles of the dignity of the human person and justice, this book explicitly declares that the killing of innocent civilians is absolutely immoral. The book explores the use of the term Islamic terrorism and the Islamic ethics of justice, peace and nonviolence, and underlines that the Islamic core moral principles in no way support terrorism. While stating that terrorism is morally wrong, this book states that the causes of terrorism must be addressed with justice and fairness. On this basis, the book insists on critically investigating the following: religious extremism, corruption, bigotry in politics and religion, the glaring sense of apathy among the political elite to the suffering of the oppressed, and the mismanagement and abuse of political positions or the nation’s resources for selfish interest. There must be a rethink aimed at finding the best way to build an ethical society – a framework for justice and peace.
This book discusses the ethical dilemmas relating to the use of frozen human embryos. During an IVF process, after fertilization of the eggs, the embryos that are not needed immediately can be placed in the freezer to be preserved for future use. Regarding the fate of frozen human embryos, the possibilities include: i) donating them for stem cell research or for treatment of disease; ii) using them as a means for treatment of infertility; iii) permitting their destruction; iv) allowing them to thaw and die; v) allowing them to continue to stay in the freezer and vi) utilizing them in a form of prenatal adoption. As the book reveals, it is only the proposal to adopt the embryos that can be considered in terms of moral permissibility because the rest do not respect and protect the dignity, integrity and life of the human embryo. The book focuses on the proposal for prenatal adoption. The anthropological dimension of adoption reveals that the ethics of adoption is based on gift and acceptance and that adoption is a concrete manner of expressing love and solidarity. Thus, an abandoned child is received with love to be permanently a member of the adoptive family. The husband and wife who did not beget the abandoned child, generate him/her through the intrinsic generative power of their love. With this, it was demonstrated in this book that prenatal adoption is compatible with the dynamic of adoption. Prenatal adoption as Dignitas personae reveals is praiseworthy because it protects and saves human lives, but it presents various problems. Based on the declarations of the Catholic Magisterium, there is a prolific Catholic debate on the morality of prenatal adoption. Some agree it is morally permissible, while others disagree. Most arguments in the Catholic debate are centred on whether prenatal adoption separates the unitive and procreative meanings of marriage. This book proposes a reconsideration of prenatal adoption, sticking strictly to the Magisterial prudential judgement.
This publication, representing the doctoral dissertation of Rev. Fr. Anthony Okechukwu Nnadi examines the healthcare system in Nigeria in the light of the Catholic social teaching. He supports that the allocation of health care resources is not only a matter of organization, but is also an ethical problem. The debacles and failure of the Nigerian health system, result from many factors including lack of will to implement the right policies on the ground, corruption among the leaders, lack of justice, lack of respect for the dignity of each human person, mismanagement, and insufficient consideration and application of ethical principles in the administration of common good, especially in the distribution of health care and social resources. For the distribution of health care resources, this doctoral dissertation suggests that priority be given to the basic health care needs of Nigerian citizens especially those who have no means of satisfying these needs themselves.In this context, the research affirms that great attention needs to be paid to ensuring that the principle of human dignity is completely respected in each and every policy in this important area.This doctoral thesis is an ethical vision of social reality in Nigeria. It proposes the person-centred Catholic principles as a possible way forward in the distribution of health care resources in Nigeria. It does not imply substituting the economic, political and health care experts in offering technical solutions in their areas of competence. The author is convinced that healthcare allocation is also an ethical issue that needs to be governed by ethical principles.The key factors for choosing this theme are based on the author’s knowledge of the deplorable condition of the health care system in Nigeria and his desire to save human lives. Rev. Fr. Anthony Okechukwu Nnadi believes that we are all stewards of human life. This implies a moral obligation to protect the dignity of the human person, which is inseparable from protecting human life.
The book takes a practical look at the complexity of the nature of violence/terrorism in Nigeria, in the light of the Catholic social teaching on non-violent resistance. With the critical analyses of some policies/strategies used to address the problem of Boko Haram terrorism in Nigeria, the book explores a range of questions: Does severe punishment work effectively as deterrence against possible involvement in terrorism? Does applying “lex talionis” reduce or exacerbate recidivism? What are the right mechanisms to stop terrorism/violence in Nigeria? This book is convinced that nothing is resolved through violence, and that, violence begets violence, alluding that, responding to terror with terror is a retaliatory method that is self-defeating. On the whole, it has been noted that the principle or law of retaliation (Lex Talionis) alone cannot stop armed insurgency in Nigeria, thus, the book suggests non-violent resistance as the best way to address terrorism and violent conflicts. Non-violent resistance does not mean condoning violent attacks against innocent civilians. Based on the Christian ethical principles of the dignity of the human person and justice, this book explicitly declares that the killing of innocent civilians is absolutely immoral. The book explores the use of the term Islamic terrorism and the Islamic ethics of justice, peace and nonviolence, and underlines that the Islamic core moral principles in no way support terrorism. While stating that terrorism is morally wrong, this book states that the causes of terrorism must be addressed with justice and fairness. On this basis, the book insists on critically investigating the following: religious extremism, corruption, bigotry in politics and religion, the glaring sense of apathy among the political elite to the suffering of the oppressed, and the mismanagement and abuse of political positions or the nation’s resources for selfish interest. There must be a rethink aimed at finding the best way to build an ethical society – a framework for justice and peace.
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