Human expansion into space: a challenge for Catholic ethics?
The seminar examines the Catholic Church’s position on space exploration and the prospect of establishing human settlements beyond Earth, with particular attention to the moral dilemmas these scenarios raise. While the Church generally supports space exploration, certain technologies considered crucial for human survival and reproduction in extraterrestrial environments — such as genetic editing, assisted reproduction, and artificial wombs — are incompatible with its ethical principles. Non-therapeutic genetic modifications are rejected as arbitrary alterations of human nature; assisted reproduction is deemed morally unacceptable due to the destruction of embryos and the separation of the unitive and procreative dimensions of sexuality; artificial wombs are likewise considered contrary to the dignity of human life and procreation. These tensions highlight the challenges the Church faces in reconciling humanity’s aspirations for space expansion with its moral and spiritual framework.
Maurizio Balistreri | DISTU, University of Tuscia
Cycle of Seminars: Conservation and Transformation in Ethics and Religion
Scientific coordination: Massimo Leone, FBK-ISR
The speaker will connect remotely.
The event will be held ONLINE in Italian.
Registration by July 25, 2025 at 12:00 a.m. is required in order to arrange the connection.
Speakers
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Maurizio Balistreri - SpeakerDISTU, Università della TusciaMaurizio Balistreri is an Associate Professor of Moral Philosophy at DISTU (University of Tuscia). Since 2021, he has been the director of the “Icaro” book series for the publishing house Fandango (Rome). His research interests include practical ethics, environmental ethics, bioethics, moral philosophy, robotics, and artificial intelligence. In addition to having published numerous articles on applied ethics in national and international journals, he is the author of Etica e romanzi (Le Lettere, 2010), Superumani: etica e potenziamento (Espress 2011; 2021), La clonazione umana prima di Dolly (Mimesis, 2015), Il futuro della riproduzione umana (Fandango, 2016), Sex Robot. Love in the Age of Machines (Fandango 2018; Malpaso 2021; Trivent 2022), and Il bambino migliore? Che cosa significa essere genitori responsabili al tempo del genome editing (Fandango, 2022). Together with Giovanni Capranico, Matteo Galletti, and Silvia Zullo, he co-authored Biotecnologie e modificazioni genetiche. Scienza, etica e diritto (Il Mulino, 2020).
Registration
Registration to this event is mandatory.
Registration closed on 25/07/2025.
Contacts
Organizers
The initiative was also realized thanks to the contribution of "Direzione generale Educazione, ricerca e istituti culturali" of the Ministry of Culture.