Should theology shape laws? In Alabama, a court cited mediaeval religious thinkers to impose curbs on a modern medical practice. Some say this is not as strange as it might seem.
US court rules frozen embryos are ‘children’
‘Outrageous and unacceptable’: Joe Biden and Kamala Harris (above) slammed the decision. Glossary
Embryos - An unborn or unhatched offspring in the process of development.
Alabama - A state in the southern USA. It had one of the largest slave populations before the Civil War, and afterwards, it imposed harsh Jim Crow laws to disenfranchise Black Americans.
IVF - In vitro fertilisation is a technique used to help people with fertility issues have a baby.
Fertilise - Join an egg with male reproductive material to cause new life to grow.
Uterus - The organ in which a foetus (unborn baby) develops. Also known as the womb.
Secular - A word used to describe something that is not connected with the religious or spiritual sphere.
Theology - The study of religious beliefs.
Theocracies - Countries that are ruled by religious leaders.
Vatican - Where the Pope lives in Italy.
Canon law - Laws made within Christian churches to govern how the Church is run.
Afghanistan - A mountainous Asian country, slightly larger than France, whose neighbours include Pakistan, Iran and China.
Taliban - A violent fundamentalist Islamic movement that enforces sharia law and denies education to women.
Sharia law - A legal system based on Islamic teaching. Gay Afghans and Afghan women say the Taliban’s strict reading of Sharia is not compatible with their human rights.
House of Lords - In the UK, the upper chamber of the UK Parliament. It is made up of hereditary peers, the Lords Spiritual (bishops) and life peers.
Civil law - The legal system that involves disputes between individuals, private companies or private organisations — as opposed to criminal law.