How to Be a Christian in a Brave New World by Joni Eareckson Tada; Nigel M. de S. Cameron

Author:Joni Eareckson Tada; Nigel M. de S. Cameron
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Religion, Social Issues, Christian Life
ISBN: 9780310297291
Publisher: Zondervan
Published: 2009-05-25T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 7

DESIGNER BABIES

I'm a quadriplegic. I know my limits. You'll never strap me to an ablebodied parachute-jumper to go skydiving. You'll never catch me following my quad-friend Becki into the ocean deep to scuba dive the Caribbean Sea. I will never go bungee jumping in my wheelchair, nor be lowered into a cave. I don't care how many disabled people are joining handicap equestrian clubs, I will not be talked into getting up on a horse. None of that Evel Knievel stuff in my power wheelchair, thank you.

Not one to go to extremes, I'm the type who enjoys watching other people free-fall, bungee jump, scuba dive, and horseback ride. The other evening I was reading a book about Sir Edmund Hillary's ascent to the top of Mt. Everest. In 1953, the world considered his climb a global extreme. One world-class climber wrote, “Humans must constantly push their limits — if something's broken, we fix it; if there's a problem, we must solve it; if there's an ocean, we cross it; if there's a mountain, we must climb it.” It's the principle behind all the extreme television programs so popular these days. There's the Extreme Home Improvement show, Extreme Surfing, and Extreme Skateboarding.

The most popular of all is Extreme Makeover, where dowdy women and double-chinned men subject themselves to a complete body makeover. We're not talking a little bit of Revlon blush, an eye lift, and a hairpiece; we're talking hundreds of thousands of dollars spent in reconstructing jaws, liposuctioning hips, redesigning chins, and enhancing breasts and buttocks. One woman, interviewed afterward, enthused, “It's amazing! If you don't like your body, you can redesign it!” When she stepped from behind the curtain to show her friends and family her extreme makeover, everyone gasped in delight. The few who seemed a little disapproving were soon silenced. Who could argue with someone's preference to improve his or her life?

We seem to be grabbing at technology as though it were a magic wand, designing our breasts and backsides, brains, broken genes, and babies, all in one breath.

These are the days of global extremes. Plus, we are a global community. We live in a smaller world where people with river blindness in West Africa might well be called our neighbors. It begs the question: What responsibility does the woman who spends $450,000 on a new face and figure have toward a child in Albania who will die for want of a simple surgery on her esophagus? And not only the woman—what responsibilities lie with doctors and technicians? What about investors and research institutes, pharmaceutical companies and plastic surgery centers?

Who are our neighbors? How should we triage not only our wealth, but our technology?

Almighty God scrutinizes what we do with our wealth and subsequent technological advancements, for he tells us in Hebrews 4:13, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account." What we think about biotechnology — what we decide, and how we persuade or advise others — counts before God.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.