DNA mapping

This week, I am going to write about a subject that I find a deep interest in. I have found that I enjoy researching things that have to do with what may happen in the future. For example, my senior thesis in high school was about Hydrogen technology and whether that would be helpful (and exist) in America years down the road. If you've been reading all of my posts, you may see this vein. I've talked about Global Warming. I've written a research paper for a class last year that had to do with creating diamonds. For that one in particular, I speculated about the future if a diamond microchip were to come into being, after pointing out a company that is working toward this. I used to read a Christian kids book series set in 2037 about a paralyzed kid who controlled a robot through his mind and explored the surface of Mars. I like to look forward. I am also intrigued by the past, and the classics. I like great ideas, and I like scientific research. That's what I'm going to discuss now.

Wired just released a number of articles about DNA research. The one that I read [http://www.wired.com/medtech/genetics/magazine/15-12/ff_genomics?currentPage=all] is about a company called 23andMe. In 2003, the entire human genome was mapped for the first time--all billions of strands worth. Now, that information is being commercialized. YOU can have part of your DNA decoded. For $1000, the company will take your saliva sample and send back a report explaining what your DNA reveals. While they say that this is not a diagnoses (which is partly said for legal reasons) this evaluation may point out a predisposition toward cancers or health issues, thus even life-expectancy. In a sense, it's almost like telling the future. The article goes into depth explaining how this works. If you want a synopsis, read the article. It's five pages and very informative. Or you can go to the website of 23andMe [https://www.23andme.com/] and watch some very cool flash videos that explain a lot about DNA. But where I want to take this blog is: what happens once people can read their DNA, and in a way, their future?

The author of the article, Thomas Goetz, puts this paragraph almost at the end of his article:

"The question becomes, then, whether you want to embark on this path of oddsmaking in the first place. Many individuals won't want to know what their genome has in store. Others will, only to join the worried well — those who live in fear of fulfilling their genetic destiny. And, of course, those genotyped or sequenced at birth won't have that choice; it'll already have been made for them."

Will people, if they do find out what information their DNA contains, attempt to alter their behavior and lifestyle in such a way as to beat the odds and live a longer life? In other words, is the information contained within the DNA, once learned, life-changing? I suspect it is. It may change the way that people view their lives. If a doctor predicts that you will live to be 45 vs. 85, that will have a effect on how you view your life. What are some of the implications of this new technology?

As there are thieves in the world, and identity theft already happens with credit cards and digital information (someone's identity is stolen once every 9 seconds). Imagine the ease of identity theft DNA reading technology becomes as affordable as aspirin (who knows what 30, 60, or 100 years will bring? What did people think about computer technology?). Suppose a celebrity eats a meal in a cafe, then throws away his trash...and someone else pulls that trash out and picks off the person's DNA and then sells the information online? Or what if someone is stalking you and does the same thing to you? That information seems a lot easier to obtain than someone's social security number, yet it is of an even more personal, sensitive nature. If a person steals your social security number, they take your identity and a lot of problems result. If someone steals your DNA, they have the information for your physical being and how you are constructed. In a sense, they haven't stolen your identity. They've stolen you! Either way, that's a lot of information. And information is power.

What if you don't want to know "your future" and don't want to be mapped? As Goetz said, what about those children who are born and their DNA is predetermined? What of them? They won't have any choice, but they will have people telling them how their lives should be lived from day one. This reminds me of Plato's Republic, where men have different souls--thus necessitating what they do with their lives. What if the child has the athletic gene? What if he doesn't? What practical implications does this have?

Are you thinking of Hitler's Germany? What's to stop people from trying to create the uberman? Once DNA is mapped, will it not be possible to alter it? And if it is altered, couldn't people (at least the rich ones) design what kind of child they'd like to have? Then how would people be treated? This is reminding me a little too much of Huxley's Brave New World.

Once you've created the perfect human, then why not clone them? The technology to clone is already available for other mammals--I suspect that it's only a matter of time before someone tries it on a human. If it's not done right the first time, someone will do it again until it is done right. The lure of fame and glory is just too great--even if it is deemed illegal in every nation in the world, someone will find a way, eventually.

What are Christians to think of this? Well at least, here is one thing that will not change: human nature. Man still hates his fellow man, and wants to be God. That's a problem. But is cloning wrong? Is genetic alteration wrong? Is learning your DNA wrong? Was artificial insemination considered wrong by Christians when it first started, and should it be considered evil? How about birth control medicine?

See, what I do not want to have happen is that Christians respond and say that these things in the paragraph above are wrong, without first deeply thinking about God's creation, His plan for the world, how technology intersects it, and about the moral implications of it all. I do not want Christians to get a bad rap for this like they often have. Think about Copernicus. He proposed a theory of the universe that Christians responded adversely to, but as we know, Copernicus was right. Let's not do that again. Let's think about these issues without allowing our culture or our times to skew our vision. What if, in 200 years from now, a copy of a person's DNA was included with their birth certificate (because it was just common procedure and no one thought anything of it)? Wouldn't people then, Christians and not, look back on us and (if we condemn these things) shake their heads?

Let's think about this from a different angle. Though we shouldn't be pursuing knowledge of the future so that we might live longer SO THAT WE MIGHT BE LIKE GODS, is it not wise for us to look forward in this way in the name of alleviating suffering? Suppose we could increase quality of life by diagnoses such as may come into being (and are already being done on a very small scale)? If that technology goes mainstream, maybe the church ought to actually be behind it! As James says, "Religion that our God and Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: To look after orphans and widows in their distress..." (James 1:27). What if this technology allows us to better look after the weak, or even better, prescribe a lifestyle that will lead to less people becoming the poor, widowed, and orphaned? Then shouldn't we, as the body of Christ, pursue this?

I'm not saying that the answer is "yes." I like to look forward, but what's more, I like to ask questions, provoke thought, and hopefully aid a more God-honoring response. We are able to create culture and help others in this world (in fact, I would argue that we are commanded to do so). So the question becomes: "how?" Or more specifically: "how ought this advance in the area of DNA mapping fit within the framework of Biblical Christianity?" and "how ought Christians respond to this advance?"

That, my dear reader, is the question I leave you to ponder.

If you would, oblige me by reading one last set of questions. What is it to be made in the image of God? What is the image of God? What is it to be human? What part of yourself do you have rights to? I suspect that these will be the questions of discussion in Christian and philosophical circles years from now (maybe 25 years, as they say that it takes about 30 years for an idea or technology to be feasible for mainstream consumption). Why not be forward-thinking and answer these questions now, and lead the charge on what the Christian position should be in regard to these issues?

Are you with me?

Taking Every Thought Captive,

Zachary