Jan Dekoning wrote:
> So, there is a subject. How do you do the research to relieve the
> suffering of Parkinson patients, and at the same time prevent that actions
> of rats (later maybe people) are controlled. I believe that as scientists
> we must be aware of the dangers, help each other when someone is forced to
> do something against his conscience, and make sure that the power in
> this type of research is not in the hand of companies, who are not
> answerable to anyone about what they are doing. Must the patent-laws be
> changed?
>
>
It is an excellent example of how a scientist's inventions
and ideas can be used for evil as well as good. It seems
reasonable to develop technologies that can help the blind
to see, the deaf to hear, the lame to walk, etc. You could
have animals sniff out explosives, and locate victims of
disasters etc. At the same time, those exact same technologies
could most certainly be used for mind control. You could
bump off your enemies by making them commit crimes that bump
off other enemies of yours. Great stuff for lots of science
fiction stories.
This is actually where I think the Christ centered way of
life becomes the litmus test of living in the modern world.
I cannot see how an intellectualized atheistic ethics can
really contend with the moral depravity that the human mind
can sink to when confronted with the day to day chipping away
of ethical standards that have happened numerous times in
the 20th century. Why should I be concerned about someone
else's behind unless Christ and his message is ever before
me? It is so easy to think "I have a family to feed", but
no, Christ calls out and say "what are you doing here?".
To be a Christian, a disciple of Christ, is to have faith
that we are accountable to Him. What then would we have
to say if we fail Him.
It is here also the YEC folk with their rhetoric have
a point: evolution as evolution simply proceeds from
where it is, and you cannot say ultimately what is
actually "good" or "evil". Survival at some level is
one criteria, but life may very well go on with 99%
of the population under mind control and humanity may
even flourish for all we know. (We certainly cannot
prove it _will_ perish. In fact, we cannot with
100% certitude claim that humanity will survive by
following Christ either.) What we are trusting is
that God does hold us accountable to higher standards.
It is based solely on faith, but I cannot see anything
that holds up better than faith in a case like this.
That is why I still think a Christ centered religion
is meaningful for the modern man and particularly for
the modern scientist.
by Grace alone we proceed,
Wayne
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