The Ethical and Theological Implications of Human Cloning

The Ethical and Theological Implications of Human Cloning

Introduction

Advances in science and technology have often caused revolutionary changes in the way society views the world. When computers were first invented, they were used to calculate ballistics tables; today they perform a myriad of functions unimagined at their conception. Space travel changed the way mankind viewed itself in terms of a larger context, the universe. In 1978, the first test tube baby was born in England making it apparent for the first time that babies could be conceived outside a mother’s womb.

Each of these events caused much commotion, and each advance has presented society with new challenges; however, no scientific area has been more debated than that centering on reproductive biotechnologies. From the first successful demonstration of in-vitro fertilization, to the 1996 cloning of Dolly, the sheep, changes in scientists’ ability to manipulate the core of human existence, DNA, have ignited debates globally. In this paper I plan to address one of the newest advances in reprogenetics, cloning, and the ethical and theological debates surrounding its use.

What is Cloning?

Cloning is a science-based technology by which an organism’s genetic structure, or DNA, is replicated exactly. Microorganisms such as bacteria do this naturally, but for other creatures, in particular mammals, certain ingredients have been needed in order to reproduce. An egg from a female, sperm from the male and a female womb were all required for reproduction. That is, until Dolly was cloned in Scotland in February, 1997. The reproduction of a sheep without all three of these traditional ingredients has revolutionized the way scientists and others view f...

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Wray, Herbert, Jeffery L. Sheler and Traci Watson, “The World After Cloning.” US News & World Report (March 10, 1998) 59