Thursday, April 19, 2007

The Language of God, Chapter 11 and Appendix

This is the final post in a series on The Language of God, by Francis Collins. Here's the previous post.

In Chapter 11, Francis Collins gives some personal history not found in the first part of the book, about how his faith was tested and renewed as a doctor visiting an impoverished hospital in Africa. He closes by calling again for Concordism -- faith in God's revelation through the evidence of science, and His revelation through scripture.

In a lengthy appendix, Collins considers a number of bioethical (by which he means medical ethical -- unfortunately, but understandably, he doesn't consider environmental problems) dilemmas. These include moral and ethical questions raised by DNA testing, by cloning, and by the possibility of "enhancement" of human capabilities by some form of genetic engineering, or other techniques. He has no easy answers, but he understands the questions, and knows that God has answers.

All in all, a splendid book. I am sorry to have to return it to the local library, where someone else has already requested it.

Thanks for reading.

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I corrected two typos on July 11, 2008.

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