Items included on this page come from a variety of sources. The perspectives conveyed may or may not express a Lutheran ethos. They can serve our instruction as discussion-starters, examples (positive and negative), and illustrations of intersections between God’s two kingdoms, intersections sometimes characterized by tension, sometimes by congruence. Inclusion does not imply endorsement.
Gene Editing: Promise & Peril–Is Caution Enough? This Lutheran bioethics scholar comments on CRISPR: What is deemed necessary is the use of countless embryos—always, of course, with caution and with relief of suffering as the ultimate end in view. [And] there remains one further possibility on the gene-editing horizon. Beyond basic research, there is the possibility […]
Black Churches Matter: Research Ties Attendance to Positive Outcomes: Several new studies build on past research to continue revealing how faith is associated with positive outcomes for black Americans amid the realities of discrimination and economic, political, and social inequality. In one study of black adults, neither education nor income predicted a sense of optimism—a hopeful attitude […]
Assessing the Faith-Based Response to Homelessness in America: Findings From Eleven Cities — From the Baylor Institute for Studies of Religion, the report was undertaken to provide an estimate of the impact, socially and economically, of FBOs in eleven cities across the country in responding to homelessness. Almost 60% of the Emergency Shelter Beds, what many […]
One-Quarter Say God will Determine the Super Bowl’s Winner—but Nearly Half Say God Rewards Devout Athletes: 25% of Americans believe God plays a role in determining the outcome of sporting events. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of the public disagree. There are significant disagreements among Americans about the role that God plays in sports by religious background. White […]
Self-organization of the human embryo in the absence of maternal tissues: Remodelling of the human embryo at implantation is indispensable for successful pregnancy. Yet it has remained mysterious because of the experimental hurdles that beset the study of this developmental phase. Here, we establish an in vitro system to culture human embryos through implantation stages in the […]
The Fantasy of Addiction: Peter Hitchens finds himself in the middle of the addiction debates on a BBC talk show, and offers this assessment. “It was the disaster of the Christian religion that it assumed [it’s] triumph would last forever and outlast everything, and so it was ill equipped to resist the challenge of a […]
Disruptive Reproductive Technologies: In vitro fertilization (IVF) represented a transformative technological innovation. Now in vitro gametogenesis (IVG)–the generation of eggs and sperm from pluripotent stem cells in a culture dish–is is poised for future success in humans and promises new possibilities for the fields of reproductive and regenerative medicine. At the same time, IVG raises vexing […]
Bioethics in 2017: This inventory overviews five areas to watch in the months to come: 1) assisted suicide; 2) futile care and hospital ethics committees; 3) the brave new world of genetic engineering; 4) health workers providing services against conscience; and 5) animal research.
Is Addiction a Disease? Yes, and Much More: Four core aspects of recovery are essential for addressing addiction, says this article, arguing that we need to recognize at least four dimensions: moral, social, biological, and spiritual. Students can use this piece to explore a multiple-model approach to complex human behavior.
The Finest Traditions of My Calling: One Physician’s Search for the Renewal of Medicine by Abraham Nussbaum (Yale University Press, 2016) — “Most books on medicine either completely ignore Christianity (and assume medicine started in the 20th century) or see it as a tactic for converting patients. But here, faith is a surprising source of hope. […]
