11

The Stewardship of human The Stewardship of human dignitydignity

Bioethical application of the Bioethical application of the principle of stewardship principle of stewardship

2

Playing God?

Craig Venter was listed in Time Magazine’s 2008 as one the 100 most influential people

He led the private effort to sequence the human genome

He builds chromosomes from scratch, inserts the new chromosomes in bacteria, and then "boots up" the organisms.

Interviewer: “Are you not playing God?”

Craig Venter “Oh, we are not playing”

•What is playing God?

• Is playing God always wrong?

3

The Principle of Stewardship as it is

“Dominate the earth and all it contains”

Gn 1:26; 2:15 Shamar (Gn 2:15)

To preserve, to keep, to watch to maintain

To “dominate” is not an “absolute power” but a mission to take care

Before 1979, almost exclusively referred to managerial skills relating to property and income

Today, to ecological and environmental concerns

As it is, it is……too broad to be practical to

discern specific acts…what exactly is the

difference between dominion and domination?

4

Objective and plan

Objective To present how the

principle of stewardship can help us to communicate bioethical teachings

Plan1. A new insight2. Being precise3. Particular application

from conception to death4. The core of the Christian

message5. The core of religion6. The core of human

secular ethics

5

Revising it in the light of the Light

About ¼ of all the parables in the gospels refer to servants abad = doulos ≈ oikonomos Servants = slaves ≈ stewards “who is the faithful and wise steward?…happy that

servant whom the lord” (Lk 2:42, 43) Other parables refer to similar relationships: tenants, sons,

etc. Conclusion: common denominator in the parables

Not the sociological meaning, but the function, the ethos and the relationship

6

The precision of this principle

In all these parables, the lord entrusts some property with some responsibility to the servants-stewards

Behavior and relationship

Restrictions (negative)1. By excess: abused

1. As if one was an absolute owner

2. By defect: under-used or neglected1. As if one was not given

the gift

Duty (positive)1. Responsible trust:

1. As the lord would2. All stewards are equal in

dignity (status)1. Only one is the lord

7

Particular application

1. Stewards of fertility2. Stewards of procreation3. Stewards of the embryo4. Stewards of the body5. Stewards at the end of life

8

Stewards of our fertility

Not absolute lords(abuse) Fertility is not a

disposable property …that we can

dispose of (sterilization, contraception)

…that we can borrow it form others (naturally) or through technology (IVF, et al)

Not irresponsible slaves (under-use)

By living lives as if we were not endowed with the gift of fertility

Fruitful stewards Biological or spiritual

fertility is a way of being our “ brother’s keepers” (responsible use)

9

Stewards of procreation

Abuse Lords of reproduction will try to

produce a desired child at any cost (IVF, substitutive reproductive technologies)

Absolute lords PRODUCE people through domineering actions

Responsible use and equality Stewards to the future offspring,

beget children in loving and respectful equality

Persons deserve to be loved and treated as equals in dignity But ONLY the sexual act begets

individuals of equal dignity The marital embrace is a sign of

marital love Human beings respectfully

procreate other humans only in and through a loving sexual marital act

Ethical technologies respect the principle of stewardship when they help (not substitute) the marital embrace to be fertile

10

Stewards of the embryo

Abuse In deciding to destroy or

experiment on an embryo, people erect themselves as lords of the human embryo

Equality To be stewards of

embryos implies to be at their service: To do for them ONLY what

is good for them

11

Stewards of the human body

Abuse Lords of their bodies use them

as instruments FOR the person

Responsible use Stewards serve the body as a

dimension OF the person

Application to genetic engineering, organ trade, plastic surgery, and others

12

Stewards to the endEquality Stewards will not judge

which life has enough “quality” to deserve to continue to live

Stewards will not determine who and when one dies

Stewards will never kill, and will always care

But stewards will treat when it means caring under the guidance of prudence be allowed to withdraw or

withhold treatment when it is disproportionate

Abuse Absolute lords usurp the power

of taking their own lives or those who consent to be killed

13

Organ donation

Equality Lords will tend to use the vital

organ donor for the benefit of the recipient by hastening the death of the former

Stewards will not decide on the life of the patient or try to measure or judge the dignity of the recipient against the dignity of the donor.

They simply allot resources

14

Other applications

Environment: stewards, neither abusive

exploiters nor victims of a laissez-faire policy

Only persons are stewards, and should treat only other stewards as equals

Social authority: serving the common good to

serve the people Neither a patronizing “all for

the people without the people” nor “abandoning” the people to their resources

Marriage Mutual subjection (Eph 5) =

mutual stewardship (sacramental ministers)

Work the subject who works is not

an extension of the machine The worker is never to be

used as an instrument of production

15

Stewardship echoes in the human heart

1. In the secular heart 2. In the religious heart3. At the heart of our faith

16

The secular steward

The Golden Rule: “Treat others as another self”

→ a principle of equality Pure practical reason

Never use a person “Act in a way that you treat

humanity, in your own person or in others, as an end and never as a means.”

Immanuel Kant Principle of stewardship:

Never become a lord to another person

We are all equally stewards

17

Religion fosters stewardship

In 1953, Sir Edmond Hillary and Tenzing Norgay conquered Mount Everest

Mr Hillary took several photographs of the scenery and of Sherpa Tenzing waving flags representing Britain, Nepal, the United Nations and India.

Sherpa Tenzing buried some sweets and biscuits in the snow as a Buddhist offering.

One conquered an enemy; the other thanked with reverence

The believer accepts that he remains always a subordinate

Principle of religious stewardship We are never lords (only

One is)

18

The core of Christian spirituality In the beginning: The root of all evil:

to pretend to be like gods without God (cf. Gn 3)

In the end: The root of redemption: to be gods with God, like the Son

(cf. Jn 10:34)

Jesus is the model of servant not a servile slave; nor an

indifferent lord, but a responsible brother’s keeper

Beyond stewardship; but not without stewardship “ I do not call you servants

anymore…” (Jn 15:15) “Slaves are not free, sons are” (Jn

8:33ff) Life of the believers

“This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God” (1Cor 4:21)

Spirituality Acting as God would act can only

be perfect with a “co-naturality” with God (VS 64; II-II 45. 2)

19

What to bring home The principle of

stewardship is good… It helps us to

understand and communicate our relationship with others, with our bodies, as well as the medical and scientific duties

It is reasonable and compatible with other religions

We are not playing… When we substitute

the lord, or erect ourselves lords to others, we fail

When we cooperate responsibly with the Lord, we triumph