ABSTRACT
This paper considers the Protestant Christian response to neurogenomics. As opposed to Catholicism, Protestantism does not have a single social organization or a single intellectual system. This is not to say it is impossible to discern how Protestant Christians might respond to the neuroethical concerns Carrara and Bovassi raised in their paper. Protestant ethics challenges the believer to conform one’s personal and social behavior and actions to that revealed in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. With some reservations, Protestants can readily affirm the Five Focal Virtues (compassion, discernment, trustworthiness, integrity and conscientiousness) and the Four Principles of Biomedical Ethics which are: autonomy, justice, beneficence and nonmaleficence. Applying these Four Principles to neurogenomics, Protestant Christians will want to ask the following questions of each specific technology: How does this technology enhance and ensure human autonomy? Will access to this technology be distributed in a just manner? Does it increase the human ability to act to the benefit of the common good? And, does this technology grant us means to prevent harm? Because of the complexity of neurogenomics most Protestants will defer to scientists and naively assume credentialing organizations, ethics committees and governmental agencies will maintain proper oversight. In this paper I present a “Neurogenomic Response Action Plan” that is compatible with the moral and ethical decision-making approaches practiced by all people, with some reservations from a Protestant understanding of Scripture. Emphasis is placed on informed consent, oversight, distributive justice issues, oversight of the political process and the equitable allocation of resources. Finally, I state that because of the complexity and ambivalence associated with progress in neurogenomic technology, it would appear wise for all Christians – Protestant and Catholic – to unite with people of all faiths to ponder together what constitutes the best approach to achieve the common good and be empowered to speak with one voice to the political powers and decision-makers in each nation.
