Religious Engagement Remarks

The U.S. is a religious country and as we grapple as a society to determine where to draw the line on human biotechnologies, we need to understand the deeply held attitudes about what people revere, hold "sacred" and/or inviolable, both religiously and secularly. As we work to develop a progressive critique of biotechnology, whether we are secularists or persons of faith, it is important that we explore the ways in which secular and religious values may overlap – or not. This presentation took a secular approach and used human germline modification as a pivot point in seeking possible areas of overlap in the areas of human rights and stewardship of the natural world, and emphasized potential commonality in the "habits of mind" (Sandel) that might be cultivated to build the kind of society we want to live in and bequeath to future generations.

It also touched on some obstacles to bridging the secular/religious divide recently entrenched in U.S. society. Beyond this presentation, and again beyond this panel, it is my hope to look for common ground and synergy in our efforts so that secular and faith communities and institutions might find the vocabulary and touchstones of communication to capture the public's imagination on human biotechnologies and ultimately promote deep civic participation in issues that will affect us all.