I always enjoy Dalrymple’s pieces. Here he ponders on the current tendency to accept the notion that it is nature that determines behaviors.
He wrote, “Our search for, and apparent willingness to believe in, or at least give credit to the possibility of, “the” gene for complex social behavior suggests that credulity and inability to think critically did not die out with the advent of the Enlightenment. The will to believe is as strong as ever. We are like creatures so dazzled with our own technological prowess that we no longer think it necessary to consider the obvious.”
For those of us with an interest in Christian “formation” this is an important question. Are people “born spiritual”? Are women genetically disposed to being “more spiritual” than men? (That would explain a lot of things, like church attendance, wouldn’t it?). Can religion turn genetically “badly-behaved people” into “well-behaved people”? If genetics is so determinative of human dimensions closely connected with morals, faith, and ethical behavior, then what do we have to consider about enterprises that attempt to “educate” people in those dimensions?
And what statements can we make about theological concepts like “free will” in relation to this? And to what extent can people be held personally responsible for their choices and actions if the answer tips one way (it’s genetic) or the other (it’s nurture)?
I have no answers, just questions. What do YOU think?
<%image(20070217-IGMatrix100.jpg|100|131|I'm wearing my black sweater today.)%>
“Suppport bacteria–it’s the only culture some people have.”
