Unnatural Selection IX: Replicant

Cloning is the process of producing genetically identical individuals of an organism either naturally or artificially. In nature, many organisms produce clones through asexual reproduction. Cloning in biotechnology refers to the process of creating clones of organisms or copies of cells or DNA fragments.

How should a Christian feel about cloning. There are a couple of issues to consider. First, I can discern nowhere in the Bible that implies developing a fertilized egg with the same genetic material as an adult is wrong. Twins have the same genetic material. Also, there is nothing unbiblical about fertilization performed outside of the body. In-vitro fertilization and cloning are both accomplished this way. And there is nothing blatantly unscriptural about the mechanical development of a clone blastocyst. From that point onward, however, evils abound. The problem all lies in the intent and purpose for doing so. Why would you even need to develop a fertilized egg with the same genetic material as an adult?

Nearly all justifications given for cloning are purely egocentric and selfish. Even mourning parents need God's healing, not a replica of the child they lost. Even a clone will never be the same as the original. Creating a copy of oneself is pure hubris. Cloning for medical reasons is a little more ambiguous, and parents have had children with the hope the newborn would be a genetic match for a sick sibling. But, as with IVF, several blastocysts would probably need to be developed for a single live birth. Destroying a remaining, unneeded blastocyst would literally be killing a child or abortion. Other considerations are the high likelihood of the non-viability of the embryo and the presence of birth defects. The research required to get to the point of a live birth would require the destruction of uncountable embryos. And although manipulated nature might be able to create another Einstein, there's no guarantee that even through perfect nurturing that Einstein 2.0 wouldn't turn ‘it’ into a tyrannical evil genius or Hitler 2.0.

Reproductive cloning involves creating an animal that is genetically identical to a donor animal through somatic cell nuclear transfer. In therapeutic cloning, an embryo is created in a similar way, but the resulting "cloned" cells remain in a dish in the lab; they are not implanted into a female's uterus. Therapeutic cloning is fraught with ethical problems. The entire point of therapeutic cloning is the death of the clone so that tissue can be harvested to benefit someone else. In therapeutic cloning, birth is never the goal. Instead, the stem cells are harvested about the fourteen-day mark. There is no difference in potential between a clone blastocyst and a blastocyst developed through normal fertilization—as reproductive cloning shows. According to the Bible life begins at conception in normal fertilization, therefore life begins at nucleus transplantation in a clone. And the destruction of the blastocyst at any point after is murder of a human. Not only that, it's against the Nuremberg Code which prohibits human experimentation if death is the inevitable outcome.

The birth of a viable human clone would not change the truth. Every human is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27), and clones are no more of an exception than identical twins as they are synonymous. Humans can start the physical process of developing a new life—as both natural conception and IVF show—but only God truly gives life (Genesis 2:7). In truth, even a clone is not a copy; it is a new individual person (Psalm 139:13-16). The problem with cloning isn't the clone; it's the processes, the motivations, and the negligent ambivalence with which embryos are treated. Therapeutic cloning is murder. Reproductive cloning will not be successful without many cases of murder. Those killings, combined with the selfish motivations which inspire cloning, make the process of cloning wholly unbiblical.

My Conclusions

The creation of humanity in God’s image means that all life has an absolute value in God’s sight. A value that is independent their genetic birthright or heritage. Genetic engineering can make a significant contribution to the prevention and cure of human disease, and to the feeding of a hungry world. If used wisely it can function as another signpost pointing towards God and his Kingdom but…it will never be His Kingdom. It will merely be a derived reflection of the real thing. Just like a nameless clone. As with any other engineering or other human attempts to improve health and happiness, biohacks and genetics are merely placebo. As important as they may seem these hacks are just that...hacks. An inelegant but effective improvisation to fix something temporarily. They’ll never represent more than a repair operation...certainly not a cure for the actual ill of humanity which is sin. No genetic engineering can fix that.