Genetic ethics and moral anthropology: An analysis of the person as 'co-creator' (Philip Hefner, Ted Peters, Ronald Cole-Turner, Karl Rahner, Paul Ramsey)

This dissertation analyzes and critiques the moral anthropology of the person as "co-creator" as it applies to genetic ethics. It does so through an assessment of the theological symbols and themes that constitute theories of co-creation and an examination of the body of moral goods that theories of co-creation prefer and inform. The current debate over the ethics of genetic enhancement serves as a point of entry into an analysis of the relationship between moral anthropology and genetic ethics (chapter one).; The dissertation explores the possibilities and limits of conceiving of the human person as co-creator with God through an analysis of three of its proponents: Philip Hefner, Ted Peters, and Ronald Cole-Turner. It identifies some critical shortcomings with this theory, including its overly optimistic assessment of the human condition, its failure to adequately account for human sinfulness, and its designation of human biological flourishing as a trumping good in the moral order (chapter two).; The dissertation offers through a recovery of Karl Rahner (chapter three) and Paul Ramsey (chapter four) suggestions for the construction of a moral anthropology that would include a more serious treatment of sin, a more profound appreciation of the relationship between moral agency and human embodiment, and a more expansive appreciation of human creativity that would extend beyond the realm of biotechnology (chapter five).