'Does not nature itself teach?': Biotechnology and natural law in a theology of nature

The biotechnological alteration of plants and animals poses a special challenge to a theology of nature, which presupposes that genetic structures and processes can be understood as a manifestation of God's providence directed toward the preservation and flourishing of life. Biotechnology, practiced through genomics, genetic engineering, and cloning, allows the manipulation of genetic material in ways that fundamentally affect the relationship between humans and nature. Thus, the genetic engineering of plants and animals is an ethically charged and ambiguous matter. This dissertation undertakes to derive basic norms to guide biotechnology from a theology of nature grounded in a novel construal of the so-called “natural law” tradition.; The dissertation unfolds in six sections. Chapter One categorizes the challenges presented by biotechnology to a theology of nature. Chapter Two considers the natural law tradition in its historical manifestation, uncovering those elements conducive to ethics relevant to contemporary understandings of nature. Chapter Three considers natural-law theory in conversation with three contemporary perspectives: sociobiology, divine-command ethics, and religious-communalist ethics. Chapter Four addresses the naturalistic fallacy and explores three strategies that claim to negotiate successfully from is to ought, ultimately opting for an axiological theory that treats statements about the world as means of engagement with values present in the world. Chapter Five relates God to nature within a Christian theology of nature, exploring what it means to say that nature is an expression of the creating will and ordering wisdom of God. Chapter Six sets out a series of guidelines derived from an interpretation of nature and a consideration of genetic processes. These norms are then applied to a sampling of the biotechnological issues brought out in the first chapter.; The checkered history of the natural law tradition and the challenge of the naturalistic fallacy notwithstanding, norms for guiding the exercise of biotechnologies can be derived from an adequate philosophy of nature. These norms support the conclusion that genetic alteration of plants and animals is justifiable only on compelling grounds and with the utmost care being taken to respect natural patterns of genetic interaction.