winstonjen

Most fundies I know say that it is when you try to take your own life or kill someone else or dabble in science. They see it as usurping god's authority. And yet they would love to benefit from the next new painkiller or wonder drug that could cure something they have.

:banghead: :banghead:

Is it just me, or are they just wierd. To me, you are 'playing god' when you try to interfere in the lives of other people and usurp their free will.

Religious groups against euthanasia believe that shortening life is playing god, well, what about extending life? They seem to have no problem with that, for some reason. That leads me to believe that their 'sanctity of life' doctrine is based on the natural desire of self-preservation, not a religious viewpoint. They just use religion to justify it, but to me, it doesn't make it any less absurd.

Your thoughts/comments on this?

Evil Milkman

Haha, "playing god".

I love to hear this. What happens? Does god get grumpy and slap us on the wrist for cloning or something? Yeah, it's just so difficult being an omnimax being...

Shadowy Man

God help them if they ever need an organ transplant!!

SecularFuture

Some whine and argue that abortion and cloning are forms of playing God. Is masturbation a form of playing God also?!

SecularFuture

EXACTLY!! If you take medicine, or see a doctor for any reason, you are interfering with God's work!

philechat

I don't understand why they are so jealously protective of their God. If we are playing God and God does not like it, he should be able to deal with it himself. It's none of our business to think when our actions are usurping God's power per se.

As if their God is always feeling neglected, and needs our attention all the time, else He'd become depressed.

SecularFuture

God concepts just DO NOT make ANY sense! I've spent many years searching for God, and I've come up short in every attempt.

I say YES to stem cell research!
I say YES to human cloning!
I say YES to Transhumanism!
I say YES to abortion (only when necessary)!

wildernesse

Transhumanism? Pardon my ignorance, but what is this?

Playing God is just a way for people to express how they feel when they feel that humans are exerting control over something that shouldn't be controlled or should be out of our control--birth, death, making new humans, etc. I think that if we can truly usurp God's authority, then what authority is that and why should we be beholden to it?

Not to say that I don't think that there are ethical considerations to some scientific research and actions, but I think that through thoughtful and continuing discussion we can set limits with the knowledge that those limits may be revised in the future as more knowledge is gained. For instance, I think that cloning a full-fledged human is unethical because they would be lab rats basically no matter how normal they are. But I have no problem with cloning pieces of humans for transplants--a human is more than the sum of its parts in my view.

Anyway, enough about cloning. It is not playing God. Humans can't play God with any more accuracy and power than kindergardeners can play doctor.

--tibac

The Naked Mage

Says who? How do you figure? What makes you think so?


So assuming the existence of sufficient technology to use it, you'd have no ethical qualms about, say, cloning a human brain? Disregarding all the extra meat that keeps it alive, that's basically what a human is.

GunnerJ

The Wrold Transhumanist Association might be able to answer your question.

Edit: See also-

Transhumanity Magazine

Other Transhumanist Links