Breaking a Code
written by Rev. Dr. Scott Paczkowski
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”
I am in the middle of a profoundly hopeful book. It is not directly spiritual but undoubtedly encouraging. The story is of scientists whose competition and cooperation developed sequencing DNA found in genomes such as bacteria, that can detect and destroy other DNA that causes infections. This life-altering finding was brought to fruition by two female scientists; one French, named Emmanuelle Charpentier. The other was an American, named Jennifer Doudna, who struggled and successfully transformed our world.
Their scientific discovery, one I am too ignorant to express correctly, led the way to the answer to the foundations for vaccines, including Covid-19. Their story, written by the prolific writer Walter Isaacson, is entitled The Code Breaker. Dr. Doudna is the main character in the reflection. The report, as I’ve read thus far, shows the competitive environment in the gene-editing industry. Isaacson believes the tech industry is now becoming secondary to the new force that is the Gene-Editing evolution.
The challenge is that, once again, science is advancing far quicker than medical ethics. There is a great deal of money thrown around this growing industry, and the medical opportunities for financial wealth are vast. Gene Editing will provide the opportunity to alleviate crippling disease before a child is even born. That is just for starters. Gene Editing can create healing, but it can also make, in the wrong hands, a master race.
Today, pray for those in science, politics, and ethical fields that they will be able to work together to better the entire world, and not simply for their greed and power. The blessing is that scientists like Jennifer Doudna are respectful of the potential abuse. Pray for our world to value ethics as much as financial rewards. Pray for those in control to have a long-term view so their inventions will heal rather than destroy.
