1st Edition

Counseling Pregnancy, Politics, and Biomedicine Empowering Discernment

By Patricia Elyse Terrell Copyright 2007
    346 Pages
    by Routledge

    346 Pages
    by Routledge

    Examine the impact and importance reproduction and genetics have on religious values

    Counseling Pregnancy, Politics, and Biomedicine: Empowering Discernment explains the mystery of the God-human relationship so ministers, priests, and pastors can follow the ethics and mechanics of counseling human reproductive health and be informed on issues of religion, medical experimentation, and politics. The unique book is a teaching text and a desktop reference for clergypersons and pastoral care ministers, providing them with information on the sensitive and intimate topic of reproductive health from a Christian worldview so they can advise and empower congregation members to make thoughtful decisions about health care.

    Counseling Pregnancy, Politics, and Biomedicine examines four disciplines through a Christian point of view: 1) religion based on humanity created in the image of God; 2) different varieties of ethics; 3) systems of law and politics; and 4) philosophies on experimental medicines. Each topic is grounded with its religious background, providing a practical, easy-to-follow path for Christian thinkers. The book also addresses the concerns a religious person might have about health and ministry, what genetic therapy can accomplish, the alternatives to genetic therapy, and how theology, ethics, law, and medicine apply to the issues expectant mothers face.

    Counseling Pregnancy, Politics, and Biomedicine examines:

    • the major points in recognized ethical theories
    • how Christian principles became part of secular law over time
    • the legal dilemmas involved in protecting the health of pregnant women
    • how and why palliative care is a viable alternative to modern therapies
    • the politics and morality of terminating a pregnancy
    • how to protect women from becoming research “instruments”
    • the moral status of the embryo
    • and much more
    Counseling Pregnancy, Politics, and Biomedicine explains God’s desire for good health by identifying ways in which Jesus is the example of what it means for every person to be “created in the image of God.” The book is a vital resource for clergypersons and pastoral care ministers.

    Acknowledgments. Introduction: The Goals of the Book. Part I: Information to Equip Decisions.  Humankind Created in the Image of God, Imago Dei: The Passion and Politics of Human Biology. Ethics: Has Morality Become a Maze or a Prism? What Politics? Which Legal System?  Medical Experimentation and Reproduction.  Part II: Applying the Information to Issues in Reproduction. Issues Faced by the Expectant Mother. The Moral Status of the Embryo Appendix. Legal Documents and Cases.  Notes. Sources Consulted. Index.  

    Biography

    Patricia Elyse Terrell