Reading the Bible in the Strange World of Medicine
By Allen Verhey
Wm. B. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, MI, 2003
407 pp., $35 (paperback)
REVIEWED BY SR. ELOISE ROSENBLATT, RSM, PhD, JD
The author of this book is the Evert J. and Hattie E. Blekkink Professor of
Religion at Hope College in Holland, MI. His phrase concerning the "strange
world of medicine" refers to what he sees as a lack of communication between,
on one hand, people of faith who are immersed in scriptural tradition, and,
on the other hand, science-oriented medical professionals whose thinking has
been shaped by a philosophy of utilitarianism (aimed at goals deemed socially
useful) and a technology-driven "secularization of bioethics." It
is rare that ethicists concerned with medical questions ground their reflections
in Scripture.
The bioethical issues surveyed here are the Human Genome Project, abortion,
genetic engineering and "alternative reproductive technologies" (ART),
physician-assisted suicide, care of at-risk infants, and the assignment of medical
resources.
Verhey's book is essentially an appeal to the Christian community to enter
the debate concerning reproductive issues. The author retrieves from their scriptural
origins a set of ethical principles to guide decision making. He is concerned
about the gulf between technologically based medicine and faith-based bioethical
decision making.
The author has aimed his book not at academics, who are philosophical ethicists,
but rather at the broader community—pastors and health care professionals
who seek bridges between the world of faith and the reality of the laboratory.
Verhey's approach might be described as a homiletic reflection that attempts
to retrieve from the heritage of Scripture a common set of principles, such
as the dignity of the person and life as God's gift.
Verhey, who is neither a physician nor a health care expert, identifies himself
as a Calvinist thinker, evangelical in his tradition. A general Christian readership,
including Catholics, will find his approach to Scripture consistent with theological
premises concerning the dignity of the person created in the image of God, as
described in Genesis, and with a philosophy of the person shaped by belief in
redemption and resurrection, as described in the New Testament. Verhey insists
that Scripture cannot be read literally because it often offers diverse perspectives
on the same topics, depending on the time of its composition. He acknowledges
that many contemporary medical questions could never have been anticipated by
the writers of Scripture.
Although the author does not review the historical-critical method of Bible
study, cite feminist scholarship, or explain how Christians can resist anti-Semitic
interpretation of the Gospels, he does not contradict enlightened academic
trends of the last 30 years.
Verhey's book shows the weakness of Christian seminary formation, its
lack of reference to the Old Testament. The traditional Christian paradigm of
creation/fall/incarnation/redemption/resurrection, when placed like a cookie
cutter over the scriptural record, results in an emphasis on the first two chapters
of Genesis—and then a leap to the New Testament. Verhey does discuss a
passage in Job and several Psalms, but he mostly overlooks the narrative tradition
of the Hebrew Scriptures, including the stories about healing (e.g., the bronze
serpent and the healing of Naaman the Syrian, in Numbers; and the Elijah and
Elisha traditions, in 1 and 2 Kings). It is unlikely that Verhey's book
would resonate with Jewish readers involved in health care.
The first 150 pages of Reading the Bible in the Strange World of Medicine
are drawn from seminary-style lectures on the biblical theology of the person,
reading Scripture, engaging in prayer, the discerning community, and the sources
for a spirit of religiously inspired compassion. Sections could be used as resources
for a mission-effectiveness office in a Catholic hospital, faith-based texts
for units in a clinical pastoral education program, or homiletic suggestions
for a hospital chaplain. The book's second half is very helpful in explaining
to laypersons the scientific procedures and fundamental values that would be
involved in the genetic engineering of a "perfect child."
The author does a generally sympathetic analysis of the Catholic position on
abortion, commenting at length on Margaret Farley's analysis of "good
faith" and "bad faith" on both sides of the debate. Verhey endorses
the ethical principles regarding human sexuality; fidelity in marriage; and
the integration of genetic parenthood, gestational parenthood, and responsibility
for children's upbringing as described in the Congregation for the Doctrine
of the Faith's Instruction on Respect for Human Life in Its Origin and
on the Dignity of Procreation of 1987. He proposes the existence of alternative
ethical positions consistent with a Scripture-based ethic, such as exceptions
for abortion in cases of rape, incest, or a diagnosis of anencephaly—although
not for a diagnosis of Down syndrome, in which cases, Verhey argues, "the
community must share the burdens of caring for such children."
Verhey's chapter on abortion is the one that best integrates Scripture
as a foundation for ethical principles; it effectively uses passages about women
in the ministry of Jesus. A weaker effort is the author's treatment of
ART; he provides explanations of the various scientific procedures involved,
but gets mired in repetitive denunciation of the commercialization and commodification
of embryos. A chapter that challenges the premises justifying physician-assisted
suicide appeals to the principle of life as God's gift. On the other hand,
a discussion of Judas's suicide in Matthew and Luke is uninformed by recent
New Testament scholarship. The final chapter, called "The Good Samaritan
and Scarce Medical Resources," is a humane, coherent essay that I could
imagine reading before attending a meeting in which a hospital board of trustees
was to discuss allocation of the budget.
Some cautions should be kept in mind in using this book. Verhey assumes that
a prayerful reading of and reflection on the same biblical texts will unite
the community of faith around bioethical questions and result in harmonious
discernment. However, the hurly-burly world of health care is different from
the comparatively serene world of the pulpit, the retreat center, and the denominational
college classroom. Increasingly, the people who form the decision-making bodies
in U.S. bioethical debates represent different scientific, educational, philosophical,
and political persuasions, as well as different religions, different medical
and cultural histories, and different ethnicities. We find ourselves in a health
care setting that affirms diversity. The question is, how much diversity can
this book speak to and support?
Sr. Eloise Rosenblatt, RSM, PhD, JD
San Jose, CA
Copyright © 2005 by the Catholic Health Association of the United States
For reprint permission, contact Betty Crosby or call (314) 253-3477.