How should we think about this?

First, the cloning of cc demonstrates that cloning can never provide a precisely identical younger replicate of a beloved pet. cc looks quite different from Rainbow; their DNA is identical and they bear resemblance but they are hardly identical. cc's fur coat has different markings because a cat's coat coloring results only partly from genes. Further, the cloned animal is also affected by changes that occur during fetal development in the womb. A cloned animal's personality may turn out to be quite different from its genetic parent's temperament. Obviously, all of this has the potential of great disappointment to the pet owner after spending a very large sum of money.

Second, cc's cloning shows us that cloning technology is still at a rudimentary stage. The scientific team started out trying to clone a dog, but, as far as is known, every attempt failed. Then the team switched to cats and produced 87 embryos, only one of which yielded a live kitten. From all of the cloning done with sheep, mice, cows, goats and pigs, we already know that the success rate with cloning is appallingly low. We are a long way from successful cloning of human beings at this rate.

Third, the cloning of cc raises ethical questions. One could argue, for example, that cloning of favorite pets is rather deplorable when millions of abandoned animals are left homeless or are destroyed each year for want of loving humans to adopt them. Furthermore, if a cloned pet turns out to be medically infirm or deformed in some way, tolerating such suffering will be difficult to justify. But at bottom we are talking about reproductive cloning and that procedure, whether with cats or humans, is ethically questionable. Ethicist Jeffrey Kahn has argued that cloning pets could serve as a "dress rehearsal for what we could expect if we ever get to human cloning." God's world is a world of infinite variety, diversity and unpredictability. The very practice of cloning seems to at least potentially violate what God values. Further, to produce 87 embryos before there is an acceptable kitten would be absolutely reprehensible if we were talking about humans. At this point it is difficult to see the cloning of cc as a positive development. Cloning raises so many ethical questions that it is impossible to embrace reproductive cloning as a good development ethically.

See New York Times editorial, "The World's First Cloned Kitty," and
Newsweek (18 February 2002), "Here's Kitty, kitty."

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THE FUTURE OF MORMONISM

Its total worldwide is 11 million. Rodney Stark, professor at the University of Washington, predicts that by 2040 that number will be 50 million. If current growth continues, the LDS will be numbered in the hundreds of millions by 2080. It is rapidly becoming the first new world religion since Islam.

Let's think about Mormonism.

First, why is Mormonism so appealing? The LDS church places great stress on the nuclear family. It is culturally quite conservative in areas like abortion, same-sex marriages and the homosexual lifestyle. Further, Mormons do not consume alcohol, coffee or tea and do not smoke or gamble. They are likewise most supportive of capitalism, with the LDS owning businesses itself. Unlike many evangelical groups, the LDS refuses to endorse candidates for political office. Its public positions are only on moral matters and it insists on obedience to the laws of even dictatorial countries where it has missionaries. The LDS church argues from its scripture that "Latter Day Saints obey the law, participate in the affairs of government at all levels and serve in the armed forces of their respective nations." The LDS church therefore upholds private property, traditional family values and the separation of church and state.

Second, what kinds of demands does the LDS church place on its members? Mormons are supposed to tithe to the church. Nearly two-thirds do so, accounting for the church's estimated income of $6 billion a year. Further, each member is to volunteer up to 40 hours per week to church-run activities, an incredible commitment of time that sustains one of the world's most impressive welfare services. Mormons are therefore more communal and other-centered than typical individualistic Americans.

Finally, what do Mormons believe? The church dates back to 1820 when Joseph Smith, then a 14 year old in Palmyra, New York, had a vision from God. In 1823 the angel Moroni told him that ancient Hebrews in America had written a sacred history that was engraved in an Egyptian dialect on gold tablets buried nearby Palmyra. Four years later Smith had obtained these tablets and translated them. The "Book of Mormon," published in 1830 from these golden plates (that quickly disappeared), reviews a history of Israelites led by patriarch, Lehi, who came to America about 600 B.C. Two tribes descending from his sons Nephi and Laman fought repeatedly until the Lamanites defeated the Nephites about A.D. 385. Mormons teach that the resurrected Jesus came to America, performed miracles and chose 12 Nephites to be his 12 American disciples. There is absolutely no archeological evidence to corroborate any of this. Further, charges of plagiarism continue to plague "The Book of Mormon." In essence, the charge is that Smith copied large parts from the King James Bible and other books. There are also charges of Smith's involvement in the occult.

Mormons believe the following as key doctrinal truths:

1. Father, Son and Spirt are 3 gods, each of whom achieved godhood from some lesser state. God the father now lives in heaven with a wife (the heavenly mother) and with Christ their son. So do exalted Mormons who have become gods themselves. Hence, "As God once was, man is. As God is, man may become."

2. Mormonism teaches that long before creation all men and women who would live on Earth were Christ's spirit brothers and sisters in heaven and grew with Christ to spirit adulthood. Christ was chosen over others to become a savior for his brothers and sisters. He became a god while others waited thousands of years; many are still waiting.

3. At death, spirits of the dead go to "spirit prison." After judgment, they go to one of three kingdoms. Those who are Mormon husbands and wives who have been married in a Mormon temple and have done good works can become gods and goddesses in the Celestial Kingdom, the highest degree of glory. They will then have an eternal family and will one day rule as God rules today.

4. Mormonism teaches that Mormons can help their dead ancestors through being baptized in their place. This vicarious baptism is central for most Mormons today.

In short, it is wrong to argue that the LDS church is just another branch of evangelical Christianity.
It is not!

See The Economist (9 February 2002), pp. 25-226 and World (16 February 2002), pp. 22-23.

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IS THERE SUCH A THING AS NATURAL LAW?

The idea that God has revealed to all people something of His moral will is central to genuine biblical Christianity. Today, this concept is even more crucial in our postmodern, pluralistic culture. The Apostle Paul supports this concept of natural law in Romans 2:12-15, where in vv. 14-15 he argues that by doing the things that God's law requires, "they [Gentiles] are a law unto themselves." Gentiles do not have the law of Moses but they do have access to the basic moral demands of God. His allusion to "conscience" in v. 15 seems to indicate that these moral requirements are built into every human being. In addition, God builds a natural law into his creation. It is accessible to all and all are accountable to follow it.

This natural law then serves two important functions:

1. It provides a universal moral norm. America's founders enshrined this concept into our foundational documents. The loss of this concept has produced the moral relativism we see today.

2. It provides a basis for God's righteous judgment. God has revealed evidence about Himself in His creation (Romans 1:18ff) and He has revealed His basic moral will to all people. No one will stand before Him in judgment and claim "I never heard" or "I never knew."

Natural law, therefore, is an important inferential dimension of genuine Christianity.

See Doug Moo, "God's Law and Natural Law," Tabletalk (February 2002), pp. 35-36.

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