Synthetic Biology: A Jewish View

The discipline of synthetic biology may be one of the most dramatic advances of the past few decades. It represents a radical upgrading of humankind's ability to manipulate the world in which we live. The potential for benefits to society is enormous, but the risks for deliberate abuse or dangerous miscalculations are no less great. There are serious ethical issues, legitimate concerns for biosafety, and fears of bioterrorism. The ethical dilemmas posed are new and challenging and are being addressed by various groups and commissions. The present paper presents a Jewish approach to some of the ethical issues posed by this new technology. Judaism traditionally looks favorably on man as a co-creator with God and encourages research for the benefit of humankind. Thus it would have a positive attitude towards the current goals of synthetic biology. But in the Jewish tradition man is also charged with stewardship over nature and is admonished to preserve and nurture, not just to exploit and destroy. In line with the Presidential Commission on Bioethics, it would support a carefully weighed balance between the precautionary and the "proactionary" approaches.