Whither Religion? - Corrupting Creation- Implications of Producing GMOs

            From hover boards to fitness tracking cell phones, the twenty-first century has ushered in technological advancements that would shock the 1970s futuristic Star Trek characters. While the purpose of these technologies is (in theory) to make every day tasks easier for an ever-growing population, certain innovations have raised ethical questions about the future of man and its relationship to nature, namely GMOs. Labeling a food “GMO,” the abbreviation for “genetically modified organism,” indicates that a producer has engineered or otherwise altered the DNA of a plant so as to increase crop yield or resistance to pests and disease. In genetic modification, scientists introduce genomes from one organism into the DNA of another, sometimes “editing” them in the process in order to achieve a desired trait.

These GMOs have filled the shelves of grocery stores since 1992, beginning with the Flavr Savr tomato (Penn State- The Science of GMOs), but only recently has this technology come into question, with the spotlight centered on Monsanto. Monsanto is a large seed company notorious for genetically engineering the most productive plants for farmers across America. Through this genetic modification, arises the question of whether man is “playing God” by engineering man’s own “creation.” As explained in Evan Berry’s book Devoted to Nature, intellectuals like Eckhart complicate this implication by introducing the idea that “the processes of nature [are] a perpetual and providential unfolding of God’s grace” (47). With the processes of reproduction and growth now stemming from a divine direction and perhaps purpose, romantics of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries would by horrified by the thought of corrupting or interrupting these processes. Considering man’s interactions with the natural world as a theological and perhaps even soteriological experience, man’s genetic modification practices not only appear as abuses of God’s creation but as an attempted replacement of the creator and orchestrator of all things natural.

The GMO debate has mainly occurred from a scientific and health perspective, but its theological implications could trouble consumers further. As of yet, there are fewer than ten genetically engineered plants on the market: corn, soybeans, canola, apples, potatoes, papayas, squash, and sugar beets and all scientific testing shows that there is no health risk to humans consuming genetically modified foods (FDA on GMOs). For the sake of the consumer, the National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Law will require that all genetically modified foods be clearly labeled as such (USDA on GMOs). Removing health and food safety concerns, should man tamper with creation in order to feed a growing population or leave nature to its natural forms established by the Almighty?

For more information on the production of genetically modified organisms and their food safety, please visit the sites linked above.