책임적 생명윤리―생명공학기술시대의 새로운 윤리원칙―

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to seek the new principle of ethics in the biotechnology era. It has now become almost impossible for traditional ethical theory to offer a proper answer for the ethical problems newly emerged from the advancement of modern biotechnology. Therefore, it may be desirable to approach the issues from a responsible bioethical perspective. A responsible bioethics recognizes the fact that biotechnology not only affect the current biosphere but also the future generation: that is, the end-results of today's biotechnology will have an impact on not only our generation but also our posterity. Therefore, the dimension of responsibility is to be expanded and applied to ourselves, ecology, our future generation and finally to God, the life-giver. It is because of the fact that the heavier the responsibility is, the more cautious the research and experiment in biotechnology will become, by carrying them out within the bound of responsibility. The ethical judgement verified through this expansion of responsibility can be considered to be more responsible and proper moral action. A responsible bioethics contains three elements: The first element is “biocracy” from Niebuhr's “ethics of response” where he emphasized the fitting response to the reality; The second element is “ecocentrism” from Jonas' “responsible ethics for future generations”; and The third element is “social ethics of integrity” from Schweiker's “integral theory of responsibility” to the effect that we must respect and enhance the integrity of life before God. Responsible bioethics based on biocracy and ecocentrism and social ethics of integrity lead biotechnology into a more useful direction, where it seeks a realistic application for the elevation and enhancement of the biocommunity's integrity before God.