COURSE NUMBER: BIOE 610

COURSE TITLE: Theological Issues in Bioethics

INSTRUCTOR: James J. Walter, PhD

COURSE DESCRIPTION/PRINCIPAL TOPICS

This course will introduce the participant to the basic theological concepts, frameworks, and analyses that have been used by both Catholic and Protestant theologians in their discussions of bioethics. After reviewing the various relationships between religion and medicine and the role that theology can play in bioethics, several specific topics will be discussed and analyzed in depth. Topics such as assisted reproductive technologies, abortion, genetic control, care of severely handicapped neonates, death and dying, and the meaning and application of "quality of life" to contemporary issues will be discussed in both lecture and seminar formats. Readings for the semester will consist of two recent anthologies that discuss the theological, ethical and medical dimensions of the topics under discussion.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

Participants will be able: to distinguish and interrelate theological and ethical issues; to analyze theological and ethical arguments on bioethical topics; and to appreciate how theological themes can inform and shape moral arguments.

PREREQUISITES/RECOMMENDED BACKGROUND

Undergraduate degree.

REQUIRED TEXTS

• Stephen E. Lammers and Allen Verhey, ed. On Moral Medicine: Theological Perspectives in Medical Ethics, Second Edition (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 1998). [ISBN: 0‑8028‑4249‑6]

· James J. Walter and Thomas A. Shannon, ed. Quality of Life: The New Medical Dilemma (New York: Paulist Press, 1990). [ISBN: 0‑8091‑3191‑9]

COURSE WORK/EXPECTATIONS

The participants will be assigned seminars on the first day of class. It is the responsibility of the seminar facilitator to determine the ethical issues and the theological issues that need to be discussed in the seminar for the day. Each participant will also write a position paper on a topic of his/her choosing in the area of bioethics as a final paper in the course.