(Part 1)

JBTM Book Reviews
137
Beyond the form and structure of the work, the content is excellent and clearly fulfills the
aim advertised in the subtitle, “A Guide for Pastors, Health Care Professionals, and Families.”
The book is divided into four unequal parts: Part I: Christian Bioethics; Part II: Taking Life;
Part III: Making Life; Part IV: Remaking/Faking Life. The authors credit the memorable (and
rhyming) titles of the final three parts to Nigel M. de S. Cameron, one of Riley’s mentors at
Trinity International University (xiii).
The authors set the scene in the introduction by describing an infertile couple’s
dilemma, and after outlining the book’s contents they return to the couple and conclude
the introduction by setting a goal for themselves and their readers: “Our prayer is that by
the time you have read this book you will have a better idea how you would help Phil and
Sara and the other people whose cases you will find in this volume” (5). The authors go even
further by unabashedly stating the rationale behind the book. After clearly subscribing to the
“all truth is God’s truth” view, Mitchell and Riley explain that they “see science and faith,
medicine and theology as friends, not enemies” (5). This explains their approach, which is
further evidenced by the “common ground” dynamic between them in the pages that follow.
They do not engage in a dialogue to show the flaws in one field or another. Instead, the coauthorship
approach exhibits their appreciation for one another, because they are not in
combat but in collaboration.
In “Part I: Christian Bioethics,” the authors open the discussion by focusing on the
morality of medicine. Chapter 2 sets up the purpose and payoff of the book by framing the
challenges inherent in bioethics, covering the ancient challenges, up to the twenty-first
century. Part I clearly foreshadows the book as one that refuses to settle for easy answers to
simple questions.
The authors cover euthanasia, assisted suicide, and abortion in “Part II: Taking Life.”
Chapter 3 focuses on the sanctity of human life and abortion. The authors cover a range of
important questions, including: “Under what circumstances, if any, can abortion be morally
justified?” “Do the doctors have the moral authority to end the life of an unborn child?” and
“What biblical norms or principles, if any, apply to medical technologies that did not exist
when the Bible was written?” (47). This sample shows the authors’ refusal to evade some of
the most challenging questions raised in bioethics. Chapter 4, on human dignity and dying,
covers a range of questions, including, “Is it ever right to remove life-sustaining treatment
like a ventilator” (68), as well as a helpful taxonomy of suffering (79–81).
In “Part III: Making Life,” Mitchell and Riley turn their attention to the ethical boundaries
and moral quandaries involved in procreation technologies. Chapter 5 covers infertility and
Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART). In chapter 6, the authors explains the ethical
dilemmas and life-saving potentialities of organ donation and transplantation. To conclude
Part III, Mitchell and Riley discuss in chapter 7 the tantalizing and (arguably) terrifying
prospect of clones and human-animal hybrids.