Mistaking Our Genetic Makeup For The Human Spirit

“You all know this, but it’s worth stating the obvious,” declared Amy McGuire, a genomic bioethicist from Baylor College of Medicine at the start of last year’s TEDMED conference in San Francisco. “Genomic sequencing is not an infallible prophecy of our future.”

A bold statement, to say the least, especially considering her audience – an eclectic collection of doctors, nurses, medical researchers and others intent on improving the world’s health and health care using the most advanced and innovative means possible.

“Our genome sequence is the genetic blueprint of our biological self,” she continued, “but how much does it, or will we let it, define who we are?”

Make no mistake: McGuire is very much in favor of what she refers to as “the responsible integration of genomics.” What she warns against, however, is the tendency to “reduce the mysterious nature of the human spirit to our genetic makeup.”

She’s right. What we call the human spirit shouldn’t be – cannot be – described in biological terms. On the other hand, it’s possible that what McGuire characterizes as “mysterious” isn’t all that mysterious after all.

The prophet Job describes it as “the breath of the Almighty” – something innate in all of us that, metaphorically speaking, provides both the desire and the ability to express a whole host of qualities and capacities: intelligence, balance, purity, mobility, joy, integrity, strength, compassion and so on. Some have even found that a humble, persistent acknowledgment of its presence can make a huge difference in their health, both from a preventative and curative standpoint.

But it goes even deeper than that.

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