Francis Etheredge

Mary and Bioethics Francis Etheredge

Whether it is the problem of pain, the messiness of our relationships or the confusion circulating about human identity, it is possible to think that we do not have anything to learn from the Virgin Mary, spouse of St. Joseph and Mother of the Lord, regarding our understanding of the human race; indeed, that Mary is somehow superficial to who we are as human beings and is a kind of devotional addition to her son Jesus Christ. However, considering the nature of woman opens upon a vision of the gift of human being as fundamentally ordered to relationship. The reality of men and women, neither exalted nor diminished, is discovered to be a gift-to-be-gratefully received; and, on reflection, this turns out to be a necessary redress of the many imbalances in the self-understanding of our times. In other words, reflecting on Mary, the Mother of the Lord, yields a foundational insight into the very moment of human conception, a clearer perception of human participation in the mystery of redemption and, at the same time, a fountain of insights concerning many of the bio-ethical problems of our time. The book is woven through, from beginning to end, with a variety of contributions, a number of which contain the gems of faith-enriched-experience: the General Foreword is by Dr. Anthony Williams, with introductions to each of the seven chapters by Dr. Mary Anne Urlakis, Maria Maffucci, Laura Elm, Edmund Adamus, Dr. Michal Pruski, Dr. Moira McQueen and Leah Palmer, followed by an End Word by Bishop John Keenan of Paisley, Scotland.