Priming the Pump: A Christian Vision for Bioethics

by: 
Kevin Vollema, MDiv
Thursday, July 21, 2022

Gilbert Meilaender, Bioethics: A Primer for Christians, 4th ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2020).

With his book, Bioethics: A Primer for Christians, Gilbert Meilaender has given to the church a great gift. As a pastor of a church within an evangelical denomination who gets to walk beside members of my congregation as they wrestle with the ever-changing issues pertaining to real life bioethical questions, I am grateful to have access to a book like Meilaender’s.

What American Mental Health Care Is Missing and How Churches Can Help

by: 
Stephen P. Greggo, PsyD
Friday, June 17, 2022

Ministry along the Mental Health Continuum, Part II

Editor's Note: This Intersections post is part of a series, Ministry along the Mental Health Continuum.  You can view Part I here.

Ministry leaders who foster vital congregational community can constructively address the adverse trends in the growing national crisis regarding the upturn in mental illness. In the previous piece on ministry along the mental health continuum, the charge to ministry leaders was to be part of the solution: faith communities serve a stabilizing function that increase disease resistance by reversing isolation. Here, that challenge will be expanded. Ministry leaders can indeed be part of a larger social movement that promotes mental health and fulfills our Gospel calling. Awareness of trends in mental health care can assist clergy to customize and deepen the support offered to struggling parishioners.

The Pandemic Mental Illness Outbreak: A Ministry Perspective

by: 
Stephen P. Greggo, PsyD
Friday, May 20, 2022

Ministry along the Mental Health Continuum, Part 1

“A pandemic within the pandemic” is how one psychiatrist recently depicted the country’s mental health quandary in the Boston Globe. The contention is that the COVID-19 crisis, with its isolating social restrictions, heated up toxic stress that exacerbated the demand for psychiatric services. The byline states that “access to care must be dramatically expanded.” This medical insider passionately pleads for legislators, insurance companies, regulators, and medical boards to respond “boldly and swiftly” to counteract a crisis of pandemic proportions.

 

An Introduction to Reproductive Technologies

by: 
Brent Waters, DPhil
Friday, April 22, 2022

Although RT no longer garners many headlines, this does not mean that it is free of controversial ethical issues, many of which challenge religious beliefs regarding marriage, family, and more broadly what it means to be human. Consequently, it is incumbent upon Christians to evaluate RT in light of their most deeply held theological and moral convictions, especially those considering using RT and those providing pastoral care and guidance in the discernment process.

 

The purpose of this article is to provide an overview by briefly highlighting a few ethical issues and concerns. More expansive and in-depth essays and bibliographies can be accessed on the Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity (CBHD) website.

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