Christian Viewpoint: Turning awful situations into life-giving blessings
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MY American friend Clark Cothern has been thinking through one of the issues raised by US anti-vaxxers, writes John Dempster.
This claim was that the use of Covid-19 vaccines is morally wrong on the grounds that cells from aborted foetuses were used in their development. A bit of science: none of the vaccines contain cells from such foetuses.
In the case of some of the vaccines – including the Pfizer vaccine being rolled out here in the Highlands – cells used in their development were the replicated descendants of cells originating with one or other of two foetuses legally aborted around 50 years ago.
In the UK, every Christian would consider abortion a tragedy, while some would accept that in some situations, an abortion is the lesser of two evils.
But few of us agonise over the use of cell-lines from long-dead foetuses.
We simply accept the vaccine as a gift of God, given through the skill and knowledge of scientists.
In contrast, Clark says: “I have been wrestling theologically and philosophically with this issue.” I admire his scrupulosity, his commitment to think through the issues. It’s a challenge to us not to avoid the serious ethical issues associated with some of our purchases and lifestyle choices.
Clark began by reflecting on whether there was anything in the Bible to help him in his “wrestling.” He remembered the story of Joseph (of Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat fame). Joseph was betrayed by his brothers and sold into slavery, yet he rose to become Egyptian First Minister, and as such was able to help his brothers and the whole embryo Jewish nation at a time of international famine.
When the brothers are confronted with the fact that the great man is none other than the Joseph whom they so mistreated, Joseph tells them “you thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good.” God had worked with the wrong the brothers had done, and put Joseph in a position to save not only his own family but in fact the whole of Egypt.
God does not cause, or approve, of wrongdoing, but God can work with its consequences to bring good. From the tragedy of two abortions, life-giving benefits have come through the vaccine. Says Clark: “The redemptive aspect of those replicated foetal cells becomes a testimony to the grace of God who continues to turn awful situations into life-giving blessings for many.”
Clark’s process of prayerful reasoning is a model to us as we navigate our ethical issues.
And whatever tragedies we are enduring, we resolutely hold to the conviction that even in the darkest of days God’s grace can bring “life-giving blessings.”
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