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SNOWFLAKE CHILDREN-Who are they?-What are they?
By
Chris Hansen
Author of
“Grandfather’s Journal,” and other books.
Publisher Xlibris
www.xlibris.com 1-888-795-4274. and other online or
local bookstores.
On July 19, 2006, President Bush
exercised the first veto of his presidency. Bush made it
clear that in his mind, it was simply unethical to use
taxpayer dollars to fund research that destroys human
embryos. Bush will probably pay a high political price for
this ethical stand, and Bush undoubtedly knew that his
decision would create a firestorm in the world media.
Exactly what are these embryos? That
is the question! Those who argue for their use would say
that they are byproducts of fertility clinics. These
leftovers are routinely put in cryogenic deep freeze to be
used at a later time or simply discarded as medical waste.
Senators have argued passionately in this way: (paraphrase,
not a precise quote) “These embryos are going to be thrown
away anyway! Why not use them to cure patients and even
save lives? Stem cells can become nearly any tissue we
want, and embryonic stem cells might even be more flexible.
There goes the religious right sticking their noses into
science!”
The other pro-life side is just as
passionate. These embryos have been affectionately named,
“Snowflake children,” according to Focus On The Family on a
July 20 2006 broadcast. (www.family.org
or 1-800-232-6459.) According to Focus there are some
400000 of these snowflake children in cryogenic suspended
animation waiting to be adopted. Families who want these
snowflake children simply implant them in a warm friendly
womb, and 40 weeks later, mom holds a snowflake child in her
arms!
Bush made the ethical point quite clear
as he exercised his veto. Not only did he use his veto pen,
but he took the opportunity to have a very public photo op
with 29 of these snowflake children! According to Focus On
The Family, there are approximately 110 snowflake children
who have been implanted and have arrived safely, and there
are another 20 snowflake kids growing inside anxious
mothers.
It is said that a picture is worth a
thousand words. How about 29 pictures? The photos cut
right through the debate. We need a new definition of the
word “children” now that we live in a brave new world. We
now need a brave new definition. Under enormous political
pressure, Bush could have caved in and crushed these
microscopic Americans in his hands. Instead, he showed
himself to be a brave new president with a brave new idea.
Actually it’s an old idea, that life is more than spare
parts. Life is a God given gift.
Are these embryonic stem cells more
flexible? Technically they are. In fact, they’re too
flexible! The Chinese discovered that these cells when
implanted in human brains would grow other undesirable cells
in the brain. So, if they were trying to cure Parkinson’s
disease, for example, and grow neurons to replace old ones,
other cells, such as teeth, might grow in the brain as
tumors. These cells are programmed to become babies, and
this directed programming seems to interfere with these
cells’ attempts at becoming a given desired tissue.
However, adult stem cells, since they are already finished
running their genetic program, are more than happy to become
all sorts of different tissues. In other words, scientific
wisdom says, “Don’t send a baby cell to do an adult cell’s
job!”
What about the ethical concerns?
“These cells are going to be discarded anyway, so why not
use them?” The phrase, “Use them” deeply troubles me. To
me, and many others, it sounds too close to the Nazi way of
thinking. The Nazis were condemned for their “throw away
people and use their spare parts” way of thinking. It
sounds too much like the way the Roman empire dealt with the
“unwanted.” Families would put their unwanted infants out
on hillsides to be eaten by wild animals or picked up by
some unscrupulous predator!
And, now, as a member of the “religious
right” I’m going to stick my nose in! Most of us know what
the apostles’ creed teaches: “I believe in Jesus Christ, …
who ascended into heaven, and from thence will come to judge
the living and the dead.” These snowflake children have
souls, and they wait in suspended animation for our
judgment. Jesus died for these microscopic children. He is
coming back to this world with his heavenly army! Will this
army not include these 400000 resurrected children? If
Jesus died for them, and if Jesus is coming to judge, then
isn’t it reasonable that Jesus will rise up and defend
them?
Spare parts?
Or:
Special people?
What is your verdict!
What would Jesus do?
Chris Hansen has already published his
first book: “Revelation Revisited” A Retelling Of The
Revelation Story, a moving account of the visions of Saint
John as told in the book of Revelation. He holds a BA from
Fresno Pacific Bible College. He and his wife are happily
married, and have two adult daughters. Chris and his wife
have both lived in Modesto California for many years. Chris
teaches Sunday school, leads worship at the local rescue
mission once or twice a month, and he and his wife minister
to inmates at a correctional facility on alternating
Sundays. It is the author’s intention to touch the world,
one person at a time, one book at a time. Other books are
planned for the future.
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