THE CHALLENGES OF BIOETHICS IN ASIA

A NATURAL LAW PERSPECTIVE

Authors

  • S Joseph Tham DHARMARAM VIDHYA KSHETRAM (DVK)

Keywords:

BIOETHICS, NATURAL LAW

Abstract

Asia is not a homogenous entity, its vast geography and cultural,
religious and ethical traditions embrace Confucianism, Hinduism,
Buddhism, Islam and Christianity. The challenges facing bioethics in
Asia are manifold. Bioethics began in the West as a discipline that has
developed over the past forty years. Even though its roots are in the
Christian moral tradition, bioethics today is predominantly secular.

Author Biography

S Joseph Tham, DHARMARAM VIDHYA KSHETRAM (DVK)

Fr S. Joseph Tham was born in Hong Kong and immigrated to Canada at the age of
fifteen. At the University of Toronto, he first majored in Mathematical Sciences and
then graduated from Medical School. After several years of work as a family
physician, he entered the seminary of the Legionaries of Christ and was ordained a
priest in 2004. As a part of this preparation, he has obtained his degrees in
philosophy and theology at Rome’s Regina Apostolorum Pontifical university, where
he also completed his post-graduate studies in bioethics. He successfully defended
his doctoral dissertation with high honours on “The Secularization of Bioethics —A
Critical History” under the direction of Dr. Edmund Pellegrino, former Chairman of
the President’s Council on Bioethics. He presently teaches bioethics in Regina
Apostolorum. He is the Editorial Coordinator of the journal Studia Bioethica, and a
Fellow of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics and Human Rights. He is the author of The
Missing Cornerstone (2004), The Secularization of Bioethics (2007), Bioetica al Futuro
[Bioethics of the Future] (2010) and Religious Perspectives of Human Vulnerability in
Bioethics (2014).

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Published

2013-12-31

How to Cite

Tham, S. . J. (2013). THE CHALLENGES OF BIOETHICS IN ASIA: A NATURAL LAW PERSPECTIVE. Asian Horizons, 7(04), 683–702. Retrieved from https://dvkjournals.in/index.php/ah/article/view/2642