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DOI :10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664   IUP :10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664    Full Text (PDF)

A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity

Seyithan Can

Several theoretical studies have investigated biological determinism. First, it leaves no room for divine intervention in the various spheres of human activity. Second, it asserts that heredity significantly influences human behavior. This notion emphasizes the idea that humans possess both freedom and wildness. According to biological determinism, behavior is predetermined by DNA, reducing physiological brain activity. Consequently, what is commonly perceived to be human freedom is illusory. If an individual’s actions are not a result of their own will, the issue of justice arises from the rewards and punishments that God metes out in response to human behavior. To address the theological dilemmas posed by these assertions of biological determinism, we sought to ground human freedom, will, and responsibility within the framework of God’s justice, by drawing on insights from epigenetics and brain plasticity. However, can recent developments in genetic science comprehensively elucidate human behavior, potentially revealing the freedom we once believed we possessed to be an illusion? Answering this question was one of the primary objectives of this study.

DOI :10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664   IUP :10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664    Full Text (PDF)

Biyolojik Determinizm İddialarına Epigenetik ve Beyin Plastisitesi Özelinde Teolojik bir Çözümleme

Seyithan Can

Biyolojik determinizmin teolojik olarak birçok problemi de beraberinde getirmiştir. Bunlardan ilki Tanrı`ya herhangi bir etkinlik alanı bırakmamasıdır. İkincisi de insan davranışlarının meydana gelmesinde kalıtımın etkili olduğunu belirtmeleridir. Bu düşünce insanın özgür ve iradeli bir varlık olma tasavvurunu ortadan kaldırmaktadır. Çünkü biyolojik determinizme göre DNA`mız tarafından önceden belirlenen ve davranışlarımız, beynin fizyolojik aktivitesinden başka bir şey değildir. Dolayısıyla insan özgürlüğü dediğimiz şey aslında bir yanılsamadır. Şayet insanın sergilediği davranışlar onun iradesiyle gerçekleşmiyorsa, Tanrı`nın insan davranışlarına karşılık verdiği ceza ve mükâfat, adalet problemini doğuracaktır. Biyolojik determinizmin bu iddialarının teolojik açıdan ortaya çıkardığı problemlere karşılık, epigenetik ve beyin plastisitesini temel alarak insanın özgürlüğü, iradesi ve sorumluluğunu, Tanrı`nın adaleti perspektifinde temellendirmeye çalıştık. Bununla beraber, genetik bilimdeki yeni keşifler, daha önce sahip olduğumuzu düşündüğümüz özgürlüğü bir yanılsama olarak ortaya çıkarmada insan davranışını eksiksiz bir şekilde açıklar mı? Sorusunun cevap bulması, çalışmanın temel amaçları arasındadır.


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Can, S. (2019). A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity. darulfunun ilahiyat, 0(0), -. https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664


AMA

Can S. A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity. darulfunun ilahiyat. 2019;0(0):-. https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664


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Can, S. A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity. darulfunun ilahiyat, [Publisher Location], v. 0, n. 0, p. -, 2019.


Chicago: Author-Date Style

Can, Seyithan,. 2019. “A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity.” darulfunun ilahiyat 0, no. 0: -. https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664


Chicago: Humanities Style

Can, Seyithan,. A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity.” darulfunun ilahiyat 0, no. 0 (May. 2024): -. https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664


Harvard: Australian Style

Can, S 2019, 'A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity', darulfunun ilahiyat, vol. 0, no. 0, pp. -, viewed 6 May. 2024, https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664


Harvard: Author-Date Style

Can, S. (2019) ‘A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity’, darulfunun ilahiyat, 0(0), pp. -. https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664 (6 May. 2024).


MLA

Can, Seyithan,. A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity.” darulfunun ilahiyat, vol. 0, no. 0, 2019, pp. -. [Database Container], https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664


Vancouver

Can S. A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity. darulfunun ilahiyat [Internet]. 6 May. 2024 [cited 6 May. 2024];0(0):-. Available from: https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664 doi: 10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664


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Can, Seyithan. A Theological Analysis of Biological Determinism Claims in the Context of Epigenetics and Brain Plasticity”. darulfunun ilahiyat 0/0 (May. 2024): -. https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2024.35.1.1375664



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Submitted13.10.2023
Accepted03.01.2024
Published Online13.03.2024

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