August 3, 2018 – San Francisco, CA

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Paul Ramsey’s delivery of the Beecher Lectures at Yale University, which led to the publication of one of the seminal bioethics texts, Ramsey’s The Patient as Person.

In recognition of this important milestone, Paul Ramsey Institute Scholar Gilbert Meilaender and Ramsey Institute Alumni Fellows Bryan Pilkington and Daniel Strand have published articles on the importance and legacy of Ramsey’s work in a special edition of the journal Christian Bioethics, which is published through Oxford University Press. Also included in the issue is an article by Patrick T. Smith of Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics and Gordon-Conwell Seminary utilizing Ramsey’s work on end of life decision making.

The articles remember Ramsey the man and the ethicist, celebrate his work and approach to the then emerging questions in the field of bioethics, and examine the continuing relevance of his work, particularly his covenantal approach to resolving ethical dilemmas.

The journal in which these articles appear was in 2015 named one of the top 100 bioethics journals in the world.

Jennifer Lahl, Founder of the Center for Bioethics and Culture said, “This work is the direct fruit of the excellent work of our Paul Ramsey Institute. Ramsey anticipated many of the moral challenges we now face in the realm of medicine and bioethics. His is a legacy that deserves deep and continued study, and we are pleased to be able to offer just that through our Paul Ramsey Institute.”

Paul Ramsey Institute Project Manager Christopher White remarked, “To see the work and legacy of Ramsey celebrated in this way is further validation of the continuing importance of Ramsey, his work, and his approach. Thank you to the journal and congratulations to all involved.”

Added Lahl, “We are deeply grateful to the Templeton Religious Trust and others who have funded this important work.”

Paul Ramsey

About Paul Ramsey

Paul Ramsey (1913-1988) is regarded by many as one of the most important ethicists of the twentieth century. He was a distinguished writer on bioethics a generation ago, and served as Harrington Spear Paine Professor of Religion, Princeton University. Ramsey shines as an almost lone beacon in the general darkness of academic bioethics, since his commitment to the sanctity and dignity of human life was paramount.

About the Paul Ramsey Institute

The Center for Bioethics and Culture founded the Paul Ramsey Institute in 2012 to build a training program that would uphold and further the great legacy of Dr. Ramsey. In this spirit, the Institute brings together leading thinkers in the field of bioethics with current graduate students, medical students, and early-career academic and medical professionals in order to prepare and equip these future leaders with an approach to bioethics that is grounded in moral responsibility.

About the Center for Bioethics and Culture

The Center for Bioethics and Culture addresses bioethical issues that most profoundly affect our humanity, especially issues that arise in the lives of the most vulnerable among us. We work through a variety of media platforms—documentary film, writing, speaking, interviews, social media, and more—to educate and inform members of the general public, thought leaders, lawmakers, and others on ethical issues in healthcare, biomedical research, and biotechnological advancement.

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