“It’s Not My Fault”

HOW often today do you hear someone say, ‘I’m sorry. It was my fault. I am totally responsible!’? Rarely is such simple honesty heard anymore. In fact, in many cases, even when a fault is admitted, every effort is made to shift the blame onto someone else or onto extenuating circumstances over which the wrongdoer claims he had no control.

Some even point an accusing finger at their genes! But is this plausible? The book Exploding the Gene Myth questions the aims and effectiveness of some aspects of gene research. Australian journalist Bill Deane, in his review of the book, draws this thoughtful conclusion: “Social determinists seem recently to have begun to believe they have found almost infallible evidence to support their philosophy that nobody should be held accountable for their actions: ‘He couldn’t help cutting her throat, Your Honour—it’s in his genes.’”

Not Really a New Trend

With this generation rapidly developing into what one writer calls the “not-me” generation, this trend may appear to be escalating. However, recorded history reveals that passing the blame on to others, with the excuse “I am not really to blame,” has been around since man’s beginning. The reaction of Adam and Eve after their first sin, eating the fruit that God had proscribed, was a classic example of blame-passing. The Genesis account reports the conversation that took place, with God speaking first: “‘From the tree from which I commanded you not to eat have you eaten?’ And the man went on to say: ‘The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree and so I ate.’ With that Jehovah God said to the woman: ‘What is this you have done?’ To this the woman replied: ‘The serpent—it deceived me and so I ate.’”—Genesis 3:11-13.

Ever since that time, humans have invented various forms of belief and have searched for exotic excuses that would exonerate them from any real accountability for their actions. Notable among these was the ancient belief in fate. A Buddhist woman who sincerely believed in Karma said: “I thought it did not make sense to have to suffer for something I was born with but about which I knew nothing. I had to accept it as my destiny.” Nurtured by the doctrine of predestination as taught by John Calvin, belief in fate is also common in Christendom. Clergymen often tell grieving relatives that a certain accident was the will of God. Then, too, some well-meaning Christians blame Satan for everything that goes wrong in their lives.

Now, we are beginning to witness behavior without accountability that is legally and socially sanctioned. We live in an age of increasing rights and diminishing responsibilities of the individual.

Research into human behavior has produced supposed scientific evidence that some feel could give free rein to behavior ranging from immorality to murder. This is a reflection of society’s eagerness to shift blame onto anything or anyone except the individual.

We need answers to questions such as these: What has science actually discovered? Is human behavior solely determined by our genes? Or do both internal and external forces control our behavior? What does the evidence really show?

Are We Predestined by Our Genes?

“WE USED to think our fate was in the stars. Now we know, in large measure, our fate is in our genes.” So said James Watson, quoted in the beginning of the book Exploding the Gene Myth, by Ruth Hubbard and Elijah Wald. However, immediately below Watson’s quote, R. C. Lewontin, Steven Rose, and Leon J. Kamin are quoted as saying: “We cannot think of any significant human social behavior that is built into our genes in such a way that it cannot be shaped by social conditions.”

The jacket of that book summarizes some of its contents and opens with the crucial question, “Is human behavior genetic?” In other words, is human behavior determined entirely by the genes that mediate the heritable biological characteristics and traits of the organism? Should certain immoral behavior be acceptable on the basis that it is genetic? Should criminals be dealt with as victims of their genetic code, being able to claim diminished responsibility because of a genetic predisposition?

There is no denying that scientists have made many beneficial discoveries in this century. Among these discoveries is fascinating DNA, the so-called blueprint of our genetic makeup. The information the genetic code holds has intrigued scientists and laymen alike. What has research in the field of genetics really discovered? How are findings used to support the modern doctrine of preprogramming or predestination?

What of Infidelity and Homosexuality?

According to an article published in The Australian, some genetic research asserts that “infidelity is probably in our genes. . . . It appears that our cheating hearts are meant to be that way.” Just imagine what havoc this attitude could wreak on marriages and families by creating a loophole for anyone who wants to claim diminished responsibility for a promiscuous life-style!

Regarding homosexuality, Newsweek magazine carried the headline “Born or Bred?” The article stated: “Science and psychiatry are struggling to make sense of new research that suggests that homosexuality may be a matter of genetics, not parenting. . . . In the gay community itself, many welcome the indication that gayness begins in the chromosomes.”

The article then quotes Dr. Richard Pillard, who said: “A genetic component in sexual orientation says, ‘This is not a fault, and it’s not your fault.’” Further strengthening this “no fault” argument, Frederick Whitam, a researcher in homosexuality, observes that “there is a tendency for people, when told that homosexuality is biological, to heave a sigh of relief. It relieves the families and homosexuals of guilt. It also means that society doesn’t have to worry about things like gay teachers.”

Sometimes, so-called evidence that homosexual tendencies are determined by genes is presented by the media as factual and conclusive rather than as a possibility and inconclusive.

The New Statesman & Society magazine puts cold water on some of the flair for rhetoric: “The dazzled reader may well have overlooked the sketchiness of the actual hard physical evidence—or, indeed, the total absence of a basis for the scientifically egregious [flagrant] claim that promiscuity ‘is encoded in the male genes and imprinted on the male brain’s circuitboard.’” In their book Cracking the Code, David Suzuki and Joseph Levine add their concern about current genetic research: “While it is possible to argue that genes influence behavior in a general sense, it is quite another matter to show that a specific gene—or pair of genes, or even a score of genes—actually control specific details of an animal’s responses to its environment. At this point, it is fair to ask whether anyone has found, in the strict molecular sense of locating and manipulating, any stretches of DNA that affect specific behaviors predictably.”

Genes for Alcoholism and Criminality

The study of alcoholism has fascinated many genetic researchers over the years. Some claim that studies have shown that the presence of or the lack of certain genes is responsible for alcoholism. For example, The New England Journal of Medicine reported in 1988 that “during the past decade, three separate investigations have produced conclusive evidence that alcoholism is a heritable trait.”

However, some specialists in the field of addiction are now challenging the view that alcoholism is influenced largely by biological factors. A report in The Boston Globe of April 9, 1996, stated: “There is no alcoholism gene in sight, and some researchers acknowledge that the most they will probably find is a genetic vulnerability that allows some people to drink too much without getting tipsy—a trait that may predispose them to alcoholism.”

The New York Times reported on a conference at the University of Maryland entitled “The Meaning and Significance of Research on Genetics and Criminal Behavior.” The idea of a criminal gene is attractively simple. Many commentators seem eager to jump on the bandwagon. A science writer in The New York Times Magazine said that evil may be “embedded in the coils of chromosomes that our parents pass to us at conception.” An article in The New York Times reported that the constant discussion of genes for criminality creates the impression that crime has “a common origin—an abnormality of the brain.”

Jerome Kagan, a Harvard psychologist, predicts that the time will come when genetic tests will identify children who have a violent streak. Some people suggest that there may be hope for controlling crime through biological manipulation instead of through social reform.

The language used in reports on these speculations about the genetic basis for behavior is often vague and unsure. The book Exploding the Gene Myth tells of a study by Lincoln Eaves, a behavioral geneticist, who said that he found evidence of a genetic cause for depression. After surveying women considered to be prone to depression, Eaves “suggested that [the women’s] depressive outlook and manner may have made such random troubles more likely to happen.” The “random troubles”? The women studied had been “raped, assaulted, or fired from their jobs.” So did depression cause these traumatic events? “What kind of reasoning is that?” continues the book. “The women had been raped, assaulted, or fired from their jobs, and they were depressed. The more traumatic events they had experienced, the more chronic the depression. . . . It might have been worth looking for a genetic link if he [Eaves] had found that the depression was not related to any life experience.”

That same publication says that these stories are “typical of most current reporting on genetics [behavioral], both in the mass media and in scientific journals. They contain a mix of interesting facts, unsupported conjectures, and wild exaggerations of the importance of genes in our lives. A striking thing about much of this writing is its vagueness.” It continues: “There is a big difference between associating genes with conditions that follow a Mendelian pattern of inheritance and using hypothetical genetic ‘tendencies’ to explain complex conditions such as cancer or high blood pressure. Scientists make a further leap when they suggest that genetic research can help to explain human behaviors.”

However, in view of all the foregoing, the oft raised questions still remain: Why do we at times find changed behavior patterns emerging in our lives? And what control do we have in such situations? How do we gain and maintain control of our lives? The next article may prove helpful in providing some answers to these questions.

Take Control of Your Life Now!

SCIENTIFIC research into human behavior and motivation has benefited us in many ways. Perhaps we have been helped to cope with a sickness by having a more in-depth understanding of it. At the same time, it is prudent to be cautious when it comes to sensational theories, especially those that seem to contradict well established principles.

On the subject of genetics and behavior, the questions arise: Can we abdicate our responsibilities and accept no blame for our actions? Can we beg off or even blame someone or something else for any indiscretion or wrongdoing, thus joining the growing numbers in this “not-me” generation? Not at all. Most people willingly take credit for any successes in life, so why should they not likewise be willing to accept responsibility for their mistakes?

Hence, we might ask, What does God’s Word, the Holy Bible, have to say about who or what controls our lives today?

What Is the Bible’s View?

The first thing we need to recognize is that all of us are born in sin inherited from our original parents, Adam and Eve. (Psalm 51:5) Additionally, we are living in a special time, called “the last days,” when people experience “critical times hard to deal with.” (2 Timothy 3:1) This indicates that, generally speaking, we encounter more problems in exercising wholesome control over our lives than our forebears did.

Nevertheless, all humans are free moral agents, who can make their own personal choices. To that extent they are in control of their lives. This has been so since early times and can be seen in the words of Joshua to the nation of Israel: “Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve.”—Joshua 24:15.

The Bible acknowledges that Satan the Devil has been cast from the heavens and now, more than ever, exerts strong influence for bad on the entire human race. It also tells us that even in the days of the apostle John, the whole world was lying in the power of the wicked one. (1 John 5:19; Revelation 12:9, 12) However, just as Almighty God does not control our every action or predestinate us to an end that only he knows, we should not lay the blame directly on Satan for every one of our mistakes or failures. The balancing Scriptural truth is that “each one is tried by being drawn out and enticed by his own desire. Then the desire, when it has become fertile, gives birth to sin.” (James 1:14, 15) The apostle Paul wrote these inspired words: “Do not be misled: God is not one to be mocked. For whatever a man is sowing, this he will also reap.”—Galatians 6:7.

So Jehovah God holds us individually accountable for our actions. We must be careful not to try to excuse ourselves because of our genetic makeup and inherited imperfections. God held the violent, homosexual community of ancient Sodom and Gomorrah accountable for their corrupt acts. Obviously, he did not consider the inhabitants as poor, unfortunate creatures who because of some presumed genetic flaw could not help being wicked. In similar fashion, the people living in the days of Noah had many evil influences around them; nevertheless, they had to make a choice, a personal decision, if they were to survive the Deluge soon to occur. A few made the right choice. Most did not.

The Hebrew prophet Ezekiel confirms that personal control is required if we are to merit God’s favor: “As for you, in case you have warned someone wicked and he does not actually turn back from his wickedness and from his wicked way, he himself for his error will die; but as for you, you will have delivered your own soul.”—Ezekiel 3:19.

The Best Help Available

Of course, all of us need help to exercise personal control in our everyday life, and for many of us, this is quite a challenge. But we need not despair. Although our inherited sinful leanings are unacceptable to God, if we want to modify our behavior, he will provide us with the best help available—his holy spirit and his inspired truth. Despite any genetic predisposition we may have and any external influences that may affect us, we can “strip off the old personality with its practices, and clothe [ourselves] with the new personality, which through accurate knowledge is being made new according to the image of the One who created it.”—Colossians 3:9, 10.

Many Christians in the Corinth congregation made dramatic changes in their behavior. The inspired record tells us: “Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men kept for unnatural purposes, nor men who lie with men, nor thieves, nor greedy persons, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit God’s kingdom. And yet that is what some of you were. But you have been washed clean, but you have been sanctified, but you have been declared righteous in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and with the spirit of our God.”—1 Corinthians 6:9-11.

So if we are struggling with our imperfections, let us not give in to them. Many modern-day Christians have proved that with Jehovah’s help, they were able to ‘be transformed by making their minds over and prove to themselves the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.’ They feed their minds on whatever things are true, righteous, chaste, lovable, virtuous, praiseworthy; and they “continue considering these things.” They take in solid spiritual food and through use of it have their perceptive powers trained to distinguish both right and wrong.—Romans 12:2; Philippians 4:8; Hebrews 5:14.

It is heartening to know of their struggles, their temporary failures, and their eventual success with the help of God’s holy spirit. God assures us that changing our behavior often involves the heart and its desire: “When wisdom enters into your heart and knowledge itself becomes pleasant to your very soul, thinking ability itself will keep guard over you, discernment itself will safeguard you, to deliver you from the bad way.”—Proverbs 2:10-12.

Therefore, if you want to make everlasting life your goal—life without the troubles of the wicked world and free from debilitating imperfections—‘exert yourself’ in taking control of your life now and be guided by heavenly wisdom. (Luke 13:24) Avail yourself of the help of Jehovah’s holy spirit so that you can produce the fruit of self-control. Make it your heart’s desire to bring your life into harmony with God’s laws, and heed the advice: “More than all else that is to be guarded, safeguard your heart, for out of it are the sources of life.” (Proverbs 4:23) Getting hold of “the real life” in God’s new world—in which Jehovah God will correct all genetic deficiencies on the basis of faith in the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ—is worth all the efforts you make to control your life in this world!—1 Timothy 6:19; John 3:16.