Golems Among Us ─ How a Jewish Legend Can Help Us Navigate the Biotech Century

Accelerating developments in genomics, reproductive biotechnology, bionics, artificial life, genetic engineering, and related fields are compelling us to reexamine our most deeply held beliefs about ourselves and our world. Are we, Byron L. Sherwin asks, in the midst of a new Frankenstein story, where we "play God" at the risk of tragedy and catastrophe? Or should we share the ebullient enthusiasm of those who anticipate a marvelous and riskless future?
The alternative that Dr. Sherwin proposes is based on the most famous and influential post-biblical Jewish legend: the story of the golem, the creation of an anthropoid by mystical and magical means. Retold and embellished in twentieth-century art, popular culture, science, and technology, the golem legend has become a metaphor for our times. Dr. Sherwin shows how it can be used as a resource for applying the wisdom of the past to the perplexities of the present and future. He briefly traces the history of the legend in Western culture, then illustrates how it can be applied - philosophically, theologically, ethically, and in public policy - to bring us safely through the minefield of social and biological engineering in which we now stand.

Byron L. Sherwin is Distinguished Service Professor of Jewish Philosophy and Mysticism at the Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies in Chicago.