This is Thinking in Public, a program dedicated to intelligent conversation about frontline theological and cultural issues with the people who are shaping them.

I'm Albert Moller, your host and president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.

O. Carter Sneed is the Charles E. Rice Professor of Law and Professor of Political Science at the University of Notre

Dame. Professor Sneed is one of the world's leading experts on bioethics. His research explores

the issues of neuroethics, human reproductive technologies, abortion, euthanasia, and many others.

Professor Sneed received his baccalaureate from St. John's College and his law degree from

Georgetown University. He's the author of or

contributor to 13 books. It's his most recent book, What It Means to Be Human, the case for the

body in public bioethics that is the topic of our conversation today. Professor Sneed, welcome to

thinking in public. It's great to be with you. You know, your book, What It Means to Be Human,

the case for the body in public bioethics came out in 2020.

And in one sense, that's yesterday.

And in another sense, it's a generation ago.

Absolutely.

An awful lot's happened since then.

It came out in the midst of COVID.

And it was a different world back then.

The world was dramatically changed as a result. And I completely agree. It really does seem like an awful lot's changed. It's a different place. Well, I think that's going to make this conversation

all the more interesting because the book was written pre-Dobs. And so we've learned a lot, frankly, upside and downside since the Dobbs decision in

2022.

But let's go backwards for a moment, because I think your book is brilliant.

And, you know, quite honestly, I think a lot of it has to do with the reality that in public bioethics,

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