Dehumanization, Reproductive Technologies, and the New Face of Evil: A Reflection on The Lucifer Effect, the Bible, and The New Eugenics

In The Lucifer Effect, Philip Zimbardo exposes the chilling truth that ordinary people, under powerful systemic and situational pressures, can quickly descend into dehumanizing others. The book The New Eugenics by Judith Daar investigates how modern reproductive technologies already known for helping infertile couples now silently encourage eugenic thought processes. History's worst moral failures will repeat if we fail to keep watch because dehumanization meets power abuse in both examples. A focus on human life sanctity from the Bible produces essential ethical standards to analyze these developments.

Systems That Shape Evil: The Lucifer Effect and Beyond

The Stanford Prison Experiment conducted by Zimbardo revealed that removing personal identity through military-style apparel and forced position assignments along with subservience rules in an environment can create brutal behavior from otherwise decent individuals. When the "guards" dehumanized the "prisoners," ethical behavior eroded quickly. Systemic factors were responsible for this issue instead of person-to-person shortcomings.

The New Eugenics examines how preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) technology development has transformed societal perspectives on human life. Judith Daar demonstrates how embryo selection based on genetic traits transforms human value into a system of desirable traits. Embryos that do not meet these criteria—even those with minor genetic "imperfections"—can be discarded, subtly endorsing a new kind of dehumanization driven by perfectionism rather than malice

In both cases, systems and technologies that promise to improve life can instead erode respect for its inherent dignity when ethical boundaries are not vigilantly maintained.

Biblical Warnings Against Dehumanization

Throughout the Bible God establishes that every person holds intrinsic value because He created humans in His divine image (Genesis 1:27). The neglect of human value by society leads to dangerous conditions where people get treated as objects or beings of lesser humanity. The tower builders from Genesis 11:1-9 tried to control human destiny by using their own power and ingenuity yet their project failed because they sought to elevate human achievement above divine worth.

In the context of The New Eugenics, the desire to "perfect" humanity by selecting embryos risks repeating the sin of Babel—trusting in human technique rather than honoring the divine image present in all life.

Zimbardo demonstrates in The Lucifer Effect that stripping people of their individuality through number or role assignment creates conditions that enable abuse. The Bible instructs us to preserve names and faces and stories instead of eliminating them. The biblical story in Exodus 1 shows how Pharaoh's fear of Hebrew population growth led him to order the murder of male infants which became the first recorded case of systemic dehumanization that resulted in mass atrocities.

An example of the harmful messages pushed by eugenics in the past

Choosing Control Over Compassion

Robert Edwards, a pioneer of IVF, once remarked that the goal of reproductive technology was to see who was truly in charge: "whether it was God himself or whether it was scientists in the laboratory." He concluded, "It was us". This chilling declaration reflects the dangerous arrogance Zimbardo warns about: when systems empower individuals to play God without ethical constraints, the outcome can be devastating.

According to biblical teachings the desire to control life instead of stewarding it represents a sinful behavior. Moses delivers a clear binary in Deuteronomy 30:19 when he states "I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Select life so that you and your children will survive.

Modern reproductive technologies offer profound blessings. Yet when choice is wielded without reverence for life’s sanctity, it mutates into a "new eugenics," where life is valued only when it meets certain standards. As Judith Daar notes, the duty to maximize the "fitness" of children through genetic selection can easily mirror the coercive, dehumanizing practices of historical eugenics.

Resisting Dehumanization Today

Both Zimbardo and Daar show that while systems exert enormous pressure, individuals still bear responsibility for resisting dehumanization. Zimbardo calls for the cultivation of the "heroic imagination"—the capacity to envision oneself acting ethically even in corrupt systems.

The Bible similarly urges believers to resist conforming to unjust norms: "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2).

In the realm of reproductive technology, resisting dehumanization means affirming that every life—regardless of genetic "fitness"—has value. It means creating systems where access to fertility care is equitable, not stratified by wealth or social value, and where choices are guided by love and reverence rather than fear or perfectionism.

Conclusion: Remembering the Image of God

Both The Lucifer Effect and The New Eugenics serve as stark warnings. Systems and technologies can erode moral clarity if left unchecked. Scripture reminds us that every human life reflects the divine image and must be treated with dignity and love.

In an age of ever-increasing power over human life, the call to "choose life" is more urgent than ever. Whether in the lab, the prison, or the halls of power, we must resist the forces that seek to reduce human beings to mere functions or flaws—and instead honor them as sacred reflections of the Creator.