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‘The apostle of genetics’ Francis Collins takes strong faith to NIH post

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. – Dr. James Watson didn’t hesitate a nanosecond before answering The Skinny’s question about his opinion of Dr. Francis Collins.

“Well, of course, as you know, he believes in God,” the Nobel Prize winner for his work with Francis Crick in discovering DNA replied firmly. That ended the discussion at a conference in Chapel Hill where the DNA pioneer met the man leading efforts to unravel the human genome.

Nearly a decade later, President Obama’s nominee to lead the powerful National Institutes of Health, faces the same criticism from those who refuse to mix science and faith. But Collins, a genetics researcher and pioneer himself, doesn’t flinch from his beliefs, and the graduate of UNC’s medical school even wrote a best-seller blending God, science, the double helix: “The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief”

He’s the “apostle of genetics,” wrote one write. And Collins’ next book, due in 2010, follows the genomics theme: “The Language of Life: DNA and the Revolution in Personalized Medicine.”

At that UNC event, Collins, was positively beaming. The born-again Christian was hugging his daughter who, like her father two decades earlier, was serving her medical residence at UNC-CH Hospital. I wanted to talk with him about faith and science, but the moment passed.

To this day, I regret not getting the chance to talk with Collins. A Christian since 1977, he still wears his faith proudly on his sleeves – be they suit jackets or lab coats or his casual attire when playing in a band, his guitar branded with a double helix. Collins also recently co-founded the BioLogos Foundation, the mission statement of which is quite clear:

“We believe that faith and science both lead to truth about God and creation.”

As was expected, critics and proponents of Collins’ nomination by Obama focused on his faith.

“Obama Names an Evangelical to Lead the NIH,” delared U.S. News & World Report.

“Pick to lead health agency draws praise and some concern,” sniffed The New York Times.

The Wall Street Journal declared the Collins appointment: “Francis Collins as Culture War Statement.”

However, Steven Waldman wrote in the Journal that Collins strives for balance in belief and science.

“President Obama's appointment of Francis Collins to run the National Institutes of Health is significant as a culture war statement,” Waldman wrote. “A devout Christian, Collins is one of the foremost advocates for the notion that science and faith are compatible. The former head of the Human Genome Project, Collins is also the author of The Language of God. He's a strong believer but he doesn't let that weaken his scientific rigor (for instance, he's been critical of Creationism and Intelligent Design).”

Objections are centered in two areas, wrote Gardner Harris in the Times.

“The first is his very public embrace of religion. He wrote a book called ‘The Language of God,’ and he has given many talks and interviews in which he described his conversion to Christianity as a 27-year-old medical student. Religion and genetic research have long had a fraught relationship, and some in the field complain about what they see as Dr. Collins’s evangelism.

“The other objection stems from his leadership of the Human Genome Project, which is part of the N.I.H. Although Dr. Collins was widely praised in 2003 when the effort succeeded, the hopes that this discovery would yield an array of promising medical interventions have greatly dimmed, discouraging many.”

The Washington Post also acknowledged Collins’ Christianity.

“Rare among world-class scientists, Collins is also a born-again Christian, which may help him build bridges with those who view some gene-based research as a potential threat to religious values,” wrote David Brown.

The Times concedes that Collins isn’t to blame for the technology failures related to the genome and that his selection is likely to be approved by the Senate. Then there is the matter of stem cell research, which concerns many Christians.

“He has long cultivated good relations on Capitol Hill,” Harris noted. “And since the administration finalized rules for broader use of stem cells in federal research before nominating him, anti-abortion forces will have a harder time using that issue to stop his confirmation.”

The mix of religion, politics and science is a volatile one, to say the least. However, in leading the genome project and in years of research since then Collins has, by most accounts, balanced them all and made significant progress.

He also is wrapping up a new book about personalized medicine – one of the Holy Grails when it comes to capitalizing on genetic knowledge.

The Times quoted Dr. Alan Leshner of the American Association for the Advancement of Science as praising Collins’ choice. Leshner declared the pick as “an excellent idea to have a very credible geneticist heading N.I.H. at a time when we are pursuing so vigorously the promise of personalized medicine based on genomics."

In an interview with the Post, Leshner added: "Francis Collins is a guy who can speak to top-notch scientists and at the same time has a tremendous skill speaking to the public and policymakers."

President Obama, in nominating Collins, acknowledged him as “one of the top scientists in the world, His groundbreaking work has changed the very ways we consider our health and examine disease. I look forward to working with him in the months and years ahead.”

In 2007, President Bush presented Collins with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He also was elected to the Institute of Medicine and the National Academy of Sciences.

So what kind of steward will Collins be at NIH, which funds nearly $40 billion a year in research?

One in which he will likely stress individualized medicine based on genetics – and one that will seek to balance faith, politics and science.

The Skinny

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