Above all, I've noticed the theme of value for life. The Doctor is almost never okay with any behavior or practice that does not respect the dignity of life. There have been a number of episodes where there is some sort of experimentation, masked torture, mind control, artificial reproduction technology/cloning, or otherwise relatable issue going on. And every time, the Doctor shows up on the scene and says: "This is not okay." The manipulation of life to the benefit of the few is disgusting to him. Furthermore, whenever said situation turns sour and now the life that the "clever ones" have created begins turning on them in a way they did not expect, of course the "clever ones" think the solution is: let's kill it. But the Doctor never believes this is the first and only solution. The episode that most comes to mind for me in this case is Rebel Flesh (Series 6, episode 5). If you've not seen it, you might want to skip ahead until you see the next picture of David Tennant.
Premise: an old monastery, functioning as a laboratory, has been "creating" people. Except they don't really think of them as people. They think of them as resources. They do the dangerous work so that the people they're patterned off of can stay in safety. Inevitably, an accident occurs. And suddenly, those "resources" aren't so content to be just that. The separation that once was considered to exist between the clones and the persons they're clones of is suddenly gone. The clones believe the memories they have are suddenly their own. But the "originals" are not prepared to handle this. They're not very happy with the idea of other versions of themselves walking around, into their lives and into their homes as if they belonged there. But to the clones, they aren't different people from the "originals." Those homes and memories and families they really believe are their own. Towards the end of the episode, one of the clones realizes that he is not the father of the "original's" son; but he takes up the role when the true father is killed in an accident.
As a Catholic viewer watching this show, I kept thinking about the Church's teaching about these kinds of technologies. I couldn't help thinking about how the problem presented in this episode communicates the serious issues that cloning presents. It does not respect life, either of the person being cloned or of the cloned person. What else is the issue? Exactly what happens in the episode. Once this clone has a life of its own, what happens? They might not be exactly what the designers had planned them to be. So what do they want to do with them then? Well, they made these lives, so they think that gives them the authority to take life away from them. The Doctor says: "No way." And he'd be right. While these lives were conceived in a way that is outside of God's plan, now that they're here they are living persons and they have that same dignity that needs to be respected. You can't just kill them and think that it's not actually a person that is being killed. The technology being used to artificially create life is something that should have never happened. But it would be a greater evil to destroy those lives now that they have been brought to life.
It's a complicated issue, right? That's why the Church teaches what it does. Man has no authority to make calls over who lives and who doesn't. To give life and to take it away belongs to God alone who is the Author of all life. When man thinks he does have this kind of authority, not only to rule over life and death, but also to create life in a way that is outside of God's plan, so suddenly the attitude becomes: "we don't need God," and problems inevitably arise.
Another great aspect of Doctor Who (and a heartbreaking one at that) is the Doctor's relationship with his companions. He knows that their lives will never be the same after traveling with him. And after Rose, Martha, and Donna (especially Donna) he becomes especially afraid of taking anyone with him because he knows what can happen. He doesn't take it lightly with an attitude of: "It comes with the territory." He could. But he knows that he bears some responsibility for what happened since he did bring them into the situations that they experience together and these experiences have some serious ramifications. But, throughout these adventures, and after some time spent on his own, the Doctor comes to realize that he can't do it on his own. It's a lesson in vulnerability. In the words of C.S. Lewis: "To love at all is to be vulnerable." I think this is evident in Doctor Who. And I don't mean love in the narrow sense of romantic love. Just look at the Doctor and Donna, one of my favorite Doctor-companion duos. What is truly refreshing about this series is that there is no romantic interest between Donna and the Doctor. What is there is a good friendship, one that the Doctor truly values. So much so that, I'd say, it leads up to one of the most heartbreaking separations between Doctor and companion.
And don't even get me started on all of the great quotes in the show that communicate a value for life.
Too late.
SPOILER ALERT with this next one. Avert your eyes if you don't know what happens at the end of the fourth series.
END OF SPOILERS.
I love the show, obviously, and hope to continue watching it. Haven't gotten to Capaldi yet, but hopefully I will soon. Also, this was kind of a slapdash post, so...there may be more in the future about Doctor Who. In the meantime, I hope finish reading this post and decide it's time to make a cup of tea and cozy up with an episode of the fabulous Doctor Who.
Until we meet again,
the Itinerant Catechist
"Geronimo!"
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