This introduction summarizes the background and themes of the book. It introduces themes and controversies: the relevance of religion to public discourse, the role of the Vatican and other religious actors in global debates, the IP obligations imposed by TRIPS and other international agreements, the interaction of patents with the sharing of benefits from traditional knowledge and genetic resources (TK/GR), the benefits and the ethical challenges from biotechnology, the patenting of living things and gene sequences, the effect of seed patents on agriculture and farmers, and others. The overarching theme is that while biotechnology patents may promote important contributions to society, they also present other significant impacts on society that must be considered.