Synthetic Life

Yesterday came the announcement of the first synthetic life:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2010/may/20/craig-venter-synthetic-life-form

It isn't completely artificial; they inserted artificial DNA into an de-nucleated cell and got it to function normally. BUT, this is the first step towards totally artificial life.
How does this affect your beliefs, if at all? Certainly, if you have believed that only a god would have power over life and death, or the ability to create life, this could be a belief-altering event.

Okay, this begs the old joke:

God was sitting in heaven one day when a scientist said to Him, "God, we don't need you anymore. Science has finally figured out a way to create life out of nothing - in other words, we can now do what you did in the beginning."

"Oh, is that so? Explain..." replies God. "Well," says the scientist, "we can take dirt and form it into the likeness of you and breathe life into it, thus creating man."

"Well, that's very interesting... show Me."

So the scientist bends down to the earth and starts to mold the soil into the shape of a man. "No, no, no..." interrupts God, "Get your own dirt."