Neanderthals, Interbreeding, and Nephilim

[swamidass (S. Joshua Swamidass)]

@Patrick

Most of this knowledge is less than 10 years old and new information is coming in almost monthly. How is it relevant to compare ancient stories from a small pre-scientific culture in the Middle East who had no knowledge of what science was going to find thousands of years after the oral tradition stories were written down?

Well of course you are not going to see intrinsic value on those stories. The real reason to care is far more pragmatic:

@swamidass

This is an important question @Patrick. By now, you’ve seen we are bunch of reasonable people, with a bizzare fixation on Adam. I’ll explain for myself…

1. Adam is the center of the conflict between Christians and evolution. If we solve this puzzle we defuse the conflict. Even YEC focuses on theology of Adam in their rejection of evolution, and the “Young Earthism” is historically best understood as a reaction against the threat to theology of Adam. We diffuse this conflict, and the whole conflict could just evaporate in a generation.

2. New understanding of ancestry makes the hope of rapprochement very real. We have never had an opportunity like this to bring coherence between the YEC understanding of Adam and Evolution. It is critical we make the most of this. We have an opportunity to restructure the debate.

3. Population genetics and ancient DNA is really interesting and worth studying more closely. I’m fascinated by it, and want to invite as much of the public into this as possible. They can’t enter in unless they understand it does not conflict with their core beliefs.

4. There is a welcoming allure of imaginations. We certainly do not have evidence to adjudicate which is the “correct” story, but it is really fun to think about ideas. It reminds me of the theologized fiction of CS Lewis.

5. I care deeply about injustice in this world, but also believe our current ways of talking about it have failed. We are missing MLK in the conversation. I’m convinced that a more coherent understanding of Original Sin will give us a better understanding of our responsibilities to the injustice we see around us. Ironically, those who care about original sin, often do not care about injustice, and visa versa. Perhaps there is a way to bring people together in a renewed theological voice on injustice.

6. We live in a fractured society, where people who disagree do not engage with each other. I follow Jesus, the Prince of Peace, and choose to enter into the conflict to make peace here. There has been real costs to this, but this is what I feel I am required to do if I follow Him. In healing some of these divides, I hope we can serve the common good together.

Astute readers will notice that I have not even stated my personal view on Adam. Whatever it is, it is beside the point. I just does not matter. I am here serving the common good.

I think that is why you are here too, to serve the common good. You only need to care about Adam insofar as it gives us away to build bridges in the Creation War. It is just one way that a friendly atheist like you can serve the creation war. And you have already been doing it. My personal favorite is when you declared your Adam (and Eve)…

Atheist Declares His Adam

I had my DNA sequenced. It found about 1.5% Neanderthal Genes in my DNA. I guess that means that my Genealogical Adam was a Neanderthal and my Genealogical Eve was a Homo Sapien?