Why yes, your lengthy post there illustrates your point.
I think it would simply mean … that sapient creatures existed before our time. Why should that pose any problem for general (deep-time acknowledging) Christianity?
If I can be forgiven for tacking on another somewhat related question of my own into this thread:
We often have heard Christians asked “So how would the discovery of other intelligent life - or any life at all - elsewhere in the universe affect your faith?” - with the (mostly erroneous) presumption often having been that the Christian ought to be at least a little (if not a lot) rattled by this if it turned out to be the case.
But what about this question turned the other way: Would it really rattle non-believers if it were somehow definitively discovered that earth and earth alone harbors life in the entire universe? Would such a flagrant exception to the law of mediocrity disturb any of you as non-theists?
1 Like
For me it would mean the same thing other hominids mean to me at present. That is to say, it doesn’t matter to me what God’s relationship with Neanderthals or Denisovans was. Or put another way, if he had a particular relationship with them or not in the same way as modern homo sapiens, that doesn’t change the fact that I’m made in his image and called to follow him.
Or put still yet another way,
Jesus answered, “If I had a special relationship with Silurians, what is that to you? You must follow me.”
6 Likes
There was a guest post on Biologos in 2017 called
The Elimination of Intermediate Varieties: How Evolution Lays the Groundwork for Assigning Rights
The original post doesn’t seem to be accessible, but the discussion is still there. I found the post very disturbing and so did several others. The poster claimed there were "non-personal Homo sapiens animal” around at one time alongside “real” humans, as well as other racist ideas.
1 Like
You mean something like the realization that the whole universe doesn’t revolve around Christianity and Christians?
About time for such a realization!
Is that also what the whole to do is over aliens is about?
2 Likes
As long as it’s not revolving about the shoggoth xd.
1 Like
interesting question! Thank you. If neanderthal are outside of the Salvation story, and I have one to 3% Neanderthal genes, does part of my body stay behind at the resurrection? It seems God can work that out
2 Likes
Does God save our ever changing cells or the sum total person, the full constituents of which is still very much up for discussion.
Vinnie
1 Like
I totally agree. That’s a difficult question. I just know that some people feel that our bodies will be resurrected, so although that doesn’t bother me, it’s more of an interesting question
2 Likes
I don’t think resurrection involves our original bodies, which as you point out are constantly replacing cells. Or Will people be fighting over donated organs? If so, it could get messy…
4 Likes
Reminds me of the philosophical question: If you replace every single part of a ship over time with new pieces, is it still the same ship?
Vinnie
3 Likes
The other thing to consider is that some of our cells may have once belonged to somebody else!
3 Likes
Molecules or atoms maybe, unless we are talking about grafts or transplants?
2 Likes
Could be both!
2 Likes
Every breath you take contains Hitler flatulence.
My concern is whether we get to wear clothes, or if we return to the authentic experience of Eden.
4 Likes
They already have. We have hominids more than a million years old. It affects the Christian not at all if they acknowledge the fossil record while also taking the counsel of scripture which states that Adam was the first of the line of hominids endowed, through the ruach (breath) of God, a neshama ( 5397. נְשָׁמָה nešāmāh) – a soul, that had awareness of God.
2 Likes
You can also interpret it in other ways where even earlier humans , and animals in general have the breath of life. Genesis 9 mentions us all having the breath of life.
3 Likes