Yes, It's True. All Life is One.

In our ongoing Public Theology class discussions about the nature of the human and the definition of human we have mostly spoken in theological terms but my eyes have been opened to scientific interpretations of humanity’s undeniable connection to all of creation and more specifically our genetic connection to one another.

James Lawson, describes in his heart-felt essay on race, Higher Ground, what he believes continues to plague our country, impedes human development and reconciliation with God. He remarks that in the United States there “are many who see their normalcy in terms of seeing me as a nonbeing.” The racist’s denial of our “profound relationality of humanity”, as Susan Thistlewaite states in Adam, Eve and the Genome, of not sharing and deriving from one blood starves humans of human intimacy and creates a culture of death. It is our collective expression of an “enmity toward life.” How can we deny our spiritual connections when our genetic ones are so absolute? Based on findings from the Human Genome Project, Professor Thistlethwaite writes that humans are “more than 99.9% the same.” We should all have taken a deep breath at this revelation. The burden of hating the other is no longer scientifically rational. In truth, we are each other’s brother and sister.

Reading this chapter from Professor Thistlethwaite’s book reminded me of my grandfather, Dr. Charles Richard Drew. He was the first Director of the American Red Cross Blood Bank and he was African-American. During World War II he saved thousands of lives, of all races, by discovering how to separate plasma from red blood cells and store it for later use. Incredibly, during the war American military policy ordered segregation of blood from black donors. He argued that from a purely scientific perspective there was no difference between black blood and white blood but fear of “contamination”, of mixing of bloods was greater than the potential life source. Once again, science was manipulated to discriminate, diminish another and sever human bonds.

Science shall not intimidate religion to “stay in its corner.” The Human Genome Project has opened the door wide to further evidence of some divine order, some exposition of our irrefutable interconnectedness and thus our utter dependency on one another, on love.

Amen.