A Domesticated Tyger
Picking up where I left off with "Soup or Sandwich," I have a cat. You're likely wondering why I bring up my cat in the conversation. Bear with me. I discussed the Miller-Urey experiment and how it produced amino acids out of a combination of gases – no oxygen – and water, zapped with energy, and voilà! Amino acids. Still, that's a far cry from building proteins, let alone the proteins necessary to make DNA or RNA. Let's suppose, however, that natural processes created those precursors for life, then what? The chances of that happening would be akin to making a pile of thousands of bricks and expecting natural processes to transform it into a mansion. Common parlance might say "that would be a miracle!" Indeed.
You may be thinking that I forgot about my cat. Not at all. As I watch her roam her environment, sniffing things and gum-rubbing doorframes – marking her territory – I think about the fine line she walks between domestication and wildness. What were the first cats like? What is her ancestry? I don't need convincing that Yahweh exists, but I try to imagine what it would be like if I were a nonbeliever. Learning about science and evolution would logically lead me to the conclusion that the buck stops with how it all began. "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, being understood by what has been made, so that they are without excuse" (Romans 1:20 NASB).
Yes, it's evident that God exists. All I must do is observe my cat's behavior and marvel at her ancestry over the eons since her first felid ancestor roamed ancient forests or grasslands some 10.8 million years ago.
“Tyger Tyger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night
What immortal hand or eye,
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?”[1]
One of my favorite poems was written by one of my favorite poets. William Blake understood the divine magnificence involved in creating such an animal.
And then there are human beings. Homo sapiens. What immortal hand or eye could frame our intelligent symmetry? But I'm getting way ahead of myself. We must first discuss how life may have originated long before we can explore cats or people. Let's assume that researchers are correct. It all began with the Big Bang and the creation of primordial elements. These led to the study of cosmic elements and cosmochistry.[2] These elements were delivered to earth, where geochemistry eventually led to the origin of life. Entirely natural processes, or were they?
Scientists have asked the question, "Is 10 million years enough time?"[3] 10 million years for life to originate after the Late Heavy Bombardment period, when asteroids pummeled Earth at a much higher rate than today. This epoch lasted for approximately 200 million years, from around 3.8 billion years to 3.6 billion years, when the Earth cooled and had oceans.[4] The mystery of the origin of life continues for scientists, rather like the mystery of what a cat is staring at when there is nothing there. The mystery of life and cats, but not for God, and not for Christians. The adventure will continue in my next blog post. Stay tuned.
[1] https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43687/the-tyger
[2] https://vimeo.com/showcase/6787669/video/391088746
[3] https://vimeo.com/showcase/6787669/video/391088746
[4] https://vimeo.com/showcase/6787669/video/391107233
