Did God Consider Neandertals Human?

[malorum]

Read "the Inheritors" by Willian Golding. It's a bit dark but you'd like it, and it will help you ask the right philosphical (not theological) questions.

[malorum]

Does Catholic dogma define species???
I thought it was a scientific definition relating to the ability to inter-breed.

You suggest our understanding of Neanderthals has shifted from seeing them as a subspecies to seeing them as a seperated species.
So before the scientific shift they had souls? and afterward they didn't, or does the veracity and applicability of Dogma simply rely on somewhat arbitrary scientific speciel distinctions (because in this case we have no way of fully verifying the seperate species hypothesis according to traditional definitions)

The contemporary importance of the issue is this: If you recall not so long ago zooloogy textbooks (I still have some) tought that Aborgianl Austtalians represented a distinct species. (without a soul??)

[FortunaMaximus]

Funny you mention them. Causcasian racial profiling was flawed and retarded, to put it simply.

I think their personal philosophy on the Universe is probably better than 99% of current science. The Dreamtime.

[Mickey Brausch]

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Does that mean no? If so why?


[/ QUOTE ] Because it might be the case that the only beings God regards as "human", in the sense of having an immortal soul, are Adam and Eve and their descendants. That would exclude members of other species (which Neanderthals are regarded now unlike formerly when they were thought to be a subspecies of our own), and as far as we know possible members of our own species who lived around the time of Adam and Eve. Thus there could have been beings who were intelligent but they just lived and died and that was it.

[/ QUOTE ]Actually, because we are practically identical in DNA to chimps (which means even more so to the Neandertal), the only argument you can have here is that God produced various creatures, some of which He made in His image (this would include the Neandertals) but chose to give intelligence (or Grace, whatever) only to Homo Sapiens.

Your post makes out God as being akin to a spectator ("...the only beings God regards as 'human'..."), which He clealy cannot be. He is the instigator of everything.

Mickey Brausch

[IronUnkind]

I don't know.

[David Sklansky]

Widening your lead over BluffThis.

[jogsxyz]

A good neandertal should go to heaven. Is it fair, that he is an neandertal in heaven for all of eternity?

[Dan BRIGHT]

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A good neandertal should go to heaven. Is it fair, that he is an neandertal in heaven for all of eternity?

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As opposed to "part" of eternity?

[BluffTHIS!]

Some of you are focusing too much on my post where I talked about the species neanderthal is or is not. They died out before h.omo sapiens anyway and were long before biblical times even if they did inter-breed with humans to a small degree. And H. Floresiensis, the "midget humanoids", who were recently discoved and co-existed with our species until not too long ago would be more relevant to discuss anyway.

The main point is that to be considered human in the sense of having a soul, you have to be descended from Adam and Eve, and that all of their co-members of the species as well as other intelligent species didn't have to have souls as a result.

And the more interesting question than all of this neanderthal stuff is whether a future human clone would have a soul or not.

[Stu Pidasso]

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And the more interesting question than all of this neanderthal stuff is whether a future human clone would have a soul or not.

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When I was a kid the first test tube baby was concieved and born. I remember the question being posed as to wether or not she had a soul.

Stu