Monkey after a human

In a 2005 study conducted on chimpanzees at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University by a group of researchers from various countries, it was found that the genes in these monkeys are 96% identical to those in humans. Many opponents of the Torah rejoiced upon hearing this sensational discovery, claiming it disproves the Torah’s statement that man was created from the dust of the earth with a divine soul breathed into him, and that man is not descended from an ancestor in the monkey family.

However, here too, as in many other cases, their rejoicing stemmed from ignorance of Torah teachings. According to the Torah, not only is the genetic similarity between humans and chimpanzees not a contradiction to the creation of man from the earth, but it actually strengthens the Torah’s position—which was the first to declare the connection between the human species and certain species of the monkey family. But these monkeys are descendants of man, not the other way around.

Let us explain.

Imagine a group of researchers who for the first time in history made friendly contact with the leader of a rare Indian tribe, with the goal of studying the culture and heritage of that tribe. Upon arrival, they discovered in the center of the village square a large stone statue in the shape of a man, in a very ancient style. The statue was damaged and worn, but its great antiquity was unquestionable.

After several days of tours and research, the tribal leader led them to a magnificent building housing a statue exactly like the stone one, but made of shining gold, and all its parts intact.

That evening, the researchers gathered to summarize their findings. They concluded: “Based on the examination of the stone statue, it is certainly the original, from which the gold statue was copied. Therefore, it is clear that over many years, the tribe collected much gold—presumably from war spoils with neighboring tribes—and eventually created the golden statue of the same size and shape as the ancient stone one. The gold was kept hidden all those years.”

However, the next day, the tribal leader told them a different story: his father had told him, and his grandfather before him, that when Spanish conquerors invaded the continent about 500 years ago, the natives feared that the two-thousand-year-old gold statue would be stolen due to the conquerors’ great lust for gold. So, the elders hid the gold statue for some time and placed the stone statue—made to look exactly like the gold one—in the village square instead.

When asked why the stone statue was so damaged, the leader sadly replied: “About 80 years ago, an unusually heavy hailstorm struck, killing and injuring many tribe members, and damaging parts of the stone statue. A rare mudslide also contributed, resulting in the statue’s current poor condition.”

Now consider this: according to the researchers’ conclusion, the stone statue is the original and the gold statue a copy. This theory is based on certain tests and logic but remains only a hypothesis.

In contrast, the tribal leader’s account is based on eyewitness testimony passed down through generations, including from those alive at the time of the event. He even explains the reason for the copying and answers the researchers’ questions, refuting the basis of their theory. Thus, his words are more credible.

Of course, despite their respect for modern science, the researchers would have to abandon their hypothesis and accept the testimony as accurate.

Returning to our topic, it is clear there is great similarity between the human body and that of the monkey, just as there is similarity between the gold and stone statues. Based on this similarity and other assumptions, the researchers guessed that the monkey is the ancestor and man the copy evolved from it.

But the sages of Torah, on the other hand, know from the testimony of their ancestors—who received it from their ancestors all the way back to the generation of the change—that man is the original, and the monkey descended from him!

We received from our forefathers generation after generation, beginning with the first man, that man was created directly by the Creator from the inanimate. This fact is also stated clearly in the words of the Creator in the Torah: "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." (Genesis 2:7)

This important information, passed down from the first man, is more reliable and valid than any theory or hypothesis proposed by humans, no matter how wise or clever they are. Especially when a new hypothesis contradicts known testimony, the new theory must be logically airtight to possibly replace the established truth.

In contrast, the theory that man originated from the monkey family contains many unexplained anomalies and is therefore entirely refuted. For example: What caused the monkey to start speaking? What evolutionary need was there for this? How was the complex system created that forms different speech sounds and connects them into meaningful words and sentences?

Other questions arise about the extreme bodily changes necessary, such as the drastic repositioning of the hole in the skull through which the spinal cord enters the brain—from the back to the base of the skull.

It’s hard not to suspect that the researchers’ disbelief in a Creator, wishing to act freely, caused them to stray from reason and from testimony handed down from person to person back to the first man.

What about the genetic similarity between man and chimpanzee?

The Talmud relates about the builders of the Tower of Babel (called in the Talmud "Dor HaPelaga") who built a high tower to rebel against God: “Dor HaPelaga have no portion in the World to Come. What did they do? They divided into three groups: one said, ‘We will go up and sit on top of the tower,’ another said, ‘We will go up and serve idols,’ and a third said, ‘We will go up and make war.’ The ones who said ‘We will go up and make war’ became monkeys and spirits. The ones who said ‘We will go up and serve idols,’ God confused their language.” (Sanhedrin 109a, Genesis 11:1-9)

This event took place about 4,000 years ago.

Thus, about 1,600 years before the modern research that revealed the genetic similarity between monkeys and humans, the sages declared that some monkeys are actually distorted humans.

While researchers merely guess that the monkey evolved into man, we know from the tradition received from our ancestors that man was distorted into a monkey.

This is more logical also from the point of view of one who denies the existence of a Creator. To build a computer from raw materials requires intelligent design and excellent execution, but to make a computer into junk only requires some damage or distortion.

In other words, in nature, everything wears down and breaks over time; it is impossible to attribute independent improvement or refinement without a higher unlimited intelligent force.

However, Torah gives us precise information about the connection between man and monkey, long before this recent research, which not only does not contradict Torah, but actually proves it.

• Note: This is based on the assumption of the researchers that genetic similarity necessarily indicates common ancestry, stemming from the mistaken assumption that creation developed randomly. But in truth, the fact that one Creator made all creatures explains the common origin and surprising similarity among various creatures—even those not of the same lineage.

[Taken from the book "The Turnaround 2" by Rabbi Zamir Cohen]

References:

i The Chimpanzee Sequencing and Analysis Consortium, 'Initial Sequence of the Chimpanzee Genome and Comparison with the Human Genome', Nature, vol. 437, Sept. 1, 2005, pp. 69-87.

ii Genesis 2:7

iii See elaboration in the introduction to the book "The Code."

iv See elaboration in the chapter "The Origin of Man."

v Sanhedrin 109a

vi Genesis 11:1-9

vii According to the dating of Peleg (Noah’s great-grandson), the land was divided about that time.

viii Also see the biblical story in Daniel chapter 4, about Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, whose mind was distorted due to his sin and lived seven years among the beasts in the forest.