Skeptics try to disprove the Bible by claiming that Neanderthal fossils invalidate the biblical account of humans’ special creation.
The Neanderthal story began in 1856 when remains were found in a cave in the Neander Valley, 8.1 miles east of Düsseldorf, Germany. A few years later, Charles Darwin’s work was published, and skeptics argued that the Neanderthal fossils demonstrate the truth of Darwinism. Because skepticism was popular at the time, the biblical claim that humans are created in God’s image was widely mocked.
One of the most serious implications of Darwinism was related to race. Slavery was justified by claiming blacks were mere apes and whites were more evolved. Applying “survival of the fittest,” racial prejudice reached an all-time high. As science advanced, the human genome was sequenced in 2003, and Neanderthal DNA was sequenced in 2010. This research showed that the human genome contain about 2 percent Neanderthal DNA.
The Bible does not specify what the first humans looked like, but it’s almost certain they were not blond, blue-eyed, and white-skinned. If a scientist found a skeleton of Adam, what could they know about the color of his eyes or his hair? Humans have adapted over time and climate changes, which we call “evolution.” But humans are still humans, and despite having some Neanderthal DNA, we are still created in the spiritual image of God.
John N. Clayton © 2025
Reference: “Finding our Neanderthal Side” in Discover magazine, September/October 2025.