> I was trying to point out to Dr. Frix that he was criticising what
> I has specifically assumed.
> Now, As to whether or not such marriages were permitted no one
> knows.
Going by the Bible, laws restricting "incestuous" marriages were not
restricted until the time of Moses which was much after Abraham (see
Genesis 20:12) which was after Noah. So, God did not specifically
forbid sibling marriage until well after the flood. In addition, if
(as I believe) the only human beings left on the earth after the
flood were Noah and his descendents, there would be no civil
authority to prohibit sibling marriage.
> But any good breeder trying to rebuild a population from a few
> founders will tell you, you are better off to only allow the most
> distantly related individuals breed.
Without going into too much detail, YEC (of which I am proud to say
I am one) believe that prior to the flood the earth was shielded from
solar and galactic radiation by the canopy of water that is
discussed in Gen. 1:6-7. It is proposed by certain modern scientists
that the current (so-called) depletion of the ozone layer is causing
and will cause an increase in cancer due to the ionizing radiation
breaking down the protein molecules in cells. If the ozone layer
currently protects us from radiation, how much more so did the water
canopy shield the pre-flood inhabitants of the earth from radiation.
Hence, life was longer and the deteriorating effects we currently
see in aging and disease would be drastically lessened. When the
canopy was removed at the flood (which was partially the cause of
the flood), the shield was gone and the deteriorating effects of
radiation increased, resulting in mutations, shortened lives, and
the current state of the world. This agrees with the Bible's
depiction of life then.
Because of this, there was no need to prohibit sibling marriage until
after the flood. Any breeder will tell you that the reason you do
not mate siblings of a litter is that defective genes tend to
increase through in-breeding due to probabalistic matchings. If
there were no defective genes, there would be no problem with
in-breeding.
In summary, sibling marriage was perfectly acceptable from a
Biblical, political and scientific point of view (YEC point of view)
until much after the flood, wherein the increased radiation caused
more genetic mutations and hence needed control.
William M. Frix
Assistant Professor, Electrical Engineering
Box 3021
John Brown University
Siloam Springs, AR 72761
Phone: (501) 524-7466
FAX: (501) 524-7499
EMAIL: wfrix@engr.jbu.edu