‘ … the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground … ‘

Years ago, on a TV documentary about racism, one interviewee asserted that Adam and Eve were white [1], because the basic meaning of ‘Adam’ is ‘red’. ‘Red’ in this context indicates ‘blood in the face’; that is, to blush. White people are the only race that blushes, this person asserted, so Adam was white – and by association, so was Eve.

The first problem is that this ‘red means blushing’ theory is a non sequitur: that is, the conclusion doesn’t follow necessarily from the premise. ‘If you jump off a 100-metre cliff you will die’ is a non sequitur because you might have a parachute, or be hang-gliding, abseiling or bungee jumping, or, although there is a 100-metre drop, it is only half a metre wide.

There are other alternatives to the ‘red means blushing’ theory.

1. Originally, written Hebrew used only consonants. The name ‘Adam’ comprises the same consonants as does the name ‘Edom’ (aleph; daleth; mem). Edom was Esau, the brother of Jacob; people called him Edom because he had red hair (Genesis 25:25,29). So if ‘red’ is implied in Adam’s name, it doesn’t have to refer to blushing. It could refer to the red colour of the dirt that God used to make Adam.

The Hebrew word for ‘ground’ – ădāmah – comprises the same consonants used in the name ‘Adam’ (the final ‘h’ is the singular feminine ending). In this case, the ‘red’ may refer to the colour of Adam and Eve’s skin, which would be similar to that of indigenous (Indian) Americans.

This connection – our connection – to the ground might be God’s reminder to us: ‘By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.’ (Genesis 3:19)

2. The name ‘Adam’ is also the generic word for ‘humanity’. All humans have the capacity to blush, irrespective of their race, so this destroys the argument that the ‘red’ of Adam’s name means ‘to blush’, and only white people blush.

There are two intriguing and disturbing implications of the ‘red means blushing’ theory. Mark Twain commented, ‘Humans are the only animals who blush — or who need to.’ Before the Fall, there was no shame and no embarrassment. Why would a person blush if they have nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed about? But the ‘blushing’ theory means that God named Adam before the Fall: ‘the blushing one’. For the Hebrew, the name of a thing was also its character, such as the name ‘Jacob’ could figuratively mean, ‘he deceives’. This being so, the inference is that God was responsible for Adam’s rebellion – before Adam sinned and had reason to blush, God named him for the display of embarrassment brought about by sin! That isn’t God.

The second implication is this: Adam and Eve were responsible for rebelling against God and bringing sin, evil, sickness, decay and death into the world. And they were … white, was it?

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Footnotes

[1] To a person who believes in racial superiority, being ‘white’ or ‘black’ or ‘Muslim’ or ‘Jewish’ means more than the colour of a person’s skin or their religion. It includes attitude, intellect, beliefs, and desires.

copyright 2007 Troy Grisgonelle.