Nature or Nurture?

"Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger." Genesis 25:23

Nature or Nurture?
By Rev. William Dohle

There are some things of life I just don't understand.

I don't understand how three kids, born of the same parents, can be so very different.
I don't understand how in a family of four children, one can grow up to be a pastor, one can go back to her roots, one is kinda wandering, and the other has abandoned faith altogether.
I don't understand how a strict catholic man could produce three children who represent three very different religious viewpoints.

I just don't understand.

I have long followed the whole nature or nurture debate. The question being: Which controls your destiny more? How you were born? Or how you grew up? That question has always fascinated me, for behind it lies the underlying question of who's responsible for our actions? Do we really choose our own destiny? Or is it handed to us on a clay or silver platter?

Think of your own family, how different you are from your siblings, your parents, your aunts and uncles? Were these differences all written out before you were born? Or did you choose? And if you did choose, when was the choice made for this road in your life? Is your destiny somehow written in your genes? Or do you make your own destiny based on your decisions?

The Bible gives contrary arguments to the whole notion of free will. Take the story of Jacob and Esau. These twin brothers really had no choice in their destiny. Before they were born, they were already jostling each other within their mother. When their mother asked the Lord, why this was happening, the Lord said to Rebekah:

"Two nations are in your womb, and two people from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger."

Did these brothers have a choice in the matter? Did they choose their destiny? Did Jacob stand up and volunteer to be the younger one? No! Of course not! Their choice was made for them. And that decision controlled their destiny. Even their names said something about who they would be. Esau's name means "hairy" because he was so very hairy as a kid, while Jacob is said to have come out holding onto Esau's heel(which in ancient times meant he would be a deceiver.).

It would seem the Bible comes on the side of nature in this debate...except that somewhere down the road for Jacob and Esau, things change. The brothers, who start out hating each other, reconcile and love each other in the end. Their destiny, which seems to tear them apart, is overridden by their own decisions to love and forgive each other.

We too can rise above our upbringing. We may not be able to control our nature, but we can control our attitude toward it. We may not understand how one person sees things differently than we do, but we can rise above our prejudice and love them! We may not know why people are different, but we can love them for their differences. We can support them in their choices. We can show interest in what they are doing and how they are doing it.

And whatever is at work within us, be it our nature or the way we were brought up, we know this. "...God is greater than our hearts and he knows everything."(1 John 3:20). May God the Father, who created us, sustain us throughout our lives. May Christ forgive us for when we stumble. And may the Spirit be at work in us, transforming our minds and hearts that we might rise above both our nature and our nurture in service to our neighbors.

Heavenly Father, you created us to be your people and in Christ you have claimed us as your own. Transform us that we might be servants to others, for the sake of Christ our Lord. Amen.