Impact # 357 FELLOWSHIP , CREATION , AND SCHISTOSOMES

God displays His invisible attributes in creation (Romans 1:20). Therefore, creationists can use the nature of God as a guiding principle in science. One attribute of God is His desire for fellowship and community with His people (Psalm 46:10; John 3:16; Revelation 21:3–4). God's people are encouraged to show this desire. Both the Old and the New Testaments contain passages that promote friendship, fellowship, and community among believers The apostle Paul goes so far as to claim that our commitment to others should mimic that of Christ's, who laid down His life for us (Philippians 2). If we apply the concept of " fellowship " to biology, we might expect the originally created organisms to have shown a stunningly high degree of interdependence. Because God desires His attributes to be perceived by all humans, this pattern would be expected to be prominent even after the Fall. A quick review of ecology indicates that this expectation is correct. It is possible to understand even some pathologies in this light. In a mutualistic relationship , two organisms live together and provide for the needs of the other. It is easy to see that even a slight disruption (at or after the Curse) of the mutualis-tic relationships might lead quickly to parasitic relationships. If we assume God created all organisms to live in mutualistic relationship (which is consistent with His value of fellowship), we could explain many modern diseases as distortions of originally beneficial relationships. As we examine disease-causing organisms, we often find organisms that appear designed to live in or on other organisms. Indeed this apparent design might be a correct perception. However it is the proper mutualistic relationship God designed and intended, not the distorted parasitic relationship brought about by the Fall. At first glance, the blood fluke (genus Schistosoma) appears well designed for disease. To complete its lifecycle, the schistosome requires two separate hosts, with brief, free-living stages between infections. Schistosomal eggs enter a fresh water source from the urine or feces of the primary host, such as