Introduction (Keel 2018)

Starts with a critical evaluation of geneticist Spencer Wells and his 2002 publication The Journey of Man.
- Wells' work presents a standard interpretation of human evolution and migration from a single set of ancestors in Africa.
- Highlights the epistemic authority modern genetics has on race and human beginnings, inherited from Christian intellectual ancestors.

Modern biologists have inherited interpretive tools and assumptions from Christian traditions that inform contemporary theories of racial difference.
This book aims to explore the intersections of race, Christian supersessionism, secular creationism, genetic ontology, and historical perspective on race.

Dipesh Chakrabarty: Discusses the limitations of so-called universal ideas produced by Europeans from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment, emphasizing that they carry elements of unique European histories.

The introduction provides a structure for the chapters to follow, dealing with the evolution of race concepts grounded in Christian thought.

The Journey of Man presents an account claiming all humans are descendants of a small group that migrated from Africa in major waves:
- First Wave: Around 60,000 years ago, ancestors migrated through the Indian Ocean to regions like Australia.
- Second Wave: Approximately 45,000 years ago, with migration routes extending through the Middle East to Europe and central Asia.
- Cold temperatures led to geographical isolation, resulting in physical changes (e.g., paler skin).
- Around 20,000 years ago, populations moved from central Asia into North America via the Bering Strait.

In 2003, The Journey of Man became a successful PBS documentary.
Portrays a biogenetic narrative that assimilates indigenous peoples into a European genetic story of humanity, reinforcing a narrative of scientific authority over traditional views.
- Encounter between Wells and Aboriginal Australians illustrates tensions between genetic evidence and indigenous knowledge.
  - Aboriginal views question the assertion of African origins over their local narratives, suggesting a need to reassess the value of indigenous perspectives against scientific claims.
- Greg Inibia Goobye Singh’s assertion refutes the categorization of indigenous stories as myths, highlighting the clash between scientific narratives and deeply rooted cultural histories.

Wells' account, as both subject and narrator, emphasizes a narrative constructed from a European lens, indicating a loss of ancestral stories among Europeans.
Crucial Questions Raised:
- What does it mean for European thinkers to lack direct historical memory while claiming a universal narrative?
- How has this intellectual deficit been misconstrued as a lack of historical understanding globally?

The book introduces terminology like mongrel epistemology—the blend of Christian and scientific thought that shapes modern racial science.
Monogenism: Belief in a common human ancestor rooted in Christian doctrine informs scientific understanding of human origins.

Emergence of Christian Supersessionism:
- Concept wherein Christianity claims a superiority over Judaism, framing itself as a more complete truth.
  - J. Kameron Carter’s perspective highlights Christianity's distancing from Jewish origins and its resultant habitual racial reasoning.

Discussion of historical figures and events shaping the understanding of race:
- Johann F. Blumenbach (1775): Established five racial classifications and inadvertently perpetuated Christian reasoning within scientific discourse.
- Josiah C. Nott: Critiques the biblical underpinning of racial theory, proposing polygenism but remains influenced by earlier Christian ideas.

The persistence of racial thinking into the twentieth century linked to disease and heredity discussions in public health initiatives.
- Adoption of racial typologies in genetics correlates with genetic research on distinctive populations, such as identification of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs).
Recent genetic findings regarding the Neanderthal genome reinforce outdated concepts by framing narratives about race in biological terms.

Divine Variations argues that modern racial classifications stem from a religious intellectual history rather than a complete divorce from theology.
The examination of racial science reveals that current scientific understandings of race are incomplete without acknowledging their historical and religious antecedents.

The narrative of secular progress in science does not account for the intertwining of Christian belief systems; thus, our contemporary views on race remain shaped by foundational theological concepts. The understanding of human bio-diversity is illustrated as not simply scientific, but as steeped in a rich tapestry of hybrid intellectual heritage.