The fifth question?

At the Seder there were the requisite four questions from the children. I had
an additional fifth question trying to bring the ritual up-to-date: "Why is
this DNA different from all other DNAs?"
The basis of the question is that the Jews are the distinct "chosen people"
and as such must be distinguished by a distinct set of DNA. We now know that
DNA not only codes for proteins required for biochemical processes, but also
codes for such human traits as behavior, risk-taking and alcoholism. There
has been speculation that there are genes that run in families that also
determine degree of religiosity. If so, then why not a proclivity for a
particular religious behavior? The experience of repeating the Seder year
after year for millennia must have imprinted itself in our DNA. So we can't
help it anymore, we have to go through with it all, the removal of chametz,
the eating of matzo, the questioning. Has this made us brighter or better?
Probably not, but I wish at least that the genes for digesting matzo had
enabled us to adapt better.
There were the usual debates (Jewish euphemism for arguments) that erupted. I
had one with my friend and relative by marriage Zeev Silverman, and his two
ultra-Orthodox daughters (the products of extensive "brainwashing"). I
mentioned that I have a friend, who is writing an interesting book on
"mistakes" and "contradictions" in the Torah/Bible. Whereupon I was
informed by the righteous sisters that there are no mistakes in the Bible, it
is "perfect," since it is the word of God. Of course, I disputed this, since
first the Bible as we know it was undoubtedly written down by humans some
millennia ago, and second it has been copied over the years by scribes, any of
whom could have made a mistake that is repeated. Once Zeev admitted this,
then the opening made my point that mistakes could have crept in, although in
the Orthodox concept the original as "dictated" by God must be considered to
have been perfect.
There are also differences in rabbinical analysis and interpretation.
Different Rabbis at different times have made interpretations of apparently
contradictory statements that do appear in the Bible. I quoted a major source
of my friend's analysis, namely books written by the greatest living authority
on Biblical exegesis or textual analysis, Richard E. Friedman of UCSD. His
two books "Who wrote the Bible" (1997) and "The Bible with sources revealed"
(2003) are considered to be authoritative. Zeev countered that he could not
be compared to the Rambam who considered the Bible as it is to be "perfect"
and there must be other experts who disagree with Friedman's analysis. No
doubt, but his is the most authoritative and up-to-date analysis that we have.
I find it a strength of Judaism that commentary and interpretation can still
occur, and it is a mistake of the ultra-Orthodox to regard the text as
immutable and perfect. This point was vividly demonstrated by this discussion
at the Seder table.