Salamanders are fascinating creatures. They are a group of amphibians typically characterised by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail.
There is one species of salamander that has become widely studied in scientific circles and that is the axolotl. This is what Wikipedia has to say about this creature:
“The feature of the axolotl that attracts most attention is its healing ability: the axolotl does not heal by scarring and is capable of the regeneration of entire lost appendages in a period of months, and, in certain cases, more vital structures, such as tail, limb, central nervous system, and tissues of the eye and heart. They can also readily accept transplants from other individuals, including eyes and parts of the brain — restoring these alien organs to full functionality. In some cases, axolotls have been known to repair a damaged limb, as well as regenerating an additional one, ending up with an extra appendage.”
Mention regeneration in a human context and most people automatically think of science fiction and Dr Who. That is because when we are wounded we don’t regenerate, to begin the healing process the site becomes inflamed and then scarring occurs. In salamanders the cells of the wound site divide and grow quickly forming a blastema, which means the wound is ready to heal and undergo patterning to form the new limb.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, to be regenerated is to be ‘re-born; brought again into existence; formed anew, restored to a better state’. The moment I read that I thought of the meeting between Jesus and Nicodemus in John 3. Who can forget the words that Jesus shared in his opening of this encounter:
Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.’
John 3:3 NIVUK
So perhaps it is not just salamanders (and Dr Who!) that can be regenerated, and I like that phrase of being ‘restored to a better state’. Of course, we are talking of a spiritual regeneration here, rather than a physical one. But the very human physical trait of scarring is important too, it reminds us of what this body has gone through and how hard it has worked to heal itself. I still have the scar on my arm from when I received the BCG vaccination when I was a child. The body remembers. The body displays its struggles.
Let me leave you with these words of Paul to think further upon:
“What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation. May God’s peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God. From now on, don’t let anyone trouble me with these things. For I bear on my body the scars that show I belong to Jesus.”
Galatians 6: 15b-17 NLT
Neil Chappell
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