Is there any meaning to laminin being in the shape of a cross? What is laminin?
The laminin family of proteins serve many biological functions, including acting as a binding agent between each other and other proteins. Some scientists describe it as a kind of glue that holds biological material together.
Laminin are shaped with several short arms and one long arm. Flattened out, they resemble a lower case t, which some people have compared to a cross.
In some Christian circles this vague resemblance of laminin to a cross has been a point of interest; some claim it is a sign from God. Many attach such ruminations to Colossians 1:15–17, in which Paul writes about Jesus: "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together." They equate Jesus' "holding together" all things with the laminin holding proteins together.
Laminin can look like a cross under specific circumstances, but has also been described as flower-like, similar to a jack, and pyramid in shape. There is nothing complex or uncommon about the t-shape itself. Even more, there are many shapes in nature that could be correlated to other, non-Christian spiritual beliefs. For example, from the top, the DNA helix looks like the yin yang symbol from Chinese philosophy. Other DNA molecules are pentagrams, a shape common in Satanic art.
Laminin's shape could also be interpreted completely differently. For example, laminin could also be said to resemble the Greek letter psi, which is used in astronomy to represent the planet Neptune. Did life begin on Neptune? Psi also represents ESP and telekinesis in parapsychology. Are these abilities thus real? Laminin can also be said to look like a pitchfork—would this be biological signs of our inherited sin nature? Clearly these theories are ridiculous. Conclusions like these have nothing to do with the shape, function, or purpose of laminin.
Spiritual connections to the shape of laminin are conjecture at best, silliness at worst; they are the result of sign-seeking. Jesus condemned sign-seeking as weak desire for the miraculous to confirm truth and replace faith (Matthew 12:39; 16:4; 1 Corinthians 1:22). God has put actual and obvious signs in front of us (Romans 1:20; Psalm 19:1). Trying to make laminin into a sign is a distraction from the clear evidence of God's existence and the message of the gospel.
Laminin having a vaguely similar shape as the cross is an interesting aspect of biology. But it is not how God chose to make Himself known to the world. Christians should not put faith in such things (1 Timothy 1:4).
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