What does it mean to be created in the “Image of God?” I’ve been contemplating this a lot lately. As our culture struggles with Darwinian evolution versus Young Earth Creationism… the question seems to crop up. Were we placed here on earth whole and complete as human beings, or were we molded over time? Are we merely very advanced forms of other creatures that cohabitate the earth with us? Are we just another animal? Or is there something more? I personally see nothing disparate about believing that God, outside of Time and Nature, set in motion a path and set of circumstances that He knew would end in the creation of mankind -- that God DID mold us over millions of years into our present form. After all, a miracle that occurs very slowly is no less a miracle than if it happened quickly. And by any objective standard, human beings are not JUST another animal. G.K. Chesterton noted “Man is not merely an evolution but rather a revolution.” The fact is, we are here, we are vastly different, and it is wildly improbable that this happened by chance. Evolution may tell us how our physical bodies were changed into their present shape. Science, however, can only tell us the “how”… never the “why” and “by whom”. “No one denies that a mystery still attaches to the two great transitions: the origin of the universe itself and the origin of the principle of life itself. Most philosophers have the enlightenment to add that a third mystery attaches to the origin of man himself…There may be a broken trail of stones and bones faintly suggesting the development of the human body. There is nothing even faintly suggesting such a development of the human mind. Something happened, and it has all the appearance of a transaction outside of time.” G.K. Chesterton. We are physically animals by nature, but human beings are something infinitely more than animals. How and why did this happen? There is something of the supernatural in us… and that is, I believe, the “Image of God” imprinted on our souls.
Francis Collins, the medical geneticist in charge of the Human Genome Project, notes in his book “The Language of God” that humans and chimps are 96% identical on the DNA level. Of the genes that code for protein (the “worker” genes), chimps and humans are 100% identical. So why the immense differences between these two species, if they are “programmed” so similarly? Darwinian evolution can’t tell me anything except the skull’s capacity to hold a larger brain. This explains very little, if anything. It may hint towards in increased intellect, but not the “moral law” that has dwelled inside every human being in recorded history. Chimps and humans are different because one of us is created in the “image of God”. One of us has a soul that cries out to be one with a Creator.
I am not a theologian, a scientist, or a brilliant mind. But common sense tells me that we are fundamentally different than animals. What’s more, there does not appear to be any indication of gradations of humanity. “Art is the signature of man… monkeys did not begin pictures and men finish them… this notion of reproducing things in shadow or representative shape is that it exists nowhere in nature except man as something separate from nature”. G.K. Chesterton. From as far back as archeology can dig, we know that human beings were HUMAN, in that they drew pictures of things on cave walls, using tools to do it. They searched for the divine, had rituals, worshipped. Even the most pre-historic, ancient evidence puts us as vastly different from animals. A bird can build a nest, but when have we seen it build a cathedral? A cow can eat grass, but when have we seen it bow down and worship?
“For long centuries, God perfected the animal form which was to become the vehicle of humanity and the image of Himself…. Mankind wanted to be nouns, but they were, and eternally must be, mere adjectives.” C.S. Lewis
We are adjectives, because we are only descriptors of a Creator. And if we take the time to look at how we differ from animals, we might just see how God reveals Himself to us, through us. That which sets us apart from the animals is that which is either a reflection of God, ora preparation of our person for worshipping Him. It is why we are here, why we were created. To be a reflection, and a worshipper.
So here is my list, my supposition, and it is most likely very incomplete.
Only Humans display the following attributes:
1. A moral law – a universal knowledge of good versus bad. This is strikingly similar across all times and cultures.
2. The ability to consciously break the moral law – to know something is bad, and do it anyway. This allows us the free will to worship God. We choose good or bad, knowing full well, if we take the time to be honest with ourselves, that what we are doing IS either good or bad.
3. Seeking of the Divine – again, a universal attribute of all cultures through all times. Spirituality appears implicit in human nature.
4. Rituals and religion -- go back as far as you can. Mankind has always utilized rituals, and engaged in religion.
5. Altruism – this goes AGAINST what we see in nature. If nature is survival of the fittest, than there is no place for altruism in this world. Yet altruism is also inherent in human nature.
6. A sense of sin – that something is imperfect with mankind. Look at ancient folklore and mythology. It is everywhere. A knowledge of our own imperfection implies that there is a standard of perfection with which to compare. Again this is an essential first step for worship.
7. Contemplation. Humans think about things in depth. What animal questions “why are there stars?” Where are the monkey philosophers?
8. Self-examination. Humans also look deep into themselves. “Why am I here?” It is through the search for answers to questions that we strive towards knowledge of God.
9. Imagination – the art of “what if” and “let’s pretend”.
10. Shame – as related to the moral law. If there were no moral law, shame would not exist. An animal feels no shame for it’s actions, because it knows no right from wrong. A dog might feel sheepish stealing food off the counter, but only when it is caught, as it knows this action will bring anger and punishment from it’s master. It does not inherently know that eating food off of a counter is “wrong”.
11. Intelligence. This almost goes without saying because it is so obvious, but it is awe-inspiring the differences between the most intelligent ape and even an infant child.
12. Creators. Human beings build, mold, change, and make things. An otter may build a dam from sticks, but it does not build a chair or an altar.
13. Civilization – complex government, laws, and community. A herd of sheep does not hold elections for a leader, and then organize laws to govern the behavior of the herd.
14. Appreciation of Beauty. All of nature’s creatures can see the same sunset. But only mankind can revel in it’s beauty enough to sing songs, write poems, and paint pictures of it.
15. Art and Music for the sake of enjoyment.
16. Wear clothing. Humans wear clothes not just for protection, but also for modesty, privacy, dignity, and decoration. It is universal among humankind. The aborigines in the desert wear loin-cloths… not to keep their “loins” warm, but for an inherent sense of modesty, or shame, associated with nakedness. Does this go back to the Garden of Eden? Clothes for protection fits a Darwinian model. Clothes for modesty goes against a Darwinian model.
17. Authority over other creatures. Humans tame horses, domesticate cats. Partnered with this is an attribute of humans to care for other creatures willingly. We have a desire to care and tend to others.
18. Laughter in response to joy. A hyena makes a sound like laughter, but it is not in response to joy.
19. Humor.
20. The ability and need to relay forth history and past experiences to the next generation.
21. Cultivation of the land. We alone can encourage a seed to grow in a specific way.
22. Preparation of food. This also prepares us for worship. Animals eat their food “as is”. Humans cook, mix, bake. In the old testament, sacrifices were burnt, because the smell was pleasing to God. We cook our food, and the smell is pleasing to us.
23. Use of tools – in order to create, cultivate, prepare food.
24. Complex written and oral language that can convey thoughts and abstract ideas, as well as specifics. A dog can growl a warning, but he can’t tell you (or another dog) “there is a man with a black coat about to enter the house”. And he certainly cannot encode his growl so that dogs a hundred miles away might also know that “a man with a black coat was entering the house.” This idea of language, or the Word (logos) is used repeatedly in the Bible to describe God and Jesus. A means to convey a message far away. John 1:1-5 states “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was Life, and this life was the light of the human race, the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
25. A cohesive family unit, that nurtures its young for years. Human children need to be tended for by adults far longer than any other youngster in the animal kingdom. The family unit of mother, father, and child is also universal among humankind. There may have been (and still are) aberrations to this family unit, but the basic family unit has always been the base, and has survived throughout history. God uses family imagery everywhere throughout the old and new Testatments. God the Father, the creator, and his Son Jesus. The Bride of Christ is the church. We are brothers and sisters in Christ. We understand our relationship to God through our knowledge of family relationships.
26. Architecture, building. Going back to our nature as creators, and our appreciation for beauty outside of functionality.
27. The need for furniture. Only humans need chairs, tables, sofas and the like to position our bodies. Animals make rudimentary beds for themselves. But being fully upright also leads us to the need for external supports for positioning. To put our arms at the right height for eating at a table. To keep our heads upright to interact while resting our legs. We as humans in many ways are the most physically vulnerable of the species… we need clothing, shelter, protection for years when young, in order to survive. We have no sharp claws, savage teeth, poison stingers for protection. And yet we hold dominance over every creature on earth. Despite our physical vulnerabilities. We are meant to be aware of our weaknesses, because it creates a desire in us to search for something more powerful than ourselves. We are not invulnerable in and of ourselves.
28. Bipedal and fully upright – which allows our hands to be free for creating rather than for mobility. This opens whole new worlds.
I know there is much I am missing, or misconstruing. As I said before, I am neither a theologian or a scientist. But I do know that human life is special and unique, and we are invested with a spirit that is holy and cries out to God our creator. This is universal throughout time, throughout civilizations - even when the voice of that spirit has been denied. It is essential to our humanity.
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