Skip to main content

Lenten Reflections: The Imago Dei

In the creation account of Genesis 1 God declares something extraordinary about human beings and their place in this world. God makes humans, both male and female, in the image of God. This pronouncement forms the basis of Christian theological anthropology (the study of human beings within a Christian worldview) and is usually referred to in Latin; the Imago Dei.

During this period of Lent I have been reflecting on what it means to be human. What does the Bible say about humanity? What does Jesus teach us about what it means to be human? Most importantly I've been considering the Imago Dei. What does it mean that human beings are made in the image of God?

There are many views and interpretations of this profound theological truth. Some argue it is a functional role, meaning that it's the duties we carry out in the world on God's behalf that make us the image of God. Others say it has to do with our need for community. Still others argue for the use of language, something unique to human beings amidst all creation. Others still hold that it is a structural proclamation, meaning the very way we are designed (both physically and spiritually) that makes us into the image of God.

Over the next several weeks this blog will be reflecting on the various components that go into what makes us bearers of the Imago Dei. As with most topics I believe that each of the above views captures a piece of the puzzle. So we will be reflecting on them to see how our understanding of the Imago Dei can deepen and be more entrenched in God himself.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thankful

Today is Thanksgiving, the day that we are supposed to celebrate all the things we are thankful for. It is a time of family reunions, football, and turkey eating. I sincerely pray that each and every one of you has a good day today. I'll admit that being thankful has not been easy for me this year. As pretty much all of you know, my mother passed away December of last year. Though she had been in the hospital for months, we were not expecting it. In fact I was sure she would be finally able to come home within a matter of weeks. Instead she peacefully passed on into the arms of Jesus, whom she loved more dearly than anyone else. As you can imagine, the entire family was heart broken. After what can easily be described as the worst Christmas ever, I returned to home to Illinois. It was here that I finally broke down. I spent the next months doing everything except being thankful. I cursed God, wept, screamed, begged to have her back, and was generally not the nicest person to be...
3 comments
Read more

We Need More Images

What is your favorite way to describe God? Is there a particular name of God in scripture that you are drawn to? What images and pictures come to mind when you think of God? These are questions I don't think we ask often enough. We all have an image of God in our heads that we work with. It may not be a literal picture, though it might be, but ideas and concepts we tend to associate with who God is. Some of those images and associations may come from the Bible, but some may not. These things are influenced by our upbringing, Bible reading habits, personalities, relationships, culture, and more. The way we picture God has a dramatic impact on the way we live our lives. For example, if the primary idea you have of God is "Healer," when you hear or read that you are made in God's image you will likely feel called to heal, be it physical ailments or spiritual wounds. But, if your primary image of God is "Judge," that changes things. You very likely might tend to...
Post a Comment
Read more

Augustine of Hippo: Historical Friday

We pause our overview of the history of Christianity to talk about an extremely influential figure, whether we realize it or not. Augustine of Hippo, so called because he lived in the town of Hippo Regius, has had a tremendous amount of influence on Christianity in the western world. Many of the theological conversations we have in our churches today have been directly shaped by this man. Many of the terms and ideas we throw around originated with Augustine.  Today we are going to look at SOME of the ideas that Augustine has shaped. In reality this man has touched in some way or another every aspect of Christian thought. If I had to choose the most influential people on Christianity outside of Jesus and the Apostles, Augustine might very well be number one alongside Martin Luther. Before we get into the theological ideas, a brief biography is in order. Brief Biography Augustine's story is actually very interesting, one I cannot hope to do justice here. If you are intereste...
Post a Comment
Read more