Image of God
What does it mean to be made in the Image of God?
On the last day (time span) of creation, God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness” (Genesis 1:26). God formed Adam from the dust and gave him life by sharing His own breath (Genesis 2:7). Accordingly, humanity is unique among all God’s creations, having both a material body, soul and an immaterial spirit. This statement does not mean that God created humans to resemble Him physically (John 4:24). (Let us make man in our image," using a Hebrew word—ē'nu—which is unmistakably plural, the Trinity, one God in three persons, is found through the Bible from the start. See the Trinity page for details. )
God endowed humans with a certain kind of spirit awareness, one that animals and birds were not given. Man is uniquely created ''in the image'' of God. In other words, humans would possess the capacity for reason, morality, language, personality, purpose, and a spiritual life. In particular, the ability to use morality and spirituality are unique to human beings among God's creations on earth. Like God, we would possess the capacity to experience and understand love, truth, beauty, and spiritual things.
Interesting that in Charles Darwin's day, the thinking was that humans were just one small step above the other animals. But as more research has been done, science has discovered that not even our physical body is close to that of any past or present animal. The notion that human beings differ in degree, not kind, from other creatures has been a mainstay concept in anthropology for over 150 years. We know now this is an error.
Of all the major religions of the world, only the biblical religions of Judaism and Christianity affirm that human beings are made in the image of God. Even the other Middle Eastern monotheistic religions of Islam and Zoroastrianism do not view human beings as divine image bearers. This mage bearers statement is in the Bible a few times: (Genesis 1:26–27, 5:1, 9:6; 1 Corinthians 11:7; Colossians 3:10; James 3:9),
"So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them." (Genesis 1:27) An image is representative of something else, but not identical to it. Our conscience or “moral compass” is from our mage bearing. Whenever someone writes a law, recoils from evil, praises good behavior, or feels guilty, he or she is confirming the fact that we are made in God’s own image. Anytime someone invents a machine, writes a book, paints a landscape, enjoys a symphony, calculates a sum, or names a pet, he or she is proclaiming the fact that we are made in God’s image. Though marred by humanity’s sin nature (caused by 100% free will), all people—believers and nonbelievers—reflect the image of God.
Women are made in the image of God and are equal in the sight of God. Written 2,000 years ago, see Galatians 3:28, Genesis 1:27 and the Bible was way ahead of all other faiths, then and now. In Islam not equal. In Hindu not equal. In Buddhism (based on Hindu), not equal. In Shinto not equal. Christianity was the first faith to declare equality. While the Atheistic views called for equality, they also murdered millions of women. Hinduism held the exact opposite view with the caste system. See Worldviews
It was Christians who ended slavery in the UK (William Wilberforce) and the USA (Christian abolitionist, started by ones like John Brown, then the Civil War). This was driven by the Christian idea of the image of God. "You shall not murder" (Exodus 20:13) is the Sixth Commandment, prohibiting the intentional, unjustifiable taking of human life. God hated the Baal and Phoenician cultures that practiced and exported child sacrifices into fire pits (tophet) and called for their destruction.
The Christian view of the Image of God, has impacted the Western view and treatment of human beings. Christianity has led the way in promoting the sanctity of human life. Because human beings bear the image of God, they possess inherent dignity and moral worth. For Jews and Christians, the theology of creation is their most important moral perspective.
Being made in the Image also means we have an afterlife, with our 100% free will, we are free to accept God's offer of forgiveness found in Jesus Christ or reject it. See God of the Bible page.
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Details about Image of God:
Human beings possess a moral component. They inherently understand right and wrong and have a strong innate sense of justice.
Humans are spiritual beings who recognize a reality beyond this universe and physical life. Mankind intuitively acknowledges the existence of God and has a propensity toward worship and prayer.
Human beings relate to God, to themselves, to other people, and to other creatures. There is a relational aspect to God’s image
Humanity’s mental capacity reflects God’s image. Human beings possess the ability to reason and think logically. They can engage in symbolic thought. People express themselves with complex, abstract language. They are aware of the past, present, and future. Human beings display intense creativity through art, music, literature, science, and technological inventions
The existence of the subconscious or “unconscious mind” is, for all intents and purposes, acknowledged in Scripture and often described as the “heart”
The human brain is unlike anything else: The skull shape of the hominins was elongated along the anterior-posterior axis. But the skull shape of modern humans is globular, with bulging and enlarged parietal and cerebral areas. The modern human skull also has another distinctive feature: the face is retracted and relatively small. Humans brains thus have, self-awareness, very good hand-eye coordination, long term planning, working and long-term memory
Near-death experiences (NDEs) are profound, often transformative events occurring during clinical death. Key components include detachment from the body, moving through a tunnel, experiencing intense light, peace, or joy, and a life review. NDEs are proof of life after death. Why? Many unrated, people from all backgrounds and walks of life have the same experience. All do not want to return after finding peace and joy, Clinical death is
The medical term for the cessation of blood circulation and breathing, marking the point when the heart stops pumping, which is often reversible within a 3–6 minute window, unless the person has been in the very cold, then longer times are possible.
Identical Twins share 100% of their DNA, yet God has given them different gifts and personalities. They have the same parents, house, siblings, yet they are not the same, unique souls!
Human Uniqueness (Human exceptionalism) From Human Uniqueness page
Capacity for symbolic expression (mathematical formulas, equations, symbols to represent reality, brain to support this activity)
Ability to invent and manipulate symbols (using signs, to represent ideas, objects, and emotions)
Ability to invent and manufacture complex tools
Explosive technological advance
Ability to manufacture and wear clothes (from the start, able to survive in cold)
Ability to invent and use complex languages
Capacity to form complex social structures
Ability to invent and use complex trading and transportation systems
Ability to engage in mathematics, literature, philosophy, and theology (music and art)
Ability to tame, domesticate, and train animals
Many wild animals are attracted to people
Large, globular-shaped skull to accommodate a huge parietal brain lobe (spirituality lobe – only in humans)
Hand dexterity for manipulating complex tools at high speeds and for long durations (e.g., playing the piano, typing, performing surgery)
High and sustained metabolic rate
Long life span with a high metabolic rate
Long infant and adolescent development time
Tall, slender skeletal frame - Very little body hair/fur – able to survive in heat with water
Efficient cooling designs and systems, also used to support large brain
Active religious activity, prayer, thinking about death and afterlife, and the brain hardware to suport this activity.
Unique bipedalism, striding bipedalism - dance - gymnastics
Human eyes, large white showing, range of colors, eye contact
Human hearing has good frequency selectivity
Self-conscious - conscious - moral dilemma
Able to do very good (altruizm) and vast evil, unlike animals
Made in the image of God, humans are unique, this is testable. Genesis 1:27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them.
Brain:
The human brain possesses a specialized, bilateral network for high-level mathematics—specifically in the prefrontal, parietal, and inferior temporal regions—that is distinct from language processing, as shown in studies found in (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and ScienceDirect.com. This "math-specific" network, which includes the intraparietal sulcus, activates for algebra, analysis, geometry, and topology, regardless of whether the person is a professional mathematician. Animals do not have this specialized place. Humans have carried this place in the brain for thousands of years, before mathematics was invented. See What is Math page
Brain:
Meditation and prayer physically reshapes the brain via neuroplasticity, strengthening regions associated with attention, emotion regulation, and self-awareness while shrinking the fear-driven amygdala. Key areas involved include the prefrontal cortex (focus/logic), hippocampus (memory/calm), and reduced activity in the default mode network (self-referential thoughts). New research reveals that meditation induces changes in deep brain areas associated with memory and emotional regulation. Meditation and prayer enhance mental well-being by cultivating awareness and emotional control. It has been shown to induce neuroplasticity, increase cortical thickness, reduce amygdala reactivity, and improve brain connectivity and neurotransmitter levels, leading to improved emotional regulation, cognitive function, and stress resilience. This systematic review will synthesize research on neurobiological changes associated with mindfulness and meditation practices. Animals do not have this brain capability.
Also see Human Uniqueness page and Near-Death Experience page
Ref: (Secular and Christian site):
Unlike the "bent-hip-bent-knee" (BHBK) gait of other primates, humans possess a short, broad pelvis, a mobile lower back, and long legs, allowing for a fully erect gait. : Dance involves specialized, intense, and rhythmic bipedal jumps (sautés) that require high-level control of balance and coordination. Gymnastics maximizes these, features, utilizing, the, high-range motion in hips and spine, which are adapted for upright posture.
Uniqueness symbolic expression in early man, key expressions include deliberate, complex, and abstract engravings on objects like shells and ochre, marking a shift from mere survival to cultural, communicative, and artistic expression. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7060673/
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/328111005_Human_uniqueness
https://www.livescience.com/15689-evolution-human-special-species.html
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11591838/ Prayer and brain
https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1603205113 Brain and math
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1053811919300011 Brain and math