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What does it mean to be human?

By David Wilkinson - posted Wednesday, 10 November 2004


However, the overwhelming view which can be found in the early chapters of Genesis is that human beings are defined in terms of relationship, and in particular their relationship to God.

Being made in the image of God is about being given the gift of intimate relationship with God, and a certain kind of responsibility in the natural world. That human beings are special in terms of relationship allowed early astronomers such as Huygens to speculate about other worlds without having nightmares about his Christian faith.

The fact that God may have created many other species in the Universe does not diminish the relationship he has given to human beings.

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Care and compassion

Further, as many historians have pointed out, the Christian worldview encouraged the growth of empirical science - the Universe had to be observed to see what God had done.

The diversity and unpredictability of the cosmos or natural world was therefore a reflection of a God who gives the Universe the potential for extravagance.

Finally, the gift of responsibility brought with it the need for care and compassion to others, the animal kingdom and the environment.

So as a Christian, in common with many other religious believers, I don't see LB1 as a threat to religion. I am fascinated with what more we might find out about the diversity of the natural world.

And if Homo floresiensis still exists then they need to be treated with respect and care whether the anthropologists class them as human or not.

I still see the special status of humanity in the gift of relationship with God, a relationship affirmed in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

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After all, Hobbits were never a problem to the Christian orthodoxy of a certain JRR Tolkien.  

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First published on the BBC News Magazine on November 1, 2004.



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About the Author

David Wilkinson is currently Wesley Research Lecturer in Theology and Science in the Department of Theology at the University of Durham, England.

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