Human Person and Relationships with God - Coursework Example

Heading Name Institution Course Date Introduction The word human refers to the way God created man. According to Christians, the human body lives and is human because there is a spiritual soul that animates it. Marriage signifies the passage of love from one generation to the other. All the above views on human person indicate that no difference exists between a human person and human being. Therefore, it should not be taken as an item of use. Instead, it should be seen as an entity that promotes love. A relationship exists between God, human being and other creatures living on earth (Christendom-awake.org 2015). The bond that exists dictates how we relate to each other and the responsibilities that we have towards others. Human Person and Relationships Lecture five is concerned with anthropology. It entails spiritual and cultural development of human beings. Additionally, their physical characteristics are also put into consideration. Anthropology started in 1800’s, and its primary concern was social and cultural evolutions. More emphasis put on social being under the study. There is various different historical understanding of the human being. Philosophy has contributed significantly to the understanding of humans and also has an impact on Christian anthropology. Anthropology further indicates that there are two stories concerning the creation of human being. The first story is concerned with creation’s goodness. The following one is the Yahwist theory. The two theories indicate that there is a relationship that exists between humanity. We are not complete unless we are in relationships (Christendom-awake.org 2015). Both stories show that we are all good and made in the image and likelihood of God so that we may engage in relationships. Christian anthropology is our primary concern as Christians. As far as Christian anthropology is concerned, the first thing that comes into one’s mind is to understand the relationship that exists with God and also with each other. When human beings are in an appropriate relationship, they are more likely to flourish. On the other hand, a human being can lose self-sense if taken as a subject of serving the economy. This type of anthropology divides human persons into three things covenantal, transcendent and those ethically oriented (McCall 2011). Under covenantal, the scriptures reveal two covenants. The first covenant was at Mount Sinai with the Hebrews. They took the covenant as the relationship existing between the people chosen and God. This clearly shows that there is always a relationship offered by God. Human beings need to be in the fast lane in responding to such relationships offered. The second covenant is the one brought about by Jesus. We know Jesus as both divine and human. It indicates that God can be human also. The agreement is clearly evident by his entire life. Edwards states that also his death and resurrection showed that there was an existence of a covenant (Edwards 2012). It indicated that there was a relationship between him and God. Relationships between human beings reflect divine relationship. Free beings are a part and parcel of a person. None of us is always totally free as we are hindered by such things as space or time. Transcendent freedom is the second division of human persons. Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela are the two of the few who display transcendent freedom. The Exodus story in the Bible indicates that God can set his people free from slavery (Dltk-bible.com 2015). A positive response to relationships existing between God and us, each other and to the entire world surrounding us will lead to divine love and grace upon us. The ethical dimension tends to combine bits of both covenant and transcendence. It indicates that due to us being in a divine relationship, the free actions we undertake has an effect on the world around us. Our social teachings show that failure to upheld one’s dignity will affect others’ dignity as a whole. It calls upon us to exercise justice, love and display compassion to other beings. According to believers, natural revelation is available to all of them. Aquinas argues that everything that happens in the world has a causal dependence. Speculating the natural world can lead to an understanding of God. The Exodus story shows that God can enter into a loving relationship with his chosen people. Ecological theology is a study that tries to explain the relationship that exists between human beings and other creatures including other animals, oceans, river systems and atmosphere. Collectively, there exists a theocentric relationship between people and other creatures towards God. However, human beings are valuable of all as God gave us spiritual soul and also made us in his image. Paul writes that “God’s love has been poured into us through the holy spirit given to us." The book of Psalms indicates communal nature of all creatures. In this perspective, we finally see ourselves as related to other creatures as one community. We recognize God as the universal giver of all the creations whether domestic or wild, creatures found in the sea, birds and humans (Ecospirit 2015). Psalms further indicate that it is God who provides for the other animals and not people. They are not dependent on people. All of the creatures survive because God breathes into them each and every day. Each depends on God in a direct manner for food, drinks, and many other survival requirements. We are a portion of God’s community of creation (Community.berea.edu 2015). There are many categories of God’s creation under his community. Each has got a different way of rejoicing, praising and thanking God. There exist two stories about creation in the ancient world the Hebrew and the Babylonian myth. Both were found in the first book of Genesis and try to explain the history of humanity. Catholics have a freedom to believe in an ancient earth and also creationism (Catholicbridge.com 2015). Some Catholics believe young earth whereby God created everything by word while other faithful ones believe in an old earth. Pope John Paul II talked about science and theology. He touched on the recent scientific researches on evolution because they involve man’s conception. Evolution theory considered a serious thing. He commented on the fact that progress on the research has significantly boosted the spirit of researchers. Pope says that evolution theories consider the spirit as resulting from forces of living things (Ewtn.com 2015). They are therefore not in line with the actual truth about man. They are not in a position to define anything on the dignity of human beings. Sir Elizabeth Johnson has been leading the campaign on encouraging theologians to put into considerations natural world. She was inspired by Darwin’s theory, therefore, she developed an interest in developing the idea fully. She says God created the world and that earth has got the power to enhance its development (Hunt 2015). She further indicates that Christian and Hebrew scriptures emphasize in the community of creation and not human dominion. Christians are believers. According to SENTER, Darwinism is a science affair dealing with some evidence while the biblical story is based on belief and faith (SENTER 2011). Science cannot be able to explain the existence of a supreme being. Given a chance to present to the audience on the issue, I think children are more likely to accept the biblical story easily. Adults may find it difficult understanding as they have encountered science as part of the natural world. Those audiences brought up in the scientific background may argue by using their scientific evidence. It is believed that Supreme Being, God, created the whole universe and its beauties in his goodness (Harris 2011). It is, therefore, not bound to explanations by scientists. Conclusion In summation, God is always seeking to relate to us. In return, he wants us to engage in a relationship with others under his rules (Godonthe.net 2015). This shows that despite our daily actions that we do, there is always a chance to have a friendship with God. It brings as back to our relationship with others. The way we relate to others directly reflects how we do so with God. A good relationship with others means the same with God. We should, therefore, take the advantage of God’s calling and take the responsibility of relating to other creatures well for our own benefit. Notes 1 Read More