Made in the Image of God

Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness’- Genesis 1:26

If we could see this image what would it look like?

A morning DART train- filled with people of all ages, races, classes, from business executives to seminary students to people without homes needing a free ride.

A world cup soccer game- the stadium filled with people from different countries from all over the world, speaking all different languages, rooting for their teams on the field and experiencing a sport that crosses culture, people, and tongues.

People from all ends of all spectrums- Republicans, Democrats, Occupy-ers, Fundamentalists, Pentecostals, Baptists, Methodists, rich, poor, those in the spotlight and those in the margins; preachers, Athiests, and those seeking to believe, Mormons, Buddhists, yogis, vegans, meat-lovers, traditionalists, liberationists- sitting together at one table sharing one meal, learning to listen before speaking and unpacking both the riches and the problems of those who differ in their views but can still share their bread.

All faces and forms of love- between a parent and adopted child,

partners, best friends, a child and her Guatemalan nanny,

two women finding companionship in old age, siblings, lovers, 

interfaith/interracial weddings, students and cherished teacher; 

community members belonging to and taking care of each other;

sisters in Africa taking care of orphans whose parents couldn’t,

parents giving up children for a better life that they know they can’t give them; 

fathers and mothers working long hours to provide for their family in a new land; 

Great grandmothers seeing the face of their newborn great grandchild, reflecting the years of care and upbringing, invested love and invested life, 

struggle and joy- life continued long after life seems to have ceased. 

A mosaic of faces and hands, kisses and hugs, shapes and sizes, identities and unknowns, sounds of laughter and tears of joy, cries of pain and sobs of anguish, wrinkles and crows feet, soft skin and pudgy bellies, shades and hues muddling together the black and whiteness that we find so comfortable. All walks of life, all coming together to form something that looks somewhat like us, but then again, upon closer study, looks nothing like us at all. 

Ubuntu- I am because you are. 

Namaste- the light in me honors the light in you. 

Love your Neighbor as Yourself- both are equally important

We need each other, for as individuals we fall dreadfully short of the image in which we were created and begin to create God in our image, thinking God looks like us. Until we seek to understand our humanity in the eyes of others, we will fail to see how each of us is but one piece (albeit a very important piece indeed!), in a beautiful work of art that renders you speechless; one melody (without which the harmonies are slightly less majestic) in a great symphony that  brings both goosebumps and tears; one character (who, without others to build a story with, would not provide much of a narrative at all) in the story of God and God’s people.