In Part 1 of my article, I tried to establish that there is definitely a Creator no matter what science confirms or doesn’t confirm – the fact of the matter is, I believe that both science and faith are on the same page most of the time.
This Creation, which includes man, is no accident – there is a Creator. Like everything in Creation, man has a purpose for its existence. What is that purpose? Everything in Creation has a role and responsibility towards the sustainability of Creation – and man has the biggest role and responsibility. The Creator crafted man in His own image and I believe the image wasn’t anything physical, because “physical” reduces the discussion to limitations, and the Creator has no limitations. The image of the Creator in question is the characteristics of His “spirit” and His “will” – these are the things that men are supposed to emulate. Under the guise of religion, man has abused his position by portraying himself as being God-like by placing human images on God.
I asked you, why is the image of God portrayed in human physical form? Who benefits the most from this description? This lie has significantly hurt Black people, however, portraying a white man as God is damaging to all people. It hurts white people because it has given them a sense of superiority that has allowed them to do some of the most despicable acts to Blacks under the guise of religion, and it’s damaging to Black people because it subconsciously creates a level of inferiority within them. What would happen if people would sit in churches throughout the world for centuries with the image of a Black man as saviour of the world before them? What would this do to the mind of the world’s white children? What would happen to the world’s white children if you put a figure of a Black man presented, pitiable, and in pain ”the Saviour of all men?” This is not civilized, and civilized people should want that their religions to also be civilized. False worship of any kind is the worst form of oppression. Men are not God; they are not the Creator of the heavens of the earth and everything in between.
There should NEVER be any inference, suggestion, comment, or actual statement that speaks to anything that God and man can share the same space (no matter how you spin it).
As I have stated previously, I’m neither a theologian nor biblical scholar, but based on my limited studies of the Bible, the imaging of God is not supported by the Bible. When you study the Old Testament and the New Testament, images or depictions of God in human form are not supported by its teachings. In fact, the Bible clearly says that it should not be done – this is something that has come with the transition from Roman, Greek and Western Europe idolatry. The transition from that idolatry to Christianity brought along with it the old customs and habits of the pre-Christian people, and I think it’s time church leaders realized that the mind of the masses now is too sophisticated for that. We are not so primitive or savage in our mind and soul that we need these symbols to attract our attention, or attract us to faith. We don’t need them anymore. The intellect of the masses has grown, so this is not even necessary (it never was) and in fact it’s disrespectful.
Man is the greatest of the Creator’s creations and has the responsibility of being the Creator’s steward and custodian on the earth – man is the caretaker of Earth. Even though man has been made to be the steward, his beginning is most humble – every man comes into this world through the womb of a woman and his position is the most vulnerable of all creation. Of all of the Creator’s creations, man’s beginning is the most dependent and is completely dependent on external forces for a very long time. Horses are able to stand and walk shortly after they are born. A baby cannot walk for a year. Sparrows start flying at about two months old, at which time they also hunt for their own food. Human babies cannot truly feed themselves for years – a couple of years pass before they find their way to the refrigerator on their own.
Cheetah cubs leave their mothers between 13 and 20 months after birth. The average American human lives with a parent at least 18 years. More than any other species, a human baby enters the world completely dependent upon his parents for every physical need. That relationship of reliance continues for many years.
Man doesn’t come into the leadership role being able to deliver on his purpose especially when many things don’t happen during his formative and very vulnerable years.
Let’s examine the human being’s growth for a moment – what an unbelievable creation by God. Many social scientist state that the child’s mental growth is greater during the period of age zero through age three, and if certain inputs aren’t instilled in the child, his growth is threatened; therefore his ability to be the Creator’s steward is also challenged. Man means mind and the mind is developed through communication along with the instillation of words – words make mind.
Words are essential in the formation of the mind. This is why we label everything and we spend a significant time instructing our babies with words. This is why the environment that a child is born in to will significantly impact his ability to live up to his purpose for being creative.
Our children need so much and as adults, we are responsible to make sure that our children are protected, cuddled, nurtured, and given every opportunity to grow naturally – most of all our children need knowledge. Because of man’s tremendous responsibility, this is the natural path of his life, because with knowledge comes a certain level of responsibility. For example, when a child learns that he can’t place his hand in fire because he will burn himself – this is knowledge (he now knows better and he will do better). With this knowledge comes a certain level of responsibility.
As the leader of his being, he is now responsible to control his arms and hands from placing them into the fire (he has a higher responsibility to his whole body). He is also naturally taught a healthy respect for the creation and by deduction a healthy respect for the Creator. With knowledge comes responsibility and this is why knowledge is power. As he grows his knowledge grows, and his capabilities grow. He can ultimately assume the role of the Creator’s steward on the earth.
Even the child’s individual home is not enough to adequately grow him into the leader he will need to be. As the old African proverb states, “It takes a village to raise a child.” It takes a village to grow a child into a productive young adult and then adult – this is the natural trajectory for man to ultimately become the Creator’s steward on the earth. As young children, the village is small, and nurturing is extended to his immediate family. The village provided safety and security, but most of all it provided love – this small community is the foundation of the child’s identity. Eventually, the child has to leave the smaller village into a larger village (i.e. going to school, etc.).
The bigger village will challenge the growth of the child even more to take risk and become active learners in the quest for knowledge. The village will expand from the parents, grandparents, or the extended family to other adult teachers and friends. They too become mentors and role models and help to expand their horizons, and most of all they help the children to search within themselves to recognize their potential.
When the village is healthy (an unhealthy village will completely alter the child’s ability to fulfill his natural role in Creation), together with the family they form the circle around the child to help them to become productive members of society, and then allow the child to live up to the role to live in the image of God. What is this image? It can’t be the physical one that is being promoted by some in religion. “And God said, Let us make man in our Image, after our Likeness…. So God created man in His own Image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them” (Genesis 1:26-27). Everything in creation has a role and responsibility towards the sustainability of Creation – and man has the biggest role and responsibility. The image of the Creator that man is to emulate is God’s characteristics, spirit, and His will. Man has the capacity to emulate God’s will in his capacity to be the steward of the earth.
The question of how the Creator’s sovereignty and man’s will work together, specifically man has the ability to make his own choices – those choices should reflect the will of the Creator. Why, because the Creator created man with a specific purpose to be the custodian and steward of the earth. Man can’t be the custodian and steward of the earth if he promotes himself as his own creator (God). If man can tell this lie and have the common person believe it – what else comes with that?
This type of lie disables man to defend against bigger and more dangerous challenges against the Creator’s purpose for man. All life must be held sacred (i.e. human, plant, animal, etc.). There is a role for man’s will in the course of the Creator’s plan for his purpose.
If we look at the work of man today, it is obvious that man has lost his direction and way from his original purpose. It is impossible that what we see today is reflective as the will of the Creator. It is also impossible that what we see today represents man’s fulfilling his responsibility to be the steward of the earth. When I reference man, I’m not talking about the common man; I’m speaking about the leaders – those that have the ability to fulfill the will of the Creator (i.e. political leadership, religious leadership, military leadership, and governmental leadership). The world is in a real state of chaos. With America (a Christian country) as its forerunner, it is leading in some very negative categories, which significantly undermines man’s responsibilities to be a caretaker and steward.
When you consider that America is the leader in violence (there are more violent crimes in America than anywhere in the world) and is the world leader in the exportation of the military war machine; an extremely unhealthy citizenship fed by an overabundance of bad food, drugs and alcohol, and a health system that feeds off a sick society (Americans are the most obese population on the planet with alcohol, cigarettes, drugs being legal); in a land of plenty nearly 50 million American’s live in poverty; the largest and massive disparity of wealth distribution amongst its people (nearly 40 percent of the population has no or very little wealth and it is estimated that one percent of people own 40 percent of the nation’s wealth); the world’s largest prison system imprisoning the largest minority in the world (Black men); the world’s biggest exporter of immorality, prostitution, and porn; and leads the world in environmental and physical abuses.
The question of the environment is essential to responsibility of man in the role of the earth’s caretaker. Protecting the earth and keeping the earth clean is mandatory for the survival of the plane. If not, the future of mankind is endangered. Yet, profit rules in many cases over the sanctity of the earth.
How is it that nearly 50 million Black men and women, descendants of the most cruelest and barbaric treatment in modern history, still have to fight for basic civil and economic rights in this country? It is a group that is opposed at every level, with the most vehement response by supposedly God-fearing Christians. These issues we face as Americans are a direct reflection of man losing his responsibility to his natural purpose.
The responsibility as the earth’s caretaker and steward given to him by his Creator – we are not acting in the image of the Creator, and if we’re not acting in the Creator’s image –whose image are we emulating? As I stated in the first article, there is friction between good and evil (God and devil), and this dynamic confuses many of us. My belief is that this contrast is part of the Creator’s design. The devil, if he does exist (I do believe that a devil spirit exist) is part of God’s Creation – this is no accident. Also, the devil is not in competition with God.
God has no competition. The devil spirit (spirit that goes against the laws and principles that govern creation) is in competition with the human spirit. The devil spirit will prevail when man attempts to portray himself as God – this lie has become the foundation for bigger lies (i.e. racism).
It erodes, and undermines man’s true role as the earth’s caretaker and steward. God made man in His Image but man (leadership) has been corrupted and the people have been lied to.
Rahim Islam is a National Speaker and Writer, Convener of Philadelphia Community of Leaders, and President/CEO of Universal Companies, a community development and education management company headquartered in Philadelphia, PA. Follow Rahim Islam on FaceBook(Rahim Islam) & Twitter (@RahimIslamUC)
