The Art of Being Human (Part II)
- 2 minutes ago
- 5 min read
What sort of freak then is man! (Pascal. Pensées. #131).
What does it mean to be human? Few have written with greater clarity on this question than Blaise Pascal (1623-1662). At the dawn of the Enlightenment, he wrote: “Man is neither angel nor beast, and it is unfortunately the case that anyone trying to act the angel acts the beast.” (Pensées. #678). Pascal understood that humans hold a unique place in the created order. We are not angels. We are not beasts. And yet, we have qualities of both heaven and earth! Pascal recognized the bipolar nature of the human condition. We are both great and vile, God-like and animal-like, good and evil, at the same time.
It is dangerous to explain too clearly to man how like he is to the animals without pointing out his greatness. It is also dangerous to make too much of his greatness without his vileness. It is still more dangerous to leave him in ignorance of both, but it is most valuable to represent both to him. (Pensées. #121).
Pascal reminds us that without a biblical foundation, we will inevitably fall into one of two heresies. Either we will think too highly of ourselves (we are angels, gods), or we will think too lowly of ourselves (we are beasts). He believed that Christianity alone offers a system of thought that accounts for the paradoxical nature of human personhood. In this blog, I want to define what it means to be human by describing what men and women are not. In the next post, I’ll look at what the Bible says we are.
We are not gods.
In contrast to the pagan cosmologies of the ancient world, where the boundary line between gods and men was often blurry, Genesis makes one thing perfectly clear: There is a God, and you are not him! Adam and Eve have attributes that are reflective of God’s character, but the text makes it clear that they are human creatures, not divine. We will discuss this more fully in the next blog post. Here, our emphasis is on the fact that humans discover their identity only when they recognize their place in the cosmic order.
It is significant that the first temptation in human history centered on the serpent’s attempt to get Eve to be dissatisfied with her status as a creature. In urging her to eat the forbidden fruit, Satan was pushing her to usurp the place of God. If you eat this fruit, he hissed, “You will be like God” (Gen. 3:5). Adam and Eve rebelled against their place in the created order and demanded autonomy. That is, they claimed the right to be a law unto themselves. Genesis teaches us that the essence of sin is saying to the King of the Universe, “Move over, you’re sitting in my chair!”
We are not animals.
Just as pagan cosmologies blur the distinction between God and man, so they blur the distinction between humans and animals. From a theological point of view, the primary problem with the theory of evolution is not the questionable science, but the negation of any qualitative distinction between man and animal. Humans are nothing more than the latest result of an aimless process. The only difference between a man and a monkey is a few million years of evolutionary development. When we teach our children that they are animals, should we really be shocked when they act that way?
Just as Michelangelo’s paintings have similarities to his sculptures, so humans and animals (primates, for example) share common characteristics. This is not surprising as they are both made by the same Creator! However, the differences, far more than the similarities, should be the thing that captures our interest. In contrast to the animals, humans talk, wear clothing, and walk erect. And I’ve never seen a monkey writing a blog about what it means to be a monkey! The difference between man and ape is qualitative, not just quantitative. Genesis explains that humans were created on the sixth day of creation and are the pinnacle of the created order. Created by the hand of God himself, they have been given authority to rule over all creation, including the animals (see Gen. 1:26-30; 2:7, 15-25).
We are not machines.
As technology progresses and especially as Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to develop, many today look to “machines” to better understand what it means to be human. Atheist Richard Dawkins says that we are “survival machines” in the service of our genes (quoted in The Face of God, by Roger Scruton, p. 2). Whether we are talking about cosmetic changes, reproductive technologies, surrogacy, eugenics, genetic engineering, enhanced physical abilities, gender reassignment surgeries, conquering disease, or prolonging life itself, our world today has embraced a utopian vision of human flourishing that will be made possible by technology and science. Many people dream of the day when we will be able to create a new version of the Garden of Eden. Human limitations (disease, ignorance, sexuality, death, etc.) are no longer seen as boundaries that must be accepted, but rather as hurdles that must be overcome! In the future, perhaps Americans will change their national motto to read: In technology we trust.
Conclusion
So, what does it mean to be human? Without the Bible to guide them, most people today rely on one of three flawed models to help them understand their identity.
I’m a god. I’m autonomous; I make the rules by which I live. I invent my own identity. I’m self-created.
I’m an animal. I do what my instincts tell me to do. It’s a dog-eat-dog world. Only the strong survive. I must look out for number one, eat or be eaten.
I’m a machine. My genetics determine my destiny. And if I don’t like the ‘program’ I’ve been given, I’ll look for a way to engineer a new one.
When the model is wrong, then humans become inhuman. But thankfully God has sent us his Son, Jesus Christ, a perfect example of what a human person is meant to be. Through the gospel he proclaimed and lived, those who are lost in the cosmos can be restored to their true humanity. We will explore this topic further in my next post.
If what I’ve written here leaves you feeling depressed, confused, guilty, and lost, take heart. Knowing who we aren’t prepares the way for knowing who we are! Let’s give our friend Pascal the final word.
Man’s greatness comes from knowing he is wretched: a tree does not know it is wretched. Thus, it is wretched to know that one is wretched, but there is greatness in knowing that one is wretched. (Pensées. #114).