Consider the different ways in which the Biblical accounts of
creation state that man is akin to God. In the one account man was
created in the image of God; in the other Jehovah formed man of the
dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils his own
life-giving breath. In what sense is man God-like? Are all men
"made in the image of God"? Does this story imply that every man
has the right and capacity to become God-like?
A high official of China, whose power of authority extends to
questions of life and death, is called "the father and mother of
his people." If he fails in the responsibility which his authority
imposes upon him, and the people in consequence create a
disturbance, he is severely punished, sometimes by death. Does
authority always imply responsibility? Of what value to man is the
conquest of the forces of nature? President Roosevelt said that he
considered the conservation of the natural resources of the United
States the most important question before the American people. Is
this political question also a religious question?
Why did God give man authority over the animal world? Does the
responsibility that comes from this authority rest upon every man?
One of the laws of the Boy Scouts reads:
"A scout is kind. He is a friend to animals. He will not kill nor
hurt any living creature needlessly, but will strive to save and
protect all harmless life." Is this a practical application of the
teaching in Genesis 1?
If God's purpose is to make everything good, man's highest
privilege, as well as duty, is to co-operate with him in realizing
that purpose. Are men to-day as a whole growing happier and
nobler? In what practical ways may a man contribute to the
happiness and ennobling of his fellow men?
Is your community growing better? What would be the result if you
and others like yourself did your best to improve conditions? If
so, how?
_Questions for Further Consideration_.
Is man's possession of knowledge and power the ultimate object of
creation? If not, what is? Does human experience suggest that
man's life on earth is, in its ultimate meaning, simply a school
for the development of individual character and for the perfecting
of the human race?
Is there any other practical way in which a man can serve God
except by serving his fellowmen? If so, how?
_Subjects for Further Study_.
(1) The Origin and Content of the Babylonian Stories of
Creation.--Hastings, _Dictionary of the Bible_, 1, 501-7; Kent,
_Student's O. T._, I, 360-9.
(2) The Relation of the Biblical Story of the Creation to the
Babylonian.--Kent, _Student's O. T._, I, 369-70.
(3) The Seeming Conflict Between the Teachings of the Bible and
Science and the Practical Reconciliation.--Sir Oliver Lodge:
_Science and Immortality_, Section 1.