The greatest challenge we have in justifying our use of logic in addressing questions of faith is the language we use to communicate a concept.
A perfect example of this dilemma is the statement in the book of Genesis that God created the human in His own image. And the very human response is to immediately translate the term “image” into a visual representation.
Consider how many pieces of art – drawings, sculptures, paintings, etc. that you have seen in your lifetime. The vast majority depict God as a wise senior citizen with long, white flowing beard, dressed in a white flowing robe.
Is this the “image”of God? Or is there another interpretation?
Part of our struggle with understanding the messages of the Bible, is that we are handicapped by our pre-programmed interpretation of a particular word or phrase. Since none of us can read the Bible texts in their original language, we rely on scholars to translate those texts into a language we can understand. Those scholars, in turn, rely on previous generations of knowledge.
And it gets even more complicated.
We also need to consider that many words or phrases are fluid in their meaning. An easy example would be the phrase “hard drive.” While we may use that phrase today to describe a memory storage device in our computer – before the computer age it more likely meant a rough road trip. As technology advances, even today’s understanding may become obsolete.
The idea of God creating mankind in His “image” is subject to the same tests.
If we apply our logic filter to this question, we should recognize that God’s “image” is much more complex than a simple visual representation. If we accept that God exists as a spiritual entity, the visual concept of the old man with the flowing robes just doesn’t fit. Certainly, the creator of the universe could appear any way He would choose, but the human form is merely the form we can relate to.
Once we think it through, we might conclude that God’s “image” is more likely a combination of traits, rather than a physical form.
Perhaps God’s image is that of a self-aware being, capable of self-direction, capable of knowing right from wrong, capable of knowing good from evil and capable of freely making choices.
Perhaps God’s image is being capable of understanding concepts outside of our personal experience.
Perhaps God’s image means being capable of imagining something that doesn’t exist and then creating it.
Perhaps God’s image is being capable of unconditional love.
Perhaps it is time to discard the visual concept and embrace and appreciate the fullness of what it means to be created in God’s image.