Imago Dei

Charles Bridge, Prague

They were there on the plane, on the train, on the bus.  We found them in the Big Market at the foot of the Green bridge in Pest.  There were lines of them at the Burger King amid the little stalls that sold postcards, Hungarian dolls, magic boxes, candies.  They were on the beautiful bridges that spanned the quiet, gentle, calm Danube.  They were everywhere we were.  They were at the German Reichstag, droves of them, and at the holocaust memorial.  They were at Potsdam Platz.

Then there were some at the Budapest library, at “Connections” in Berlin and in friends’ homes.  Budapest is picturesque beyond words.  Berlin is enigmatic, beautiful but with a checkered past. But neither one compares to the remarkable people we’ve met.

Church group off to Janos Hill, Budapest

Imago Dei!  I may not remember a lot of things my theology professor taught me, but this one really stood out.  He said it often enough that you don’t easily forget it.  Genesis 1:27 “And God created man in His own image.”  He was created with the moral, intellectual and spiritual nature of God, attributes that make him different from the rest of creation.

Don and I often talk of the many men and women who have touched our lives profoundly with their Godly character.  They confirm Genesis 1:27 and what I’ve often heard from my theology professor.  Imago Dei. They’ve left their marks on us, some through lifelong friendships, some through momentary gentle brushes of kindness.  There are those who easily come to mind.   Jared & Marilee Barker, Willard Black – friends, encouragers, mentors for over 50 years or so; then there are those whose names we didn't even know, met them during travels - a young man in his mid-twenties seated next to Don who traded stories with us to while away some of the many hours on the train from Berlin to Budapest. Another young man sitting next to me on the plane patiently explaining our flight route home to San Francisco.

But what do we do with those whose Godlikeness is covered over so hideously by the barnacles grown on them by the difficulties of life or by their poor stewardship of what God gave them? What do I think of the homeless poor I so often see sprawled on some sidewalk in our city street?  Do I feel disdain at the drug addicts who spouted 4-letter words at me as they yelled their anger against the world?  I remember a particular young man who came to me once when I was assigned to the Information desk at the District Attorney's Office.  He had a black eye and showed signs of having been assaulted.  He told me his pimp did that to him, and he wanted to press criminal charges.  I was polite and helpful, but some part of me did not want to deal with him.  Sometimes it is difficult to see Imago Dei in them, but they, too, are created in God’s image.

One whose home is a city sidewalk

Tim Keller asks, “What if we took Imago Dei seriously?”  I ask myself the same question.  It would be like putting on a pair of God’s prescription glasses.

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. (Genesis 1:27 NIV)

 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good . . . .          (Genesis 1:31 NIV)