Wednesday Wisdom: What Diminishes Our Humanity?

As Christians, we believe every person is created in the imago Dei—the image of God. Our dignity doesn’t come from what we achieve, what others think of us, or even how we see ourselves. It comes from the One who made us. And yet, throughout history and in our daily lives, we see countless ways humanity gets diminished.

St. Irenaeus

The glory of God is man fully alive.

When we live in alignment with God’s purposes, we flourish. But, when sin, pride, or injustice distort our vision, our humanity shrinks. In his writings, Augustine reminded us that while sin mars the image of God in us, grace restores it.

The words of the late C.S. Lewis offer a sobering insight: “As long as you are proud you cannot know God… a proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down you cannot see something that is above you.”

Pride diminishes not only our view of others, but also our vision of God.

We also diminish humanity when we ignore the suffering of others. Martin Luther King Jr. declared, “Any religion that professes to be concerned about the souls of men and is not concerned about the slums that damn them, the economic conditions that strangle them, and the social conditions that cripple them is a dry-as-dust religion.”

Injustice robs people of their dignity, and indifference compounds the wound.

William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, put it plainly: “You cannot call a man worthless and then claim to serve the God who died for him.”

So what restores our humanity? Love. Not a sentimental, shallow love, but the self-giving love modeled by Christ.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

The person who loves their dream of community will destroy community, but the person who loves those around them will create community.

This week’s wisdom is simple but challenging: Our humanity grows when we honor the image of God in others. It diminishes when we exalt ourselves, ignore suffering, or strip people of their worth.

Let us walk humbly, love deeply, and see each person as a reflection of the God who made them.

Micah 6:8 NIV

He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?