Demographers tell us there are now over 8 billion of us on earth. And in spite of the numbers, genetics dictate that no two people are alike (including identical twins). No two people look or think alike. Yet, in the face of such diversity, the Hebrew Torah declares something radical: “Every human being is created in the likeness of God.”
Creation
Then God said, let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness . . . then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. (Gen. 1:26, 2:7, NRSVCE)
The science of the day says: no matter how one understands the cosmos and its inhabitants, the universe did not create itself. Evolution is the mechanism through which the universe and life develop. And there is a sufficient reason why there is something rather than nothing—why the universe is, rather than is not.
The Hebrew Scriptures teach that human beings are unique creatures. We are created in the likeness of God—b’tzelem Elohim—rendering every human being precious. This fundamental truth of Torah means that the perceptions we hold regarding our “quality of life” pale before the value inherent in the very existence of life itself.
A related principle in Judaic law called pikuach nefesh—preserving life—states that all laws (with few exceptions) can be set aside to save a human life. Even though Sabbath laws are quite strict, Jewish doctors and nurses go to work on the Sabbath, because they may potentially save a life.
Human Dignity
So, if life is precious, which is the greater value—one life or one thousand?
The Torah asserts you shall “not profit by the blood of your neighbor” (Lev. 19:16, NRSV). Hebrew sages taught that humans should not be permitted to hand over an innocent life, even to save many more lives. This is codified in the Code of Judaic Law (Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De’ah, 157:1).
For much of the 20th century, world powers were embroiled in continuous strife and conflict, each state vying for power through a struggle of ideologies. Today, the struggle exists between privilege and rights. And once again, it is the state which is the grand arbiter, not just over what constitutes life, but who has the right to live, as abortion and IVF take the lives of countless humans made in the image of God.
The science of biology is categorical in its understanding of life. The overwhelming consensus among biological scientists is that life begins with conception at fertilization; thus, both embryo and fetus are alive—they possess life. Steven Andrew Jacobs of Northwestern Pritzker School of Law is clear in his assessment:
Peer-reviewed journals in the biological and life sciences literature have published articles that represent the biological view that a human’s life begins at fertilization (“the fertilization view”). Overall, 95% of all biologists reviewed affirmed the biological view that a human’s life begins at fertilization (5212 out of 5502).
Justice
Since life has inherent dignity, how is justice served to preserve that dignity?
The prophet Amos delivers a powerful message about the necessity of seeking God to establish justice. In Amos 5:24 he declares, “But let justice roll on like a river, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” This imagery suggests that justice is dynamic and life-giving, akin to a river that sustains and nourishes. Amos calls the people to seek God, as only through God can true justice flow abundantly.
Seeking justice is a way of seeking God. On the morning of Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Hebrew calendar, observants read from the prophet Isaiah what God requires of them: “to loosen all the bonds that bind men unfairly, to let the oppressed go free, to break every yoke . . . do not turn away from people in need” (Isa. 58:6-10, NRSV). Is preserving the life of the unborn somehow not included in what God requires of us? Does unbinding those bound, freeing the oppressed, and not turning away from those in need somehow of greater value to God than preserving the life created in His image?
Right to Live
We humans sometimes stumble over our ethics, and this is especially true when it comes to defenseless, unborn humans, completely dependent on other humans for their very survival. Because they do not yet resemble us in form and intellect, owing to their immature biological state as a fetus in the womb or an embryo in a test tube, there are those among us who feel justified in taking on the mantle of authority over life—which is only God’s to give and take.
We deprive helpless humans of the life God gave them because for some they are an “inconvenient,” or worse, “irrelevant” truth in our lives. Millions every year have their lives taken from them through abortion (73 million) or in vitro fertilization. Moreover, many who rail against abortion are accepting of IVF and its unnecessary current methodology. This is where our self-interested human nature and “easily bribed” human reason conspire to flaunt God’s will by arrogating to ourselves the power which is only God’s to wield.
The US Conference of Catholic Bishops proclaims:
. . . that human life is sacred, and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. In our society, human life is under direct attack from abortion and euthanasia. The value of human life is being threatened by cloning, embryonic stem cell research and the use of the death penalty.
We urge our bishops to include in vitro fertilization among the threats to the value of human life.
“We believe,” the bishops continue, “that every person is precious, that people are more important than things, and that the measure of every institution is whether it threatens or enhances the life and dignity of the human person.”
Torah hearkens us back to life, its consummate worth, to human dignity, creation, and God. May the senseless death of God’s defenseless children, deemed unworthy of dignity and life, give us pause to hear its message—the message of the Pentateuch of the Catholic Bible.
Photo by Taylor Flowe on Unsplash
