GODLINESS and ANIMALNESS

Maybe you’ve heard that according to the Bible we were made in the image of God? What does this mean? And perhaps more importantly: What in our lives today is godly? And what in our lives is not godly or ungodly? 

When we choose whether to engage in a certain activity or not, it may be wise to ask ourselves: Am I acting in a divine or animalistic way? This is one of the ways that we can use to discern how to apply what the Bible says to our own lives. 

It’s also one way to make the Biblical teachings make sense. What do I mean by this? Well, I’ve been noticing how it’s not always obvious why the Bible or Jesus in particular says a certain thing or sets a certain example. But, looking at the bigger picture, I’ve been able to see that it has been good for me. And this is important: The Bible doesn’t say that we should do some things, abstain from others, adopt a certain attitude or follow a certain example just because it pleases God. It says what it says because what it says is good for us. If we look at the Bible as a rulebook that we need to follow to avoid punishment or get rewarded, we are missing the whole point. And for the record, I don’t believe in hell, even though I don’t rule it out completely either. All I’m saying is that I don’t think that the Bible should be viewed either as a threat or as a set of rules that hinder us from enjoying life. 

At the root of godliness and animalness is the question of free will. As far as I know, humans are the only beings with freedom of choice. Animals act according to their nature, to their instincts. They often act out of love, but it is not a love that they choose. 

This means that whenever we are acting mindlessly and just follow our impulses, we are choosing animalness. Or rather, we let animalness guide our lives because we do not make a conscious choice. 

Here I would like to add a small note: This does not mean that if we are not super strict with ourselves, we are acting like animals. This is about making conscious choices. And making conscious choices includes being kind to ourselves. And sometimes, being kind to ourselves means that we allow ourselves to indulge in a bad habit that we at the moment feel is too hard to break. But making conscious choices also means to be ready to let go of one’s vices as soon as it feels as if it is in one’s power. 

Choices or the act of not making choices of course also affects us. Acting like animals does something to us. We become a little less free. A little more ruled by our instincts. And the reverse is also true. The more we embrace our divine nature, the more we move away from our instinct driven selves. 

This is one of those interesting paradoxes of being human. The more restrictions we place upon ourselves, as long as it’s the right restrictions, the more free we become.

We don’t see many things that are right in front of us until they are identified and labelled. So it is with the division between animalness and divinity. Once the distinction is made, as long as we don’t forget about it, we cannot help but seeing it. And the more we learn, the more responsibility is placed on our shoulders. And the more responsibility we can take on, the richer and freer life becomes. But it also becomes harder.

Knowing that we can approach our choices in life from an animalistic or godly place is a heavy burden if we take this knowledge seriously. But it is a burden that we have to take on if we wish to be free. Our animal natures inevitably lead to slavery to our instincts. It might be a comfortable and even pleasurable slavery. But no matter how much gold we manage to pour over our cage, the cage will always be a cage.

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