Being human is complex. To many, being human means being a complicated machine, having higher cognition, using our hands, possessing the power of technology and reasoning ability, having the ability of language, standing upright and possessing a big brain. Other point to the capability of creation and destruction, having a sense of right and wrong, being morally responsible, relying on our emotions, sharing, ruling others, striving to look for life's deeper meaning, and being uniquely crafted by God for a purpose.
A few other viewpoints about this issue: It is a mystery; it is thrilling to be alive, but it can be scary and troubling also for many; we are a medley of good and wicked, hope and gloom, success and failure, etc.; we are semi-divine and we are here to glorify God; we need to be fully present to relish pure joy; etc.
Some find the question itself as problematic and selfish and pointless. The whole concept can be confusing and chaotic for many. Countless people are worried: What happens to us after we die?
We asked our panel: What does it mean to be human?
Any being who shares our DNA
Kenneth G. Lucey, philosophy/religion professor emeritus, University of Nevada
Some properties that do not adequately define humans are those important human properties we share with other living creatures. Humans typically have two legs, but so do many other nonhuman creatures like birds and kangaroos. Humans can talk, but so can parrots. Consciousness is a prominent human property, but we share it with all our dogs and cats. Having a large vocabulary is a property we share with many current artificial intelligence systems, e.g., AI chat software.
One possible answer to what it means to be human is our awareness of our mortality, but that isn’t exactly right, because very young children are surely human although unaware of their mortality. It’s possible that the universe is full of life forms more advanced than humans. If true, my best answer to the question posed is that any being who shares the DNA found in us qualifies as a human being.
Morally responsible
Sherif A. Elfass, member, Northern Nevada Muslim Community
Human beings are a unique life form created in a special way. Allah (SWT) says that He created Adam (PBUH), the first human being, with “His two Hands” (Quran 38:75). Nothing else in creation possesses this distinction. Plus, human beings were created with unique gifts and abilities unlike any other. They have knowledge, conscience, and free will, which make them exceptional from other living creation such as animals and plants. With such qualities, every human being can decide how to live their life.
With that said, being human, in my view, is to recognize my Creator, realize my purpose in life, and fulfill it. Being human means while acknowledging that I have needs and desires, I also acknowledge my ability to control them. Being human is to accept that I will commit sins but to make every effort to sincerely repent soon after. Being human means to be morally responsible.
Humans have souls
Daniel H. Mueggenborg, bishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of Reno
The human being is created in God’s image and has both a physical body and an eternal soul. It is the soul which distinguishes humans from other animals and gives rise to the distinctively human attributes of intellect and will.
The gift of our intellect gives us the ability to reason, discern, and know the truth. Our intellect reaches its greatest fulfillment when we come to know God.
The gift of our will is the source of our true freedom by which we can choose what is good and reject what is evil. All of our actions arise from the exercise of our free will and the ultimate expression of our will is when we choose to love and follow God.
Although the effective exercise of these attributes may vary from one person to the next, our human dignity is based not on our function but on our nature.
Human is betwixt and between
Matthew T. Fisher, resident priest, Reno Buddhist Center
All beings in the world are born into one of six different realms of rebirth: the realm of the gods, of demi-gods, of humans, of animals, of hungry ghosts, or in hell.
Human birth is very advantageous. Humans are able to discern "skillful" versus "unskillful" actions. We suffer and we have a measure of control over that experience. In other realms there is no control. Animals, for instance, operate by their genetic programming and have no recourse to change the course of their karma. And the gods are never challenged since they do not suffer, because of that they are unlikely to learn and grow from experience. Humans are uniquely in the middle — able to experience life’s bumpy road and to make good choices to influence their rebirth. We are able to have profound spiritual growth, to learn and find deep insight into reality as it is.
Children of deity
Michael L. Peterson, northwestern Nevada media specialist, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
To be human means to be an offspring of deity. Distinct from every other living thing upon the earth. God created our spirits and knew us before we ever came to earth (Jeremiah 1:5). He created a plan for each of his obedient spirit children to gain experience in mortality and return to Him with greater understanding (Ephesians 1:3-4).
God created the first man, Adam, in God's own image and gave our first parents the commandment to multiply and replenish earth. Adam's partaking of the fruit forbidden by God, caused him to fall and become subject to physical death thereby creating an opportunity for each of us to come to earth for a physical body and to gain spiritual growth. Adam and Eve should therefore be honored for their role in making our eternal growth possible. To know who we truly are is the most important enlightenment we can acquire.
Just to be
Dawn M. Blundell, lead pastor, Epworth United Methodist Church, Fallon
It’s an essential part of most Christian belief systems that human beings are the pinnacle of God’s creation. God’s masterpiece, uniquely beloved, with important responsibilities as God’s caretakers of the world. But there is a part of me that wonders whether we are quite as special as we like to believe. Or, put another way, I wonder whether God doesn’t love and give as essential a purpose to trees and penguins and dogs and worms as God does to us.
Blasphemous, I know. And yet.
This question doesn’t ask what it is to be a good human. Just a human. So maybe what it means to be human is just to be the mysterious creatures that we are — selfish, destructive, prideful, hateful … and also selfless, brave, brilliant, creative, loving. To strive to be better, to fail sometimes, and to succeed. And in failure and success, to be extravagantly loved by God.
To be human Is …
Karen A. Foster, minister, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Northern Nevada
To be human is to be fully engaged in a lifelong learning journey.
To be human is to acknowledge that there is no such thing as perfection and that most of us are doing the best we can most of the time.
To be human is to extend grace to ourselves and each other.
To be human is to live in a physical body and to recognize that we are spiritual beings having a human experience. We are so much more than our physical selves; we are spirit, our essence is the energy of spirit and love.
To be human is to have the impulse and desire for connection.
To be human is to understand there are many things we cannot control, we may have to do some letting go and find our peace in the face of things that are different than we wish they were.
Strive to be human
ElizaBeth Webb Beyer, Jewish rabbi
“In a place where no one is acting like a human being, strive to be a human being” (Pirkei Avot 2:5). This means we have a duty to act with thoughtfulness, guided by ethics, compassion and love — even when no one cares, even when no one is watching and especially when others are misguided. Embrace gratitude for the privilege of being conscious and being given the opportunity for learning and growth.
Judaism commands us to be responsible to G-d, to each other and to ourselves. Each of us is part of an integral network of humanity. As Heschel says, “A person is not just a specimen of the species called hom*o sapiens. He is all of humanity in one, and whenever one is hurt, we are all injured. The human is a disclosure of the divine … Many things on earth are precious, some are holy, humanity is holy of holies.”
To be in communion
Stephen R. Karcher, presiding priest, Saint Anthony Greek Orthodox Church
You and I are meant for “free and conscious communion and union with God.” This is, above all else, the distinguishing feature of what it means to be fully and completely human.
From a mortal perspective, communion is our endeavor to serve God through a life of prayer and action. It’s by offering our “loving praise and reverent gratitude,” that we consciously work to unite ourselves with God. But there’s more to it, because communion with God includes communion also with other people, and, in fact, the entire world. Ultimately, a life lived in communion means we are active participants in God’s ongoing work of transformation. It’s what the Apostle describes as becoming “partakers of the divine nature.” Each of us, each human person, is the unique object of divine love, and by freely sharing in the community of Christ’s body we will find entry into full union with God.
Attaining knowledge and virtues
Nancy Lee Cecil, Baha’i teacher
Inherent in humans is the capacity to attain knowledge about all things visible and invisible. Abdu’l-Baha states, “From known realities … (humans) were given the intelligence to discover unknown things.” Humanity’s advancement in spiritual and material knowledge — encompassing such areas as scientific progress, the development of just systems of government, technological innovation and artistic endeavors — are expressions of the unique powers of humanity, all absent in lower forms of life. Humans, by virtue of their God-given intelligence, are able to break the laws of nature by soaring above the earth, diving beneath the seas, or sailing above the oceans.
Moreover, in all creatures except humans, all conscious knowledge is absent. The lower kingdoms are devoid of sophisticated memory, volition, and perception; humans possess them all. Perhaps more importantly, there are virtues, such as compassion and altruism, that can potentially be developed in humans but are never present in the other kingdoms.
God's image
Bryan Smith, lead pastor, Summit Christian Church, Sparks
To be human is to be made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26). This doesn’t mean we are divine, but rather reflect the divinity of God. God has intellect, emotions and volition. We too possess these and utilize them to create, communicate, discover, etc.
To be human is also to have purpose and need. According to the Westminster Catechism, our purpose is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. When it comes to our needs, all our needs are met by God because we are not self-sufficient.
Ultimately, though, to be human is to be both temporal body and eternal soul. We possess moral responsibility and are impacted by sin to the point that our very soul is fractured and in need of redemption. Yes, our body will return to dust. But our soul will exist in eternity either in the presence of God or in eternal torment.
We are
Anthony Shafton, author and atheist thinker
We are the fourth African ape, hom*o sapiens, here on 4.5-billion-year-old blue Planet Earth. We are as fearfully symmetrical as any tiger, or blind cave fish. But we are animals who know we are animals — what’s more, we can say it!
We are genes in a bag, yet at the same time each a person. We are bad persons, some of us, and we are good persons — putzes and mensches. To be human is to be able to be a mensch. Some say we are made in the image of God; some say not. All agree we can imagine such a thing as God and being made in that image. We are able to think about what that means, to be or not to be.
We are all of the “above” as well as all “below” — human, all too human. The nub of it is, we are.
The struggle to be
Toni King, spiritual leader, Unity Center of Reno
As science continues to learn how other species express love and think critically, we find ourselves having more in common with those with whom we share planet Earth. Sages believe animals possess an innate sense of oneness with all. As we humans evolve in consciousness we are increasingly coming to this same understanding. The question within me, then, moves from “What does it mean to be a human being?,” to “What does it mean to be a Being?”
A Being is a reflection of Divine Love and Intelligence and is ever evolving toward a deeper understanding of Oneness. A Being knows It may appear to be separate, but in Truth, sees the God within Itself and all others. When experiencing grief, suffering, or simply the uncomfortableness of growth, a Being feels Its connection to something Greater and can choose a higher thought. To be human is the struggle To Be.
Next week’s topic:What are the sexual ethics of your religion?
Faith Forum is a weekly dialogue on religion produced by religious statesman Rajan Zed. Send questions or comments to rajanzed@gmail.com or on Twitter at @rajanzed.
