So God created man in his own image; in the
image of God he created him.
Gen 1:27
In what ways are we
made in the image of
Made in the Image of God
• Not Physically
• We are co-creators
• We have the divine spirit (but so does all
of life) – dignity of the human person
• We have freedom of choice – capable of
great love but also great evil
• We have a greater sense of
consciousness and intelligence
How do we distort our
image?
As cocreators?
In Human
dignity
In
Freedom?
Genesis 3 –
The Fall of Man
4 "You will not surely
die," the serpent said
to the woman.
5 "For God knows that
when you eat of it your
eyes will be opened,
and you will be like
God, knowing good
and evil."
• The tree of good and evil
symbolically represents the limits
that we have as creatures. Limits
we should respect with trust. We
are dependant upon our creator.
Genesis 3 –
The Fall of Man
• In their sin, Adam and Eve
stopped trusting God, and
disobeyed His command. They
preferred themselves to God and
in that act, scorned Him.
“like God” is not the
same as “with God.”
• Satan is a liar and deceiver. The
CCC calls the devil’s seduction
“mendacious” aka: lying - false untrue - untruthful - doubletongued
Genesis 3 –
The Fall of Man
• Satan cannot create. He can only
twist and pervert what God has
created.
“like God” is not the
same as “with God.”
The Modern Human Image: A
Distortion of Reality
You cannot serve two masters – imagine if we put this much
energy into cultivating our spirituality… Instead of serving God, we
serve our image…
Unrealistic Expectations
Ah yes! The sexy, exotic, curvy
female with her deep blue
eyes, luscious lips, full
cleavage, perfect skin and of
course angel wings. Merry
Christmas indeed!!!
But what is not made evident is
that this image is digitally
enhanced. No one looks like this
in real life… yet the damage is
done. The male sees this and is
almost immediately seduced.
The female sees the reaction
and thinks that she then must
look the same. Thus the war on
the self begins…
It’s Just as Difficult for Guys…
How many hours would a guy have to spend
working out just to come close to this image? The
result is countless hours spent sculpting bodies,
which often then translates into a over-developed
ego combined with possible steroid usage leading
to various health issues.
Beauty Ensnares
• We become enraptured by beauty – physical
beauty is particularly seductive & companies
know this
• Why are we so absorbed by beauty?
• Why is it never permanent?
• Why can it never satisfy?
Beauty has its source in God
• Though we try, we can never possess beauty
• Beauty possess us; it grasps us
• Our desire for beauty is our desire for God and so
we should approach it with respect, humility,
appreciation
• In fact, God is beauty. God is the source and
cause of all beauty, and all beautiful things share
in the beauty of God
Our Desire for Beauty
• Beauty is the only quality of God that can be sensed
by the physical body. It shines before the eyes naked
and undisguised. Therefore, it “pleases” the senses,
which are always ready to be pleased again.
• Beauty has varying degrees and multiple expressions
– e.g. models vs the person you love and want to
spend the rest of your life with
• We need to use our intellect to examine our desire for
beauty. We need to think about when it is good and
when it is disordered.
All Shapes and Sizes
It is completely ludicrous to
think that anyone should fit
one body image. The fact is
that there are thousands of
different shapes and sizes
and guess what… each is
beautiful when the individual
realizes that beauty radiates
from within.
Think back to how you are
made in the image of God…
a physical body will decay
over time, but the beauty of
the spirit can last a life time.
The most important question is, what do
you see when you look into the mirror?
ANGER
CONFIDENCE
RESENTMENT
CURIOUSITY
ANXIETY
CALM
DESPAIR
HAPPY
DENIAL
ACCEPTANCE
WORTHLESS
VALUED
PITY
APPRECIATED
SHAME
RESPECTED
Two Key Concepts
See beauty for
what it really
is… a reflection
of the infinite,
creative power
of God
Exercise and be healthy
because your body is a
gift! Not because you
want to try and imitate
some unrealistic image
that the media and
corporations have
thrown at you!
The Dignity of the Human
Person
Every person, from the first moment of
their life in the womb, has an inviolable
dignity, because from all eternity God
willed, loved, created, and redeemed that
person and destined them for eternal
happiness.