The sanctity of life
In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the LORD sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.
Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.
And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. Isa 6:1-3
Holy, holy, holy. In this hymn, the Hebrew word qadhosh is translated into the latin sanctus, or holy. And what does it mean to be holy? That which must be preserved whole or intact, that cannot be transgressed or violated. That which is set apart, and consecrated for a specific purpose. That which is bound, protected and ordained by oath.
And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. Gen 2:7
That which animates us is the very breath of God, and to treat life as a thing of low value, is to treat God–his spirit, and his gift of life–as a thing of low value.
But so what? How does this inform daily life? Jason raises the issue of blood donation, sperm donation, buying and selling human ova. How does the Judeo-Christian concept of holiness, or sanctity, impact our view of the treatment of life in these and other such situations?
May 18th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. Gen 2:7
That which animates us is the very breath of God. . .
Maybe that is why breathing is important in most forms of meditation. I remember Doug leading a small group study on the disciplines and talking about breathing in the peace of God and breathing out anything negative. That concentration on the breath is also used in relaxation exercises to reduce stress and anxiety. If we pay attention to our very breath and acknowledge that our life is dependent on that gift from God, it helps us to be grateful to and in awe of our Creator, Who humbles Himself to take up residence within us.
An obvious situation to which this applies is abortion. If we, as people who acknowledge God within us, and His breath as the life giving force of all who live, how could we justify ending the life of an innocent pre-born child of God?
May 26th, 2008 at 11:57 am
I sat by the river in Durango and soaked it all in. Why can’t we not slow down our lives and value YHWH, i.e. Worship Him in all His Creation?