If God made man in His own image...?

Question

Why are our internal organs structurally and functionally the same as those of every other mammal?

Also, why do only humans and bats have an appendix?

Todd, you're avoiding the question :)

Speaking of avoiding the question... meena, parrots can count. I've seen it. Have you seen God?

Themightysloth - really good answer! Thanks for taking the time to think about this question :)

Starjumper - yes, parrots are taught tricks but I've seen counting experiments in a scientific context - cockatiels are particularly good at it. As for your answer, you are like many others avoiding the question: regardless of mental ability - a product of evolution - why are mammals (including us) virtually identical internally? Is this not an indication of a common ancestor?

Answer 1

I said this before in answering another question so I hope its not too repetitive. I believe in an obedient God. He being righteous would need to follow his own laws. The atmosphere of the Earth that we live in takes a certain biological make up to surivive. I have absolutely no idea what the purpose of a appendix is (I'm sure its there for a reason, but myself not being All-Knowing wouldn't know). It is the best body He could give us (just like His own- yes I do believe that He has a body). I dont pretend to be wise enough to know why He gave a similar biological make up to the animals He created except to say that it is the best biological make up for the mammal family. Its like asking why did he create the fly or the cockroach when at first glance they serve no apparent purpose to our world, but with a closer look one can find that they help us manage our waste.

I wouldn't conclude that this similarity shows a link to common ancestory but rather an ingenious mind. If it were due to a common ancestor why are there still monkeys and gorillas(although there are some people who look like they have common ancestory) because wouldn't they be people/cavemen by now? I believe in evolution to a degree. I dont believe that the original image of God is dirt or a monkey but I do believe that animals and man do evolve to adapt to their habitats and so forth.

I know it was kind of a vague answer but come on everyone who wants an answer is just grasping at straws as it is anyway (beit religion or science). Right?

Answer 2

Man is the only creature with a soul or spirit if you like. He could have made us with 8 limbs and an exoskeleton and still put a soul in us.... but then you would be saying why do we physically resemble a spider.

OK if you need more info... God created fish, monkeys, cats, dog and man to live in a particular environment and that will require a certain biological compatibility in the ability to digest, breath and survive in that environment. Without the ability to digest the food (plant and animal) life then Adam and Eve would have starved in the first few weeks after creation. The amount of proteins, vitamins, minerals, oxygen are all required for his creations to survive and thrive why would he change basic structure. It would be like someone coming out with a 5 or 7 wheel car, it wouldn't fit on the road, mechanics would have a hard time etc. The basic pattern of life is in place for this environment it would be silly to revise it.

"The principle of [divine] purpose ... stares the biologist in the face wherever he looks ... . The probability for such an event as the origin of DNA molecules to have occurred by sheer chance is just too small to be seriously considered ... ."Ernst Boris Chain - Nobel Prize in medicine

Answer 3

The difference is in the DNA. There is only a small minuscle fraction of it that sets us apart. But look at the huge difference.

Animals learn solely by instinct, repetition & association.

Humans can talk, read, write (as in composing stories, songs, etc.) and a really big one is meta thinking. Anotherwords we can chose to think about thinking. Or we can think about several things while talking about another & doing something else with our bodies, all at the same time.

Our heart beats as a muscle involuntarily. But humans can choose to make it stop and start again. Determine to take long breaths or short because we want to.

A really big difference that few people think of is we can comtemplate and/or fear dying. Animals can mourn loss of companionship, etc. They can even be afraid of any pain involved while in the process. That's still falls under instinct and/or impulse. But they can't sit down & think about their mortality or fear dying. They don't wonder who will remember them or even care if someone will. Make arrangements for their physical body or worry what comes after.

The same God created us all. But it was ONLY man that He breathed HIS life into. That's the image we were created in.

I'm a writer and anyone who is an artist will tell you each one has a style that is unique to that person, no matter the subject. That's how I see the Lord. A master artist. He creates everything but no matter how different or alike each piece may be (the DNA) the style is the same. The difference with man is He included a piece of Himself.

Answer 4

Man is the only creature that has a higher intellect, can speak multiple languages, knows right from wrong, can create and write music for anyone to play, has a way to communicate with writing, can build with enormous complexity, can provide medicine, cure his diseases and afflictions, and so much more. We are made in God's image in that we are above other creatures and can commune with God. Some animals share our physical structure and anatomy but most do not...man is the only mammal that walks upright on a regular basis and has opposible thumbs. We are quite unique and wonderfully made.

Answer 5

Paul, a question with lots of reasoning and rationality. Parrots were previously believed only to mimic sounds but recently it was discovered that they can think for themselves and produce their words after thinking. Elephants also Mourn their dead by moving hundreds of miles to the burial place. Many animals have feelings especially mammals. If you believe in Evolution, then this is because we only evolved from these animals.

Answer 6

Agh, that's always a rough question. A very good one though none-the-less.

Say God made Man in his own image, but God is everything and everyone...why aren't we the same? Why aren't we just energy? Does God have a physical image?

I'd say that ultimately the belief is its' not necessarily that God made man in his physical image, but perhaps what most could argue is in more the mental/spiritual sense. Afterall, as humans we believe to have a higher level of functioning than pretty much any animal/life form on the planet, is that perhaps what was intended?

If God is everything and everyone, then our organs could also be of a similar principle on a biological front too. Though just because I make say an ice statue in my image, its' not the SAME as me, it has several fundamental differences.

Just my arguement on that one though. Ultimately it comes down to the belief and ideals though, people believe what makes sense to them.

It is a strange concept though :/

Toodles

Answer 7

Your question is wrong. Man has brain which can think and choose his action. Animals cant even count from 1 to 10. They act upon instinct and reflexes. Man knows there is fire at a distance when he sees smokes coming up. Man cant make the Image of God. Simple reason is man cant even complete the image of God's creation how can he make the image of the Creator without understanding the creations fully.
refer my best answers for further explanations.

Answer 8

We are different from other mammals in the sense that we are aware of our own mortality. No other animal worries about dying like we do, and no other animal has a problem with not existing. Humans are somehow incapable of accepting the notion that they will cease to exist after death (so you have Valhalla, Heaven, Hell, Reincarnation etc).

And parrots are taught to mimic sounds, they don't count literally.

Answer 9

Yes God created man in his own image...same body structures

Because they also eat food like us,breath,and inhale and exhale..

Do mammals have soul?
Do mammals can talk?.

Answer 10

well... the bible is not a book like anyother. that book was written look ago and as you know language change overtime. the fact is that certain things in the bible shd be understood. yes God made man in his image. thequestion is do spiritual beings have images? the answer is No. when the bible talks of image it means Likeness ..... in certain aspects such as love, knowledge, kindness, creativity, etc. all these ae found in humans.