וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱלֹהִ֔ים נַֽעֲשֶׂ֥ה אָדָ֛ם בְּצַלְמֵ֖נוּ כִּדְמוּתֵ֑נוּ’
And God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.”’1
On this verse from Genesis, and also on the verse in Leviticus 13:47 (“if there will be a tzaras affliction in a garment”), the great rabbinic commentary Sforno provides profound insight into Man’s uniqueness and Man’s purpose.
Sforno’s commentary on that verse seems to be based on Maimonides’ Guide to the Perplexed, meaning that the term “image” used in the Genesis 1:26 verse does not refer to the shape or physical configuration of Man. Rather the term “image” in that verse is referring to Man’s unique intellectual apprehension and ability to reason, characteristics that distinguish Man from any of the animals.
The Hebrew term translated as “likeness” in Genesis 1:26 refers to Man’s power of free will and ability to choose good or evil, which Man alone possesses among all Creation. Thus, the ultimate purpose of Man’s existence that is intended by the Creator, is that Man should make the Creator’s will as his own will, so that Man becomes more like the Creator (in Man’s actions) than all other creatures.
Thus, a profound message of the Torah is that Man’s purpose must be to serve the Creator of the Universe, a non-physical Creator who stands above the Universe. Man’s purpose cannot be to serve any of the creations or to serve regimes created by Man.
Communism and the Left have redefined Man’s purpose as serving the totalitarian state and world government, instead of serving God. These leftist ideologies are very jealous ideologies that leave no room for Man’s free will to serve God.
Submission to communism, atheism, and the Left devolve Man into an animal who lacks free will and who also is deprived of the right to rational, critical thinking.
In modern society, materialism, scientism, and Darwinism now function as types of substitute religions for traditional religions. These ideologies remove any meaning or purpose to Man or to the Universe, and devolve Man into an animal.
The Jewish Bible teaches the existence of one God who created ex-nihilo the Universe and its scientifically intelligible laws. However, the God of the Bible is above and beyond nature and has always existed. The God of Judaism communicates to Man through His prophets and expresses His will in the Torah.
The Torah thus teaches a Universal, God-given morality to all Mankind so as to elevate Man above the level of the animals and thereby to produce a just and moral human society where Man can attain his correct destiny.
These concepts taught by the Torah represent some of the most profound and significant ideas in world history, and they offer great meaning to the existence of Man along with profound moral instruction. This is especially true in the present degenerate world that seems to have lost any sense of moral compass or direction.
Man is not an animal. Animals cannot serve God, they can only exist the way God created them. Unlike the animals, Man’s purpose must be to serve the Creator of the Universe, as opposed to defining Man’s purpose is to serve any of the creations or to serve regimes created by Man. Totalitarianism, scientism, and Darwinism now function as types of substitute religions for traditional religions. These ideologies remove any meaning or purpose to the Universe.
1 Genesis 1:26
KNOWING GOD'S PATH 