Man Created in the Image of God and Nursing Essay

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Genesis 1:27 has huge implications for the nursing profession, creating an attitude of respect and social justice that permeates our practice and impacts all our interactions with patients and coworkers. Through a Biblical lens, we are able to make ethical decisions with clarity, grace, and ease. The truth of man being created in the image of God essentially implies that to offend a human being in any way is to offend God. The authority of God is implicit and explicit in the work of nursing, guiding personal philosophy and easily coexist with evidence-based practice. Theology and nursing practice both offer systematic methods of treating patients with revealed knowledge.

"So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them," (Genesis 1:27). This seminal passage is one of the underpinnings of Judeo-Christian thought. For example, we learn that God does not discriminate according to the diversity in the human species. When faced with patients whose backgrounds, values, and beliefs differ from our own, we simultaneously see that those differences are relatively superficial in light of the binding truth exposed in Genesis and throughout the Bible. "Male and female he created them," showing that gender does not impact quality of care delivery in any situation, while also implying that race and other superficial factors should never interfere with care delivery. The patient provides the nurse with the ongoing opportunity for self-reflection on bias, prejudice, and impacts on quality of care. Moreover, the patient becomes like a mirror for the divine, for being in the "image" of God implies a reflection thereof.

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Lossy (1974) calls the philosophy of man being in the image of God a specific theological vision called the "theology of the image," (p. 1). As a cohesive theology, the theology of the image provides clear guidelines for nursing practice.

Another example of how the theology of the image plays itself out in my practice is outlined in 1 Corinthians 11:7, in which we learn specifically how Jesus intended His new covenant with mankind to express itself in terms of gender differentiation. "A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man." The passage directly mentions the doing away with ancient Jewish customs like the donning of the head cover in houses of worship or throughout daily life, while also drawing attention to the importance of patriarchal structures. If woman is heretofore perceived of as the "glory of man," then indeed the role of women in nursing is a special one. For example, the profession of nursing has traditionally been dominated by female labor. The gender issues in nursing that we encounter are reflections of Biblical truth and wisdom, as outlined….....

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