Why was Mankind Created?
12 Though the existential question about why we are here transcends any religious discussion, it plays a vital role in discussions surrounding different faiths and their principles.
2In many belief systems, our lives are supposedly to be spent serving and worshipping a God in the hopes of being worthy to spend an eternity with him – further serving and worshipping him. 30therwise we are cast into the depths of Hell.
4Many of the arguments put forth here are part of the Christian doctrine though they will equally apply to Judaism, as creationist details (found in Genesis) are also part of the Torah.
God Needs To be Worshipped
5This is a frequent explanation, though it raises more questions than it answers when reasoned logically. 6This has been addressed in more detail in its own chapter, but a further point should be made here.
7If, from a Christian perspective, we exist solely to do God s work and to worship him, then our total existence is to provide some sort of audience and appeasement for God s ego. 8This seems to be in complete contradiction to the notion of an all-loving God. 9It also means that nothing we do whilst we are here is relevant. 1OThough this may be unappealing, and not reflect well on his nature, this seems to be exactly what Christians who hold this point of view are saying.
Perhaps for Company?
11It would be a somewhat reasonable assumption that a spiritual or astral being might get lonely and need companionship, like a human taking on a pet. 12However, this suggests that there is no real purpose to our existence other than the relationship itself.
13But just how lonely are the gods? 14The deities in a polytheistic world-view are most certainly not al one. 15Hindus believe that their main gods all have wives and children, so they are clearly not desperate for additional company. 16Deities in ancient Greece and Egypt also had spouses, children and other spiritual creatures surrounding them. 17The heavens were busy places in those days.
18For the Abrahamic faiths that believe in only one God, loneliness seems like a more plausible scenario. 19However, if you follow this line of argument, it implies that God is lacking something; therefore, he is not the perfect being that he s described as. 2OWhen he created Adam (the first man) he recognised that he needed a companion. (21Note that Eve was created as his helper , not equal in the second, more popular creationist story.)
“The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him. (Genesis 2:18)
22But was the Christian God really alone? 23Though the details are a little sketchy, it seems that God was already surrounded by adoring angels before the creation of mankind. 24A dream recorded by the Biblical figure of Daniel describes his view of Heaven:
“A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him. Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court was seated, and the books were opened. (Daniel 7:10)
25If this is indeed accurate, then God is literally surrounded by swarms of angels who attend his every need. 26Perhaps angels aren t much fun, or they are less interesting than mankind?
27The Quran also paints a similar picture of a large swathe of angels worshipping and attending to Allah:
“They [angels] celebrate His praises night and day, nor do they ever flag or intermit. (Sura 21:20)
To Care for the Earth
28This immediately begs the obvious questions, Then why did God create the Earth? and Didn t he make it self-sufficient?
29Immediately after God created man, he states that the purpose of man is to rule over the earth:
“Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. (Genesis 1:24)
30This also begs the question why the animals need someone to look after them? 31They are pretty self- sufficient, and mankind continues to do much more harm than good to the planet. 320f course, just because we have not handled the task too well, it doesn t necessarily mean we weren t originally created for this purpose.
33Was the care of the planet our intended purpose, or was it simply added to the text by a man who wished to elevate his status over all living things, and justify his mistreatment of the natural world around him?
34This approach, that we are some kind of caretakers for the planet, would also explain why we were not created as heavenly beings in the first place. 35If God did require companionship, why make us Earth-bound and separate from him? 36This line of thought usually ends with the idea that we need to be tested first in order to prove ourselves, but this is treading over old ground.
Are We the Best Creation?
370ne aspect to all of this debate is the central notion that we are the pinnacle of creation, the best thing that God has made. 38This is especially true if you subscribe to the caretakers of the Earth theory. 39We tend to assume that our intelligence puts us atop of the rest of the animal kingdom, the reason why God needed us as caretakers. 40Have we created this theory due to our own egos? 41Quite possibly.
42Some research has shown that some cetacean species (orca whales, and dolphins specifically) have proportionally larger brains than we do and they may be capable of extremely complex reasoning. 43Some have even theorised that their language is a form of Clifford s algebra (a geometrical form of mathematics). 44Could it be that dolphins are actually smarter than we are? 45And if that is possible, why would God have such an interest in mankind since we are second-best? 46Then again, perhaps the dolphins have their own religions that were revealed by God as well. 47Wouldn t that be an interesting turn of events?
The Nature of Creation
48Perhaps there is a more fundamental issue than man that we should be thinking about: the creation of the Earth, the universe and the entire physical plane. 49If a deity has creative potential, perhaps it cannot help but let that force out. 50Of course, this isn t a logical answer and merely states that a Creator Force created us because it can. 51But if that drive to create is at the base nature of a deity, then maybe it can t be denied and has no other reason beside that.