Abstract:
Today, it is highly controversial in Western societies, that humans are
made in the image of God (“imago Dei”). This article is looking for a unique feature of
man that can justify his special position. The methodological approach consists of
contrasting research results and social developments documented in current
publications with modern theological and philosophical publications. Our
intelligence and the fact that we are self-aware are no longer sufficient as a unique
human feature, because biology, palaeoanthropology and computer technology call
it into question. This article shows that the soul remains the unique feature of the
human being. But often no clear distinction is made between the transcendent soul
and the immanent mind. The article therefore emphasises that the soul is
transcendent, eternal and a gift of God from transcendence. In order to achieve this,
we must abandon the bipartition of man into body and soul and accept the tripartite
division of man into body, mind and soul. The transcendence of the soul provides us
with a justification for why humans and only humans are “imago Dei”. This gives us
a basis for claiming the right of every human being for life and personal realisation.
