{"id":296,"date":"2025-12-16T15:37:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-16T21:37:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/ammparo\/?p=296"},"modified":"2025-12-16T15:39:02","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T21:39:02","slug":"created-in-the-image-of-god-a-conversation-guide-to-affirm-our-shared-dignity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/ammparo\/created-in-the-image-of-god-a-conversation-guide-to-affirm-our-shared-dignity\/","title":{"rendered":"Created in the Image of God: A Conversation Guide to Affirm our Shared Dignity"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-302 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2025\/12\/Kate-Blog-1024x535.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/ammparo\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2025\/12\/Kate-Blog-1024x535.png 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/ammparo\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2025\/12\/Kate-Blog-300x157.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/ammparo\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2025\/12\/Kate-Blog-768x402.png 768w, https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/ammparo\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2025\/12\/Kate-Blog-1536x803.png 1536w, https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/ammparo\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2025\/12\/Kate-Blog-2048x1071.png 2048w, https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/ammparo\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2025\/12\/Kate-Blog-250x131.png 250w, https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/ammparo\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2025\/12\/Kate-Blog-669x350.png 669w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/p>\n<h5>By: Kate Parsons<br \/>\nMigration Policy Advisor<\/h5>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Bible writes of one human family, honored and elevated through the image of God that each of us bears. As a Christian community, we are grieved when we hear language about human beings that does not honor the deep love Christ holds for them or the<strong><em> imago Dei<\/em> \u2014 the image of God \u2014<\/strong> that each of them carries. One group of people who have frequently had their dignity denied is immigrants and those who have been forcibly displaced.<\/p>\n<p>Dehumanizing language dishonors the dignity of human beings. It divides people into an \u201cin-group\u201d (us) and an \u201cout-group\u201d (them), often relying on crude generalizations or metaphors related to contamination or danger. This language is not harmless. It flattens and reduces a diverse group of people to negative characteristics, which can erode empathy and normalize inhumanity, overt discrimination and violence against entire groups of people. Such harmful and reductive terms impact not only immigrants to the United States but also U.S. citizens who may be profiled or stereotyped because of their race, ethnicity, heritage or language.<\/p>\n<p>How should we, as people of faith, respond when we hear language that dehumanizes people? We can follow Jesus\u2019 example by seeing and welcoming those whom society has cast out and by encouraging others to do the same.<\/p>\n<p>One powerful way to combat dehumanizing rhetoric is by sharing personal stories. Too often, conversations about immigration happen without input from immigrants themselves \u2014 people who most personally experience the joys, hopes or pains stemming from immigration systems. Christians can confront dehumanizing language in conversation by inviting curiosity and empathy about immigrants\u2019 stories \u2014 including their own and those of their ancestors \u2014 and reminding others of nuance, complexity and breadth of experiences related to immigration.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes elected officials use dehumanizing language in official communications, on social media or in remarks to reporters or at a town hall. This language from our elected leaders can make it seem acceptable and normal to talk about other human beings in this way, and it can set the stage for laws and policy that also do not recognize people\u2019s dignity. When we recognize and respond to this language, we can advocate for policies that honor the dignity of every person.<\/p>\n<p>Learn more in this downloadable <a href=\"https:\/\/elcamediaresources.blob.core.windows.net\/cdn\/wp-content\/uploads\/created_in_the_Image_of_God.pdf\">conversation guide and resource<\/a>. Drawing on ELCA social teaching, this resource is intended to equip communities to see all people through the lens of God\u2019s love and grace and to recognize and respond when language fails to acknowledge all people\u2019s God-given dignity.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/elcamediaresources.blob.core.windows.net\/cdn\/wp-content\/uploads\/created_in_the_Image_of_God.pdf\">Created In The Image Of God<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center\"><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By: Kate Parsons Migration Policy Advisor &nbsp; The Bible writes of one human family, honored and elevated through the image of God that each of us bears. As a Christian community, we are grieved when we hear language about human beings that does not honor the deep love Christ holds for them or the imago [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":295,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-296","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-post"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Created in the Image of God: A Conversation Guide to Affirm our Shared Dignity - AMMPARO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Created in the Image of God: A Conversation Guide to Affirm our Shared Dignity - AMMPARO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By: Kate Parsons Migration Policy Advisor &nbsp; The Bible writes of one human family, honored and elevated through the image of God that each of us bears. 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