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The Intrinsic Value of Humans

Imago Dei has had a number of posts covering the value of humans related to the topics of embryonic stem cell research and abortion. In a recent entry the two different ways entities receive value are considered.

Something that is intrinsically valuable has an inherent worth based upon what it is. All members of the particular intrinsically valuable class are considered valuable regardless of their diversity. Instrumental value depends on a characteristic, a quality or some property. If the characteristic is absent or lost, the "thing" loses its worth.

In addition, the instrumental value of an item is highly subjective and dependent upon the needs and wants of the individual assigning value to it.

When considering the value humans (note that human embryos are classified as "humans") it is necessary to determine the manner in which humans are valuable. Imago Dei concludes according to its namesake:

"So how should we value human beings? The Biblical view is clear - we are valued intrinsically as the only beings made in the Imago Dei, or image of God. "

Prosthesis has written an excellent article titled, "May God Kill?" in which he considers the sovereignty of God over the lives of humans. He makes the following argument that pertains directly to this discussion on value:

The reason the taking of another human life is wrong is not because human life is valuable in itself. It isn't valuable in itself. Even if humans had never fallen into sin, human life wouldn't be valuable in itself. Apart from God, human life is no more valuable than a hydrogen atom. ("Apart from God" does NOT talking about people who don't believe in God, it is talking about a hypothetical world exactly like ours that somehow exists despite the fact that it wasn't created by God.)

Both quotes argue for the intrinsic value of humans on the basis of the worth imparted to them by God. Those who reject God, when pressed, will find little support in the absolute sense for the sanctity of human life because such sacredness can only be persuasive when derived from a transcended source.

Therefore, a practical consequence of the rejection of God is a change in the way humans perceive the value of others. As society is secularized, it becomes man-centered and value is assigned based upon consciousness, maturity, contribution to society, etc. Using an example from the presidential election, Sen. John Kerry stated that he believed life begins at conception. He explained that abortion was still justified because personhood begins later. So, life is not valuable until it reaches a certain point of maturity, defined mystically as the point of “personhood.”

True God-centeredness opposes discrimination based upon characteristics, such as race or gender, and abhors the murder of all humans, including the immature yet human embryo.