Towards A Christian Understanding of Man In The African Context

Abstract

The Christian vision of man which is summed up as Christian anthropology has its roots in the creation story, specifically Gen 1:26, where it is written that God created man in his own image and likeness, meaning God is the fundamental locus of man’s origin and telos. Many have drawn from this verse every dram of meaning that they can. How Christians understand this verse, and other related texts for that matter, influences heavily their understanding of themselves, their relationship with their Creator-God, with other human beings and with the rest of the created order. The text simply tells us about man. It is an avenue into what man actually is.