In Nonna Verna Harrison’s first chapter of her novel, “God’s Many-Splendored Image,” she discusses what it means to have freedom through two different people. Basil expresses how people are born with freedom, and this freedom should be used to live a God filled world. Gregory speaks of how God strengthens people’s freedom, and fills them up if honored correctly. Harrison does a great job of showing how humans should be grateful for their freedom and use it in a religious way to benefit them, but lacks the opposing argument, leaving a lot of questions for the reader. Freedom is defined as, “The power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.” According to this definition, freedom comes strictly from one’s
…show more content…
He brings up the divine attributes: wisdom, compassion, and love which represents the image of God in a person. He states that, “If humans were not free, neither could they practice any of the virtues, all of which are included in the divine image.” (Harrison, 15) What Gregory is saying is that America has been awarded the ability to honor God freely, but America has also brought up the First Amendment, separation of church and state. If a person is free outside of religion, are they not complete? Gregory compares life to a jar. This jar can grow in size if people reach out to God, but will become leaky if filled with lesser things. Materials should not over power God, but being grateful for what a person has should not make them less whole. Some people are controlled by their materials, such as money, but it does not make them less of a person. Just because they are caught up in materials, it does not mean they are not complete. There are many aspect of a person’s life that can make them complete, such as family. Humans are supposed to reach out to God in every situation and then they will be complete. If a person is in a tough situation but does not immediately reach out to God, are they now considered “leaky?” There is no room for struggle in Gregory’s comparison. He is saying that God needs the be the center of a person’s life at all
He brings up the divine attributes: wisdom, compassion, and love which represents the image of God in a person. He states that, “If humans were not free, neither could they practice any of the virtues, all of which are included in the divine image.” (Harrison, 15) What Gregory is saying is that America has been awarded the ability to honor God freely, but America has also brought up the First Amendment, separation of church and state. If a person is free outside of religion, are they not complete? Gregory compares life to a jar. This jar can grow in size if people reach out to God, but will become leaky if filled with lesser things. Materials should not over power God, but being grateful for what a person has should not make them less whole. Some people are controlled by their materials, such as money, but it does not make them less of a person. Just because they are caught up in materials, it does not mean they are not complete. There are many aspect of a person’s life that can make them complete, such as family. Humans are supposed to reach out to God in every situation and then they will be complete. If a person is in a tough situation but does not immediately reach out to God, are they now considered “leaky?” There is no room for struggle in Gregory’s comparison. He is saying that God needs the be the center of a person’s life at all