Attacking the main problem of Materialism

One of the most devastating consequences of materialism is the destruction of human dignity. Whether we truly believe that we are nothing more than animals or whether we simply live as if there were no more to human life than the physical, we sacrifice human dignity.

From Where Does Human Dignity Come?

Of course, as Catholics we know that human dignity comes from the fact that we are created in the image of God. A materialist loses this knowledge first of all by denying the existence of God (or “living as if God did not exist”).

What does it mean to be created in God’s image? It means that God gave us an intellect in reflection of His omniscience, and a will in reflection of His omnipotence. The intellect and the will give us the power to take control of our own lives, to create ourselves through our choices, and to manipulate creation.

It doesn’t stop there, though. We are not called to be our own gods, but to be united to God. God gave us a share in His attributes in order that we may be intimately connected to Him in love. The human intellect receives (learns) truth, which comes from God alone. The human will empowers us to receive goodness, which comes from God alone. So, by creating us in His image and likeness, God make it possible for us to live in relationship with Him. That is the source of our true dignity – that we are loved by God and that we are able to love Him.

That ultimate dignity is closely reflected in our capacity for human love and intimacy. To love and be loved, to know and be known on a human level reflects our ultimate dignity. The dignity that comes from human love (love of neighbor in Jesus’ terms) does not immediately require a belief in God to grasp. It is obvious in human life. Therefore, the definition of human dignity based on our capacity for love and intimacy (beyond the emotional and sexual understanding of these terms) is a great place to begin the dialog about human dignity with our students.

Some Strategies

One of my closest friends is a priest who is currently (as I write this) teaching in a Catholic high school. He is actually teaching the moral theology curriculum that I wrote, but he is very creative at making it his own. To teach this lesson on human dignity to students who are predominantly lifestyle materialists (if not philosophical), he shows a movie or a movie clip such as The Lost Boys of Sudan or God Grew Tired of Us or The Stoning of Soraya M (minus the stoning scene, which is very disturbing and graphic) in order to show an obvious violation of human dignity that causes a visceral reaction in the students. He then makes the logical connection between these obvious violations and those violations of human dignity that our society has come to accept (abortion being the greatest). The point is well made. Another small logical leap helps students to realize how our apparently benign cultural materialism contributes to the degradation of human dignity and could easily lead to the same violations that they reacted so strongly against. Finally, an examination of conscience confronts them with their own materialism and sacrifice of human dignity.

Don’t have time to show a movie? Find other ways to get a similar visceral response from students. Talk about human rights violations in current events that you know students will react to. Then make the logical connections with them.

One of the reasons the Bible is so full of shocking stories about incest, rape, murder, etc. is to show us the effects of sin. Don’t skip over these stories. Show them for what they are – sin, evil, loss of human dignity.

What other ideas do you have? Please share your ideas in the comments section below!