7. Dignity of man

7. The Dignity of Man
Only humans are created with the capacity to know love and serve God
Compendium 66-70
Genesis 1:26-31
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals,[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God created mankind in his own image,
    in the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them.
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.
And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.
God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

Only man was created in the "image of God".  God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Genesis 1:27
2. God willed us into being for no other reason than his love for us. God delights in us just as we delight with our children.
3. Our capacity for Truth and our ability and desire to love and be loved reflect God's presence in us.
4. Each of us is an unrepeatable, unique, infinitely valuable, unconditionally loved child of God. 5. We have a common origin in God our Father and our dignity and rights to life and liberty come from God alone. He is the final destiny for each of us.
6. Since God values us for our own sake, so too, should we value others for their own sake. This means we cannot treat others as objects to be used or exploited for any reason and also that we must protect and defend others, especially the most vulnerable such as the elderly, the unborn, the sick, the poor, the unwanted, the persecuted, children, the abused, the outcasts, prisoners etc..
7. We were made to know, love and serve God in this life and to be perfectly happy with him in the next.
8. We are a unity of body and soul. A material body given by our parents and a spiritual soul directly created by God.
9. We are the only creatures who can know love and serve God.
10. We are called to a greatness that goes beyond earthly existence.
11. We are fulfilled only through our friendship with God.
12. A casual reference to our creator is not good enough. God calls each of us to a unique and profound personal friendship with him. There can be only one true religion of the one true God. God who is perfect order has revealed himself in Jesus Christ who suffered crucifixion and death for each of us and rose from the dead to deliver each of us from sin and death to eternal life with him in God as our Father. Truth is not relative to one’s own preferences as if God can be of our own creation and that God doesn't care what we believe. The truth is that God so loved us as to make us one with his only begotten son through the Eucharist so that we could enjoy the same intimacy with him that he shares with Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.
13. The way we share this truth with others is by listening patiently with humility and good  example and not by bellicose argument or talking down to them as if we were better and privileged. We must recognize that we ourselves are often the obstacle to others by our self-centered lives and obtuseness. People will not believe the message of Jesus if we preach it but don't live it. Unity in diversity is possible with self sacrificing love that holds fast to the Truth without diminishing others. If our hearts are open, God himself will miraculously open hearts and minds that are closed to the truth and bring his family together again.