“Then God said, ‘Let us make humans in our image, according to our likeness, and let them have dominion over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the wild animals of the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’”
Genesis 1:26 (NRSVue)
When I was in college, the very first class I ever took was POLS 200: Intro to Political Science. As with many introductory classes, it covered a wide range of concepts not only related to political science, but also sociology and economics. One of these concepts was the phenomenon of in-groups and out-groups. An in-group is, simply, a social group that you personally identify as a part of. This can be a family, a community, an NFL fanbase, a political party, or a nationality, to name just a few, and these groups define how we interact with others. The human brain is a natural wonder, and its complexity benefits us in countless ways. It is also, unfortunately, innately inclined to separate groups into us vs. them. While social categorization is natural and sometimes helpful, it makes it all too easy to find differences insurmountable, and for fear and distrust to flourish toward others outside of your group.
In fact, research has shown that when presented with faces that are part of a non-familiar in-group (not family or friends), individuals can recognize them faster and more accurately than those of an out-group, and these faces process in their brains differently. In the human brain, the region that specializes in facial recognition is called the fusiform face area (FFA). It’s at the bottom of your brain, near where it connects to your brain stem, and its activity can be studied through MRIs. When presented with these in-group faces, the FFA of the research participants was much more active than when presented with out-group faces. When this part of our brain is less active when viewing faces, the research reflects that we process those faces as less individual. We see them more as their outward attributes, whereas with an in-group face, we process them as a person; and, as a result, it is significantly easier to brush off this out-group person as different, something we don’t understand, rather than someone deserving of respect and empathy.
This instinct to not only push away those we perceive as different than us, but to dehumanize them, is inherently antithetical to what we believe as Christians. From the very opening chapters of the Old Testament, it is emphasized to us over and over again that God created all of us, regardless of race, religion, or political preference, in God’s own image. Beneath every label and identity that we adopt as our outer persona, we are all only human. We all want love and acceptance, and it is our calling as followers of Jesus to spread exactly that. Our next series, I Can Relate, explores how we build relationships and navigate conflict not only with each other, but also within ourselves. We are so excited to dive into these concepts further, and hope that you, and your family, will choose to join us on this journey.
Claire Manno
Youth Ministries Program Staff
