On December 10, 1948, in the shadow of the Holocaust and the catastrophic disregard for human life that marked World War II, the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Its publication stands as a testament to humanity’s ability both to recognize the inherent dignity of every person and to confront the devastating consequences of denying that dignity. It reflects the moral wisdom of our cultural grandparents, offered as a response to the worst human-caused disasters in history.
For religious leaders, this day calls us to highlight the deepest teachings of our faiths about our shared humanity—teachings that, if fully embraced, have the power to heal our fractured world.
According to the story of Creation, all human beings descend from Adam and Eve. As the Talmud teaches, this ensures that no person can claim, “My father is greater than your father.” We all share the same origin. This foundational insight affirms human equality, rejects all forms of racism, and reminds us that humanity is, in the most literal sense, one family.
Our connection, however, goes beyond ancestry. Together, as a Jewish Rabbi and a Protestant Minister, we proclaim that human dignity is God-given, a dimension of the image of God bestowed upon men and women, girls and boys, as described in the Bible. The Divine presence that exists within me exists equally within every other human being. Rabbi Akiva expressed this beautifully: “Beloved is humanity, for we are created in the image of the Divine.” He also taught that the Torah’s greatest principle is, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” When we love one another, we honor God.
Recognizing the Divine image in each person carries three profound implications:
- Responsibility: We are called to live up to the holiness within ourselves, holding ourselves to a high moral standard.
- Ethics: Because every person bears the Divine image, we must treat all people with dignity, compassion, and respect.
- Interconnectedness: The Divine spark shared by all points to a deep unity that binds humanity together.
And if dignity is granted by God, no human institution—no government, no ideology, no heritage—can give or take it away. At most, human structures can honor or violate this dignity, but its source remains beyond their reach. Respecting and protecting that dignity is the essence of the universal moral law, the principle that makes us human. This moral law—honoring the dignity of the other—must continually guide relations between individuals, communities, countries, and religions.
Conflicts are inevitable. But it is not inevitable that conflicts lead to suffering and the death of millions. We simply need to return to the wisdom enshrined in the UDHR and to the ancient teachings of our faiths, which together call us to affirm the dignity of every human being.
May this Human Rights Day inspire us to perceive the Divine in one another and to work together for a world rooted in justice, compassion, and peace.
Rev. Dr. Thomas K. Johnson
Senior Theological Advisor, World Evangelical Alliance
Rabbi Dr. Yakov Nagen
Director, Blickle Institute for Interfaith Dialogue