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I woke up at 6 am and began to think: what is the value of human life? No, of course, some kind of nonsense, I have to run to work. But this thought, once having come, sunk into my head and does not give rest.
Introduction
Value, and even life, what is it? Everything seems to be simple. But how multifaceted and capacious is this concept. It cannot be measured by lived years, achievements or accumulated wealth. No. This is vanity of vanities.
Here the baby was born, everyone rejoices at him, and no one at this hour thinks how much suffering and joy can fall to his lot. Everything in this world is so fragile!
The price of life? This is one part of the value. Do we think about it when we cross the red light of the road? Or insulting someone in public transport, or from our car? When we shoot, use drugs, pass by someone else’s grief? We don’t think about it, but we should.
Life is given from above and it is priceless. A nation that values human life more successfully develops in all areas. Take Europe and Africa. Face contrast.
I knowingly cited Africa as an example. As you know, cannibal tribes lived there and not only. Human life was not valued, but was determined as follows: who will eat whom. It’s good that I wasn’t there and that’s all in the past.
What does history teach?
Ancient civilization. It was entirely built on slavery. It should be noted that in the beginning, both the Greeks and the Romans understood how disgusting slavery was. But over time, they felt a love for slavery, and this nurtured their pride, lust, love of money and a free life. The price of the life of a slave in the ancient world was equated to a thing. A slave was not actually considered a person, he could be bought, sold, beaten, killed without a twinge of conscience.
Ancient Rome was also a city of gladiators. Gladiator fights were an attractive spectacle, not only for men, but also for women. Gladiators were forced to kill each other. What is the price of a gladiator’s life in the eyes of a crowd thirsting for blood? They didn’t have a chance to survive.
Unfortunately, in other times and eras there were not only battles, but also massacres. Where the blood of innocent people flowed. The price of their lives was decided, and even now, as we see, it is being decided: by monarchs, kings, presidents and even priests. Remember from history, the crusades?
How is life valued in today’s world?
Today there are no slaves. Are you sure about this? Someone, like a slave, is forced to work from dawn to dusk in order to earn money for the necessary things: an apartment, at least an inexpensive car, teach children, maybe go on vacation once every 3-5 years, etc.
The society was divided into rich and poor.
The rich value themselves, i.e. their lives high, but sometimes they cry. And their lives sometimes hang by a thread. But, despite this, they treat the lower strata of society with disdain, often calling them «cattle». I don’t mean completely downtrodden people.
How does a person devalue himself?
There is the notion of a slave of sin. If a person does not want to get rid of bad habits, sinful deeds, then he becomes a slave of sin. In this case, he himself, significantly reduces the price of his life.
Conclusion
Many examples and comparisons can be given. But I want to say one more and very important thing. Judas and the priests valued the life of Jesus Christ for 30 pieces of silver. Christ died for all mankind, because our lives are priceless in his eyes.
The article was written by Firsova Olga Konstantinovna. City Novosibirsk.
Thanks to Olga Konstantinovna for such an article. Very sobering, isn’t it? Here we are fussing, doing something, but many of us forget about such simple concepts, or do not understand at all — why think about it. Appreciate yourself and your loved ones. Be aware, help people.
If you are striving for self-development and you have a passionate desire to share your thoughts with other people, write in feedback. I will definitely check out your articles. If they fit the theme of the site, I will publish them. See you soon on the blog pages.