On Becoming a Human    Rev. Ernie Mills

What does it mean to be a human? We presuppose that humans are “beings” when we really should think of humans as “becomings. ” One bumper sticker reads “Humankind, be both.” Becoming human requires a certain kind of nurturing. As the song from South Pacific says, “You’ve got to be taught to hate and fear,” so we have to be taught to become loving, kind and humane.

An inhumane human is an oxymoron. If we don‟t become human (humane) we remain beasts with insatiable appetites for cruelty. We are witnessing plenty of beastly behavior in our world these days.