Summary of "Trentaseiesima puntata del "Corso di formazione biblica globale""

Summary of Lesson 36 from the “Global Biblical Culture Course”

Image of God:
- Humans are created as persons, like God, who is defined as an eternal person.
- Being a person means having intellect, feelings, and will.
- Humans have individual value and equality as persons.
- Unlike animals or groups, humans possess personality and moral capacity.
Likeness of God:
- God is an eternal person with attributes: omniscience (knows everything), omnipresence (present everywhere), and immutability (unchanging).
- Humans share these attributes in a limited way:
  - Instantaneity in knowledge: Humans have knowledge that is acquired and momentary, not eternal or all-encompassing.
  - Instantaneity in space: Humans are present in one place at a time, unlike God who is everywhere.
  - Instantaneity in time: Humans live moment by moment, subject to change and death; God is immutable and eternal.
- Humans are active beings, producing thoughts, words, and actions continuously, reflecting God’s active nature, but limited to temporal existence.
Summary:
- Humans are created in God’s image as persons with intellect, feeling, and will.
- Humans are created in God’s likeness because they live and act instantaneously in space and time.
- These are distinct but complementary ideas.

Bible Reading and Study:
- Recommended to read 3-4 chapters daily.
- Use provided diagrams to highlight and memorize verses.
- Practice reading in Hebrew and Greek with available materials.
Course Participation:
- Nearly 100 participants registered.
- Invitation to visit the course leaders in Pavia for personal discussions and clarifications every 2-3 months.
- Encouragement to catch up on lessons if behind.
- Open communication encouraged for questions or scheduling.

Real-Time World Data Website:
- Introduced a website (search terms: “Worldometer” or “Word or matter”) providing real-time statistics on global population, births, deaths, illnesses, accidents, etc.
- Suggested using this data for informed prayer and awareness.
Prayer Book Project:
- Print a list of all countries (~200) ordered by population.
- Pray daily for one or more countries to cover all nations regularly.
- Emphasis on praying for the spread of the Bible in all ~7,000 spoken languages worldwide.
- Support missionaries working to translate and distribute the Bible.

Children face severe challenges including:
- Exploitation and child labor (e.g., mining in Congo).
- Orphanhood due to wars and conflicts (about 60 ongoing worldwide).
- Abuse and exploitation in sex tourism.
- Use by organized crime (drug trafficking, violence).
- Street children suffering addiction and neglect (example: 3 million street children in India).
Urged continuous and strong prayer for children’s protection, education, and well-being.
Included children’s issues as a priority in the prayer book.

To Understand “Image and Likeness of God”:
- Reflect on the definition of God as an eternal person with intellect, feeling, will, omniscience, omnipresence, and immutability.
- Compare human attributes to God’s attributes, noting similarities and differences.
- Recognize “image” as the personal nature of humans and “likeness” as the temporal, active qualities humans share with God.
For Course Participants:
- Read 3-4 Bible chapters daily.
- Use provided study tools for memorization and language practice.
- Communicate openly with course leaders for support.
- Consider visiting the course center for deeper engagement.
For Prayer and Global Awareness:
- Use the recommended website to stay informed about world statistics.
- Maintain a printed list of countries for systematic prayer.
- Pray for language missions and children’s protection daily.
- Update the prayer book regularly with new information and prayer points.

Primary Speaker: Unnamed male instructor/teacher leading the biblical formation course (likely Giovanni or a colleague, as Giovanni is mentioned as a co-host).
References to TV Programs: Giovanni Finlandia (mentioned as traveling to Finland for TV7 Evangelical broadcasts).
Missionary Organizations: Mention of the Wycliffe Mission (misspelled as “Wiglif”), involved in Bible translation.
General Christian and Biblical teachings as the foundation for the lesson.

End of Summary