Every human being, regardless of race, sex, nationality, language, culture, or social status, shares a remarkably deep set of things IN COMMON. Some are biological, some psychological, some moral, and some spiritual or existential.
Biological Commonalities
All humans:
- Are members of the same species: Homo sapiens
- Share overwhelmingly similar DNA
- Are born, grow, get old, and eventually die
- Need food, water, sleep, shelter, and oxygen to live
- Feel pain and physical pleasure
- Experience sickness and vulnerability
- Possess brains, nervous systems, emotions, and senses
- Reproduce through the same biological processes
- Share the same basic bodily systems (heart, lungs, blood, etc.)
- Require care and protection during infancy
- Experiences certain physical limitations
- Has emotions tied to chemistry and cognition
- Is vulnerable to fear, stress, fatigue, and suffering
- Has a capacity for reproduction and family bonding
- Shares universal bodily experiences like hunger, thirst, exhaustion, and physical affection
Emotional Commonalities
All humans experience emotions such as:
- Love
- Fear
- Joy
- Sadness
- Anger
- Grief
- Hope
- Loneliness
- Shame
- Compassion
- Anxiety
- Desire for belonging
- Desire to be valued and understood
People may express emotions differently culturally, but the emotional framework itself is universal.
Psychological and Cognitive Commonalities
Humans universally:
- Think and reason
- Learn from experience
- Form memories
- Dream
- Use language or symbolic communication
- Imagine the future
- Ask questions
- Seek meaning and purpose
- Recognize patterns
- Make moral judgments
- Experience curiosity
- Learn through observation and experience
- Solve problems
- Form memories
- Imagine possibilities
- Create stories, myths, music, and art
- Seek meaning and explanation
- Develop moral systems and social structures
Social Commonalities
Humans naturally:
- Form families and communities
- Develop friendships and bonds
- Cooperate for survival
- Create and value family traditions
- Develop and grow cultural traditions
- Teach younger generations
- Seek acceptance and identity
- Establish systems of rules and justice
- Mourn the dead
- Celebrate important events
- Feel the sting of injustice
- Feel the joy of achievement
- Feel a sense of justice or fairness
- Feel concern for family and community
- Desire the safety and success of their offspring
- Condemn betrayal and murder
- Like to laugh
- Enjoy being entertained
- Love a good meal
- Appreciate comfort
- Crave security
- Admire courage and sacrifice
- Respect loyalty and honesty
- Create rules governing behavior
- Feel the desire for order and cooperation
- Have the capacity for both kindness and cruelty
Moral Commonalities
Across cultures, humans generally recognize concepts such as:
- Fairness
- Justice
- Loyalty
- Responsibility
- Courage/Bravery
- Compassion
- Honesty
- Protection of the vulnerable
- Condemnation of needless cruelty
- Strength
- Joy
- Contentment
- Many many more...
Different societies apply these principles differently, but the underlying moral instincts are nearly universal.
Existential Commonalities
Every human being faces:
- Mortality
- Suffering
- Uncertainty
- Questions about meaning
- The awareness of good and evil
- The desire for significance
- The longing for love and acceptance
- The fear of death
- The search for identity
- Loss of loved ones
- The desire for meaning and purpose
- The desire for significance and personal identity
- The desire for relationships
- The fear of loss
- Questions about right and wrong
- Questions about what happens after death
Spiritual/Common Religious Themes
Throughout history, humans across nearly every civilization have:
- Worshiped or sought transcendence
- Believed in realities beyond themselves
- Practiced prayer, ritual, or meditation
- Asked where we came from and why we exist
- Wondered what happens after death
- Contemplated the majesty of nature
- Considered the supernatural or transcendent
- Engaged in religious practices
- Engaged in rituals
- Engaged in a form, or type, of prayer
- Worshipped a higher power
- An awareness of guilt and accountability
- A desire for reconciliation, forgiveness, or salvation
Shared Human Dignity
Many philosophical and religious traditions — including Christianity — hold that all humans possess equal intrinsic worth simply by being human. In Christian theology specifically, all of humanity:
- Shares a common origin.
- Shares a fallen condition.
- Shares moral accountability.
- Shares the capacity for redemption.
- Has the capacity for negative behaviors.
- Has the ability to help others.
- Has equal value before God.
- Realizes that everyone eventually experiences suffering.
- Realizes that everyone desires relationships.
- Realizes that everyone faces death.
- Realizes that everyone leaves some kind of legacy.
- Realizes that everyone depends on others at some point in life.
- Realizes that everyone is capable of good and evil.
- Realizes that everyone longs for hope.
While the differences between people are real and meaningful, compared to what humanity shares in common, they are relatively small. Human beings are far more alike than different.
Here is my plea to mankind. In light of all these similarities, I propose we as humans pull together and focus on our SIMILARITIES and not our DIFFERENCES. Constantly focusing on our differences will divide us. The truth is, our similarities unite us. By focusing on our similarities instead of our differences, we can get to a point where empathy flourishes and we care about each other more. We see ourselves as brothers and sisters, not enemies. We become more tolerant of each other, rather than intolerant. We will start to give each other the benefit of the doubt. We will see others as member of our family, not the enemy. This will encompass all people. ALL humans. Regardless of your skin color, preferences, or cultural proclivities. If we did this, racial tension and injustice would rapidly become obsolete.
I pray that we can make this a reality today!
