Equality Cannot Preserve Human Value

 

Equality cannot preserve human value. It's not possible, and it is why egalitarian cultures are so violent towards the unborn.

Why is this? Well two things can be of equal value and still be of zero or little value. Two pennies are of precisely equal value. So are two one hundred dollars note of equal value to each other. Equality is not a measure of intrinsic value, its a measure of comparative value.

Therefore, a society can say all people are of equal value and still be of no value. Like communism. In such a system all people are equally valueless. I believe Thomas Hobbe's made a similar case in one of his great works, we are all equally valueless, and therefore a tyrant needs to rule. These bleak views of humanity may include Equality, but how does that help anyone? 

No, value cannot be measured in a unit of comparison, because what happens if society has a low view of humanity, like our modern society that says humans are killing the environment and are the problem to be solved? Our society promotes a low value of humanity every day in a thousand ways. What use is there in saying people are of equal value if you think of them more like pennies than precious jewels?

Value must be found in something that cannot be devalued. Hence the Church was foolish to tie Equality to the idea human value, because this comes from an extra-biblical source and has the effect of devaluing humanity. Value must be found in something that cannot be debased; this is why we need to base it solely in the concept of the image of God.

Humans are each created in God' image and are therefore of great value intrinsically, no matter their size, age, mental capacity, or abilities. We are of immeasurable value. A society that values humans as such would not lay a hand on an infant to do it violence, in the womb or not.