Copycats: A Christian Metaphysic of Imitation

One morning, when I was sitting with my children around the breakfast table reading the scriptures to them, I was struck by the words of St Paul, “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1). Reflecting on how my three children all imitate each other in a hierarchical direction upwards according to age, I realised that being a ‘copycat’ isn’t characteristic of children alone; it’s a law that God has backed into the fabric of reality.

Influencers of all colours and creeds presently contribute to the shaping of people, our culture and the world. We’re surrounded by a plethora of sounds and images through music, art and advertising, which subconsciously influence the way we dress, what we eat, and the way we live. Unique to our age, however, is the rise of social media influencers, whom young people now aspire to as a career prospect, generating capital gains in finance and influence through algorithms, and spreading attitudes and ideologies to millions.

Ironically though, none of these influencing powers are immune to being themselves influenced. The law of nature necessitates the inevitability of being influenced.  History’s greatest philosophers have all acknowledged that libertarian free-will (ultimate self-determination) is a mere myth. Aristotle rejected the concept. Spinoza, Quetelet and Sapolsky were determinists, whilst Hume and Locke adopted forms of compatibilism, essentially meaning that free will and determinism are compatible. This latter, and most commonly held, view insists that free will is not ultimately self-determining. Though people freely act upon their own decision without external coercion, those choices are nevertheless determined. This is the position espoused by St Augustine, St Thomas Aquinas, the Protestant Reformation, and more importantly the Scriptures themselves. Avoiding the ditches of ultimate self-determination and Greek fatalism, lurking on either side of the path, it keeps us on course and reminds us that whilst our choices are free and necessary, it is ultimately God’s will that prevails (Job 42:2).

In reality then, human beings are unique, being fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God. Yet, there is no originality whatsoever in the way we behave. Everyone is copying something because everyone is following something. There is no original influencer in an absolute sense for all ideas are simply recycled, repackaged and redispensed. At first glance, ideas may look fresh, but those who know history recognise that ancient concepts simply dress in new apparel; There is nothing knew under the sun (Eccl. 1:9). Thus, being a copycat is inevitable. It’s not whether but which. We must copy and multiply the right things.

St Paul urges the Corinthian Church to imitate him as he imitates Christ (1 Cor. 11:1), strongly suggesting that typology, metaphor and imitation play a central role in our sanctification. Scripture is overflowing with types and foreshadows of Christ, and we, as image bearers of God, are to continue in the same Spirit. We exist for God – to live for Him and worship Him (1. Cor. 8:6). Much of the Christian worship service is a recollection and reenactment of Gospel realities in Christ. A fundamental aspect of the Church’s mission is to reflect Him in the world as image bearers. We who are the lesser are to point the greater in our Creator.

The Lord Jesus Christ is the ultimate metaphor for God in and through His incarnation, expressly stating that “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (Jn 14:9). Jesus is the final revelation of God, the perfect image of God (Heb. 1:1-3). He explains God and shows us the way to Him (Jn 1:18, 14:6). In observing Jesus, we perceive what God is truly like in his dealings with humanity in an understandable and relatable way. In Christ, the infinite God condescends to us as finite creatures, speaking to us on our level.  

In fulfilling the above, Jesus came not to be served, but to serve (Matt. 20:28). He put on flesh to function as the ultimate reconciler, priest and mediator between God and humanity through his life, teaching and death. The sinless life of Jesus serves this end in showing us the character of God and how we can grow in godliness. The teachings of Jesus were spoken with such clarity and authority, as He spoke from first-hand experience concerning God the Father from eternity past. The death of Christ, though primarily to function as an atoning sacrifice for our sins, provides the ultimate example of perfect, selfless, sacrificial love, as One gives his life for another.

This ministry continues beyond the grave in Christ’s resurrection and ascension, as He reigns at the Father’s right hand, continuing to serve as our Great High Priest. Though in heaven, He remains present on earth through His body, The Church, where the Priesthood of all believers exercises His continuing priestly ministry on His behalf. The mission of the church is to put on the Lord Jesus Christ (Rom. 13:14) and urge others to do the same through Word, Sacrament and Service. God has ordained some within this Body to serve vocationally as priests to maintain the health and vitality of the priestly body. This is accomplished only through the dispensing of the means of grace through Word and Sacrament and urging those within the church to “imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1).

Christ’s mission is a work of art as the hand of God sculptures and adorns us in love. The Church continues to be formed into the image of Christ when it remains pliable in the Potter’s hand. It thus participates in a chain of imitation that flows upwards hierarchically, culminating in God the telos.

To be a copycat may appear to denote something negative in a false replica. However, when it is considered through the resurrected eyes of faith, it has the potential to become a virtue. Imitation is shown, in children and the broader human race, as an inescapable reality; it’s a fundamental characteristic of our creaturely human nature. Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgements and unfathomable His ways! (Rom. 11:36).

The choice we are left with is whether we will join with Christ and His Body in the mission of God, in prophetically modelling the goal of redemptive history: the beautifying of all creation in purity. Reflecting our Creator and Redeemer is a weighty mission, but God will help us. Creation is made of reference points to Him, and the Spirit will energise us to make full use as we behold the beauty of His Son. He is the blueprint and example, the author and perfector of our faith (Heb. 12:1-3). Let’s point to The One from whom all beauty is derived.