Class text "I-thou" vs. "I-it"

This semester in Sacred Communication, I learned about Martin Buber and his theory of “I-thou” “I-it” relationships. I-Thou is a relationship that stresses the mutual existence and relationship between two beings. I-Thou involves a concrete encounter, because these beings meet one another in their authentic existence, without any qualification of one another. The "I-it" is based off of an idea treating the “it” being as an object. One key I-thou relationship Buber identified was that which exists between a human being and God. Buber argues that this is the only way in which it is possible to interact with God, and that an I-thou relationship with anything or anyone connects in some way with the eternal relation to God. It has become a personal goal of mine to strive for an “I-thou” relationship with my God. I don’t want to be view as a lifeless object, but as one meant for a relationship with his creator.

Drew Harrell