The rabbis say that whoever takes a human life lessens the divine image in the world. We might extend this to say that whoever causes suffering to a human being brings pain to the presence of God as it manifests in that person. . . . A way of life that avoids doing harm to human beings (including oneself), as well as to animals, is a way of life by which a person is oseh hesed im kono, "acting kindly toward one's Creator."

Arthur Green, Seek My Face