I was just thinking about how many of us have pets that make us happy, well, maybe not all the time. We have a dog that is kind of old, and she is pretty much ok as long as she gets fed, and has a nice walk every now and then. Our cat on the other hand is young and restless...moreover, he has already had his pelvis broken in three places because he ran away and was accidentally hit by a car. To make it even worse, after a month of healing in a cage so that he would not run away and endanger his life, he still tries to run away when he can.
How does this foregoing personal story relate to Judeo-Christian theology? Well, sometimes our pets can make us angry, but I think God has certain expectations from us with relevance to our relationship with our animals. Proverbs 12:10 says:
"Whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast, but the mercy of the wicked is cruel."
If you have a greater number of animals, Proverbs 27:23 says:
"Know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds."
In closing, I am aware that this is not a major theological revelation, but however, be good to your pets and to other human beings as well...God bless you.
Reference:
ESV Bible
The Book of the Secrets of Enoch
ReplyDeletesays, refering to beasts, in Chapter 58:7:
" And as every soul of man is according to number, similarly beasts will not perish, nor all souls of beasts which the Lord created, till the great judgment, and they will accuse man, if he feed them ill."
I do not know if you care what this book states but if Jude the half brother of Jesus quotes it, I would definitely think twice about what this great book says.
I should have added that our dog passed away a year ago, and we still miss her very much!
ReplyDeleteA update on our cat in 2010, he always runs away, but he always comes back. He is one happy cat!
ReplyDeleteGood point Mo...those who abuse their pets should read up on this. A pet brings happiness to the human soul. It feels great to have a dog again.
ReplyDeleteFreddy
Thank you for the comments, Freddy, I absolutely agree.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to share a link to an article by Stephen Messenger titled: All Animals Go To Heaven, Says Pope Francis. This relevant article was published in The Dodo on December 08, 2014. The link to it is below.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thedodo.com/animals-go-to-heaven-says-pope-866342824.html
This is another related link below.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.religionnews.com/2014/12/12/sorry-fido-pope-francis-not-say-pets-going-heaven/