Dexter
05-03-2006, 02:38 PM
B.S.
if they wanna talk BIBLE
then deal with this
Benedict XVI Continues Tradition of Papal Concern for Animals
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"Just hours after Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was named Pope Benedict XVI in April 2005, PETA offered congratulations and urged His Holiness to include animals in the Catholic Church's areas of concern.
Pope Benedict XVI has spoken movingly about the exploitation of all beings, particularly of farmed animals, and PETA has created an ad featuring this message. When he was asked about the rights of animals in a 2002 interview, he said, “That is a very serious question. At any rate, we can see that they are given into our care, that we cannot just do whatever we want with them. Animals, too, are God's creatures . . . Certainly, a sort of industrial use of creatures, so that geese are fed in such a way as to produce as large a liver as possible, or hens live so packed together that they become just caricatures of birds, this degrading of living creatures to a commodity seems to me in fact to contradict the relationship of mutuality that comes across in the Bible.”
Cardinal Ratzinger was echoing official church teachings, as laid out in the Catholic Catechism, which states clearly that “Animals are God’s creatures. He surrounds them with his providential care. By their mere existence they bless him and give him glory. Thus men owe them kindness. We should recall the gentleness with which saints like St. Francis of Assisi or St. Philip Neri treated animals. . . . It is contrary to human dignity to cause animals to suffer or die needlessly.”
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In our letter, we asked His Holiness to bring his own compassionate vision to the public: “We hope that you will continue to speak out for these exploited beings. In recent years, our membership has swelled with [Catholics] who believe that animals, like people, have a sacred right to life and need to be protected from violence. . . . We turn to you now, as you take on your momentous duties, and humbly ask that you lead the way into a new era of compassion and respect for all beings, regardless of species.” Read PETA’s letter to Pope Benedict XVI.
Pope John Paul proclaimed that "the animals possess a soul and men must love and feel solidarity with our smaller brethren."
Compassion for animals was also a prominent theme in John Paul II’s papacy.
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Pope John Paul proclaimed that “the animals possess a soul and men must love and feel solidarity with our smaller brethren.” He went on to say that all animals are “fruit of the creative action of the Holy Spirit and merit respect” and that they are “as near to God as men are.” Animal lovers everywhere were overjoyed! He reminded people that all living beings, including animals, came into being because of the “breath” of God. Animals possess the divine spark of life—the living quality that is the soul—and they are not inferior beings, as factory farmers, fur farmers, and others who exploit animals for profit would have us believe. After he became Pope John Paul II, His Holiness went to Assisi, the birthplace of St. Francis, and spoke of the saint’s love for animals. He declared, “We, too, are called to a similar attitude.”
PETA is hopeful that Pope Benedict XVI will continue to speak out for animals in his papacy as he did as a cardinal and that he will take a stand against the hideous treatment endured by God’s creatures. Catholics can honor the teachings of Pope John Paul II and the sentiments of Pope Benedict XVI by incorporating compassion for animals more fully into their own lives."
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why then is there a whole worldwide Christian Vegetarian Association BASED ON CHRIST AND HIS TEACHINGS?
CHRIST taught mercy by HIS ways. how can we ever expect mercy if at every meal we are part of an unmerciless, bloody process??
some quotes from their information and websites -
World Hunger
Jesus preached, “For I was hungry and you gave me food.…[A]s you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” (Matt. 25:35, 40 RSV). Yet, while tens of millions die annually from starvation-related causes and close to a billion suffer from malnutrition, 37 percent of the world’s harvested grain is fed to animals being raised for slaughter; in the United States, the figure is 66 percent.
Converting grains to meat wastes 67-90% of grains’ proteins, up to 96% of their calories, and all of their fiber. Since it generally takes far more grains to feed a meat eater, worldwide meat consumption greatly increases demand for grains. Because land, water, and other resources are limited, growing demand for meat increases the cost of all food, and the world’s poor become increasingly unable to afford food of any kind.
Your Health
The apostle Paul wrote that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19), and it follows that we should care for our bodies as gifts from God. The largest organization of food and nutritional professionals in the U.S., the American Dietetic Association, has endorsed well-planned vegetarian diets. The ADA notes that vegetarian diets are associated with a reduced risk for obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, colon cancer, lung cancer, and kidney disease.
In contrast to the predominantly plant-based Mediterranean diet that Jesus ate, modern Western diets (heavily laden with animal products) put people at risk. For example, animal foods tend to be high in saturated fat and cholesterol, which elevate blood lipids and increase the risk of heart disease, by far the #1 killer in the West. Because farmed animals are bred to grow quickly and given little exercise, their flesh is particularly high in saturated fats. In contrast, polyunsaturated fats in plant foods generally improve one’s lipid profile and reduce heart disease risk.
Numerous studies show this. The Cornell-Oxford-China Project found that rural Chinese, who eat much less animal fat and protein and derive the bulk of their nutrition from plant sources, have far less heart disease mortality and much lower cholesterol levels than Americans or Chinese people in cities who eat a more Western diet.
Regarding obesity and diabetes, fiber in grains and fructose sugar in fruits help people feel full, which discourages overeating. In study after study, vegetarians weigh less and have an easier time maintaining a healthy weight than their meat-eating peers.
Regarding bone health, animal proteins are heavily laden with sulfur-containing amino acids, which acidify the blood. The body neutralizes the acid by leaching calcium from bones, weakening the bones. In contrast, vegetables and fruits contain base precursors that neutralize acids and protect bones. Harvard Medical School’s Nurse's Health Study of 77,761 women, who were followed for 12 years, found that milk consumption did not reduce the risk of bone fractures.
The routine use of antibiotics to prevent infections in crowded, stressed animals promotes dangerous antibiotic resistance among bacteria. Furthermore, high-speed slaughterhouse operations predispose meat to bacterial contamination. In 1999, the CDC estimated that food poisoning sickens about 76 million Americans annually and kills about 5,000. A year later, the CDC found that about 86 percent of reported food poisoning outbreaks derived from animal food sources. Other human health concerns that derive directly from factory farming include consumption of pesticides, hormones, heavy metals, and dioxins that become concentrated in animal fat, and “Mad Cow” disease.
The Earth
In Genesis 2:15, God instructed Adam to “till” and “keep” the Garden of Eden, and by analogy we may see caring for God’s Creation as our sacred task. The typical meat eater’s diet can easily consume up to 14 times more water and 20 times more energy than that of a vegetarian. Indeed, current use of land, water, and energy is not sustainable; resource depletion threatens to cause hardships for humankind this century. Already, 40 percent of the world’s agricultural lands are seriously degraded.
Animal Welfare
Jesus said that God feeds the birds of the air (Matt. 6:26) and does
not forget sparrows (Luke 12:6). The Hebrew writings forbid inhumane slaughter or cruelty towards beasts of burden (Exod. 23:5; Deut. 22:6–7, 25:4). Yet, in the United States, virtually all food derived from animals is obtained through intensive factory farming methods. Nearly ten billion land animals are slaughtered each year, over a million every hour, and the number of aquatic animals killed for food is far greater. These animals suffer greatly from stressful crowding, barren environments that frustrate their instinctive drives, amputations without anesthesia (including debeaking, dehorning, tail docking, and castration), and other painful procedures (Bernard Rollin, Ph.D., Farm Animal Welfare).
Slaughter typically involves terror and, often, great pain (Gail Eisnitz, Slaughterhouse). Illustrating the industry’s callousness, animals too sick to walk are painfully dragged to slaughter rather than humanely euthanized. Typical of the industry’s attitude, John Byrnes wrote, “Forget the pig is an animal. Treat him just like a machine in a factory” (Hog Farm Management).
Does the Bible support vegetarianism?
The Bible depicts vegetarianism as God’s ideal, and the diet conforms to the central biblical principle of stewardship. In Eden, all creatures lived peacefully, and God told both humans and animals to consume only plant foods (Gen. 1:29–31). Several prophecies, such as Isaiah 11:6–9, foresee a return to this vegetarian world, where the wolf, lamb, lion, cow, bear, snake, and little child all coexist peacefully. Christian vegetarians, while acknowledging human sinfulness, believe we should strive toward the harmonious world Isaiah envisioned—to try to live in accordance with the prayer that Jesus taught us, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10).
Did God put animals here for our use?
Adam’s “dominion” over animals (Gen. 1:26, 28), we believe, conveys sacred stewardship, since God immediately afterward prescribed a vegetarian diet (1:29–30) in a world God found “very good” (1:31). Created in God’s image of love (1 John 4:4), we are called to be caretakers of God’s Creation, not tyrants over God’s creatures.
Genesis 2:18–19 indicates that God made animals as Adam’s helpers and companions: “Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.’ So out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them…” (RSV) Adam named the animals, which we believe shows concern and friendship. We don’t name the animals we eat.
God endowed pigs, cattle, sheep, and all farmed animals with their own desires and needs, which is apparent when these animals are given an opportunity to enjoy life. For example, pigs are as curious, social, and intelligent as cats and dogs. Pigs can even play some video games better than monkeys. Similarly, chickens enjoy one another’s company and like to play, dust bathe, and forage for food. Jesus compared his love for us to a hen’s love for her chicks (Luke 13:34).
Why did God give Noah permission to eat meat (Gen. 9:2–4)?
Virtually all plants were destroyed by the Flood. Alternatively, God allowed Noah limited freedom to express human violence, since unrestrained violence responsible for the Flood itself (Gen. 6:11-13). Importantly, this passage does not command meat-eating nor indicate that the practice is God’s ideal. Indeed, eating meat came with a curse – animals would no longer be humanity’s friends: “The fear and the dread of you shall rest on every animal…” (Gen. 9:2) While eating meat is not prohibited, it represents a complete break from God’s ideal of animals and humans living peacefully together, as depicted in Eden and by the prophets.
Does God care for animals?
Proverbs 12:10 teaches, “A righteous man has regard for the life of his beast,” and Psalm 145:9 reminds us that “The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.”
The Bible describes God’s concern for animals repeatedly (Matthew 10:29, 12:11–12, 18:12–14) and forbids cruelty (Deuteronomy 22:10, 25:4). Importantly, after the Flood, God made a covenant, stated five times, with animals as well as humans. All creatures share in the Sabbath rest (Exodus 20:10; Deut. 5:14).
The Bible describes animals praising God (Psalms 148:7–10, 150:6), shows animals present in eternity (Isaiah 65:25; Revelation 5:13), and affirms that God preserves animals (Psalm 36:6; Ephesians 1:10; Colossians 1:20). Animals and humans look to God for sustenance (Psalms 104:27–31, 147:9; Matthew 6:26; Luke 12:6) and deliverance (Jonah 3:7–9; Romans 8:18–23). God’s covenant in Genesis 9, in all five instances, is with all flesh, not just humans.
Does vegetarianism equate human and animal life?
Vegetarianism simply reflects respect for Creation—the diet benefits humans, animals, and the environment.
What about animal sacrifices?
The Bible relates that God accepted animal sacrifices. However, several later prophets objected to sacrifice, emphasizing that God prefers righteousness. Animal sacrifices are not required or even desired now, for at least two reasons. First, Paul encouraged self-sacrifice, writing, “[P]resent your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship” (Romans 12:1). Second, traditional interpretations of Jesus’ death affirm that, because of him, animal sacrifice is no longer necessary. Christians, being new creations in Christ, may model Christ by choosing a loving relationship with all Creation. Indeed, Jesus twice quoted Hosea (6:6), saying, “I desire mercy and not sacrifice” (Matthew 9:13, 12:7).
Didn’t Jesus eat meat?
Luke 24:43 describes Jesus eating fish after the Resurrection. However, Jesus’ diet 2,000 years ago in a Mediterranean fishing community does not mandate what Christians should eat today. Similarly, what Jesus wore does not dictate how we should dress today. We are blessed with a wide range of healthful, tasty, convenient plant foods, much like in Eden. Meanwhile, we believe that the way animals are treated today makes a mockery of God’s love for them.
What’s wrong with humans eating animals?
Christians are not called to follow the law of the jungle (where “might makes right”), but to follow Christ—to be compassionate, merciful, and humble, and to respect God’s Creation. In this fallen world, animals suffer, die, and kill each other. We are called to assist God in the reconciliation of all Creation, as Jesus prayed, “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10)
The miracle of the bread and fishes (Matthew 15:34)
Multiplying fish who are already dead to feed to people who have no objection to eating fish is an act of compassion that has no adverse impact on the fish. This story does not depict Jesus killing any animals, but rather miraculously feeding several thousand people. The people were hungry, and Jesus had compassion for them. Again, fishing 2,000 years ago was a far cry from the driftnets, long-lines, and aquaculture farms of today, which are environmentally destructive and treat fish as though they were pieces of seaweed rather than God’s creatures.
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"WAS CHRIST A VEGETARIAN?
by Ted Altar
The following arguments are to be found, for the most
part, in Keith Akers' very useful, "A VEGETARIAN
SOURCEBOOK" 1989. Another sourcebook I would also highly
recommend for its scholarship is Lewis Regenstein's
"REPLENISH THE EARTH: THE HISTORY OF ORGANIZED
RELIGION'S TREATMENT OF ANIMALS AND NATURE-- INCLUDING
THE BIBLE'S MESSAGE OF CONSERVATION AND KINDNESS TOWARD
ANIMALS", 1991.
1. "I REQUIRE MERCY, NOT SACRIFICE" (Matthew 9:13 &
12:7):
This is a significant message when we remember that in
the context in which this was said meat eating was
commonly considered part of these sacrifices.
Sacrificial offerings often entailed meat consumption
and a strict reading of Leviticus 17: implies that,
indeed, all meat consumption necessitated a sacrifice.
Also, the noted confrontation of Jesus in the Temple
suggests that he was not at all pleased by the
desecration of the Temple by the money changers AND by
"those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons"
(John 2:14-15) since these animals were being sold for
sacrifice before being eaten.
2. NO UNEQUIVOCAL BIBLICAL REFERENCE TO CHRIST EATING
OR BUYING EAT:
Consider the verse where it is said that Jesus'
disciples "were gone away unto the city to buy meat"
(John 4:8). This translation from the King James
version has been misunderstood as meaning literally
"meat". In fact, the Greek word for "meat" from which
the James translation based its choice for this word,
simply meant nutrition in the generic sense. Hence, the
Revised Standard Version now simply translates this same
passage as "his disciples had gone away into the city to
buy food".
Regenstein notes that nowhere in the New Testament is
Jesus depicted as eating meat and "if the Last Supper
was a Passover meal -- as many believe -- there is,
interestingly, no mention of the traditional lamb dish".
3. DID CHRIST EAT AT LEAST EAT FISH? (E.G., LUKE
24:43):
Note that on the two occasions where he is said to
have eaten fish, these were *after* his death and
resurrection. Also, we should maybe keep in mind that
fish was a well known mystical symbol among these early
Christians. The Greek word for fish (Ichthys) was used
as an acronym whose initials in Greek stood for "Jesus
Christ, Son of God, Savior". Given how the early
Christians employed the term, there is therefore good
historical evidence for the argument that all of the
"fish stories" that managed to get into the gospels were
intended to be taken symbolically rather than literally.
4. BIBLICAL BREAKS AND CONTRADICTIONS:
We should not forget that the Bible is not complete
and its many inconsistencies require thoughtful
interpretation. For instance, we have the contradiction
between Genesis 1:29-30 with Genesis 9:2-3. Some
scholars interpret the first prescription for
vegetarianism as the preferred diet, and suggest that it
was only after God became grievously disappointed with
human sin and flooded the earth did the second provision
become permitted, and not without qualification (and
maybe only as an expedient for the situation). To take
another example, the New Testament makes repeated
attacks on meat offered to pagan idols (Acts 15:20;
Revelation 2:14), but Paul gives assurances that eating
such flesh is all right if no one is offended
(Corinthians 10:14-33). Paul, then, would seem to be
contradicting Christ.
5. EXAMPLES OF EARLY CHRISTIANS:
Not a few Christian scholars have concluded
vegetarianism to be the more consistent ethic with
respect to the spirit of Christ's teachings. For
example, we have the Ebionites, Athanasius, and Arius.
Of the early church fathers we have Clement of
Alexandria, Origen, Tertullian, Heronymus, Boniface, St.
Jerome, and John Chrysostom. Clement wrote, "It is far
better to be happy than to have your bodies act as
graveyards for animals. Accordingly, the apostle Matthew
partook of seeds, nuts and vegetables, without flesh".
One of the earliest Christian documents is the
`Clementine Homiles', a second-century work purportedly
based on the teachings of St. Peter. Homily XII states,
"The unnatural eating of flesh meats is as polluting as
the heathen worship of devils, with its sacrifices and
its impure feasts, through participation in it a man
becomes a fellow eater with devils". Many of the
monasteries both in ancient times to the present
practiced vegetarianism. For instance, Basilius the
Great's order, Boniface's order, Trappists monks, etc.
Also, we have the examples provided by the stories
around some saints like Hubertus, Aegidius and Francis
of Assisi.
6. INDIRECT HISTORICAL EVIDENCE:
Knowledge about how the Essenes, the Nazoreans and
Ebionites lived suggests that Christ was probably a
vegetarian. The Essences were Jews who were remarkably
similar to the early Christians as evinced in their
deemphasis upon property and wealth, their communalism
and in their rejection of animal sacrifices. The first
Christians were known as the Nazoreans (not to be
confused with Nazarenes), and the Ebionites were a
direct offshoot from them. All three groups were
vegetarian which is suggestive of the central role such
a practice once played in Early Christianity.
Paul's need to constantly deal with these vegetarians
is also evidence of how prevalent they were and not a
few fellow Christians, it would seem, took issue with
Paul. Paul, if he is consistent with his words, would
have been vegetarian (Corinthians 8:13), notwithstanding
his opposition to the Ebionites. According to Clement
of Alexandria, Matthew was a vegetarian. Clementine
`Homiles' and `Recognitions' claim that Peter was also a
vegetarian. Both Hegisuppus and Augustin testify that
the first head of the church in Jerusalem after the
death of Christ, namely Christ's brother JAMES THE JUST,
was a vegetarian and raised as one! If Jesus's parents
raised James as vegetarian then it would be likely that
Jesus was also so raised.
CONCLUSION:
Given the above points, it is reasonable to believe
that vegetarianism would be consistent with, if not
mandated by, the spirit of early Christianity, a spirit
that advocated kindness, mercy, non-violence and showed
disdain towards wealth and extravagance. Meat eating
would hardly have been considered the way of the
humility, non-extravagance and love for all of God's
creation. Hence, the orthodox early church father,
Christian Hieronymous, could not but be compelled to
conclude:
"the eating of animal meat was unknown up to the big
flood, but since the flood they have pushed the strings
and stinking juices of animal meat into our mouths, just
as they threw quails in front of the grumbling sensual
people in the desert. Jesus Christ, who appeared when
the time had been fulfilled, has again joined the end
with the beginning, so that it is no longer allowed for
us to eat animal meat"
WHAT HAPPENED?
Maybe an even more important question than that of
whether or not Christ was a vegetarian, was why
Christianity later abandoned its vegetarian roots.
Steven Rosen in his book, FOOD FOR THE SPIRIT, 1987,
argues:
The early Christian fathers adhered to a meatless
regime . . . many early Christian groups supported the
meatless way of life. In fact, the writings of the
early Church indicate that meat eating was not
officially allowed until the 4th century, when the
Emperor Constantine decided that his version of
Christianity would be the version for everyone. A meat
eating interpretation of the Bible became the official
creed of the Roman Empire, and vegetarian Christians had
to practice in secret or risk being put to death for
heresy. It is said that Constantine used to pour molten
lead down the their throats if they were captured.
Ironic indeed that pagan Rome here would have this
longstanding influence upon Christianity.
In any case, I think we can all be thankful that it is
a lot easier today to be a vegetarian. The occasional
rudeness and social disapproval a vegetarian must
tolerate is a pretty small inconvenience in comparison
to Constantine's way of dealing with vegetarians :-(
To cite another sad example: in southern France a
group of Albigensian vegetarians (a Cartharist
religious group) were put to death by hanging in 1052
because they refused to kill a chicken!
Regards,
ted
P.S. While I'm not a Christian myself, I do find these
questions interesting and even important. There is a
large body of good impartial scholarship on this issue
that is worth reading. Remember, many Christian groups
from the time of Christ have practiced vegetarianism.
The Seventh Day Adventist maybe being the most well
known in the U.S. And even within other mainstream
Christian groups, and even Jewish groups, there exists
among them all at least some minority opinion held by
respected members who would forward the merits of
vegetarianism being the more consistent practice with
their principles. You might also take a look at Andrew
Linzey's book, CHRISTIANITY AND THE RIGHTS OF ANIMALS
(End of article by Ted Altar)"
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