Spiritually Thinking
Animals: Tradition - Philosophy - Religion Article from All-Creatures.org

By Tams Nicholson

30 June 2017

I'm an ethical vegan Christian who has studied at more than one Christian University to discover the truth about how we are supposed to understand the Holy scriptures concerning our responsibility to all of Creation. It, in fact, seems to be my calling as it is many other Theologians callings as well.

My studies have led me to know that He calls us all to bestow lovingkindness, mercy, and compassion. "No if's, ands, or buts about it" as my mom used to say. ❤

But I was recently communicating with a Christian who was justifying their stance that eating anything (including factory farmed animal abuse) is okay because of what the Bible says. It was one of those sad slow messaging conversations where they tried to sweetly compartmentalize my knowledge on the subject by sharing concepts out of context or suggesting that such compassion wasn't God's will, but only mine. (Sigh)

They then concluded with this statement: "I'm sure you know that what is written is not opinion or interpretation but the Words of God written through the power of the Holy Spirit. Theologians have often found Jesus in their studies!"

Their stance made me very sad for them and more sad yet for any sentient lives around them because they didn't even seem to understand anything outside of some worn out quotes. Yes, the scriptures are inspired by the Holy Spirit and hopefully theologians often find Jesus in their studies, but they know too that EVERY word of scripture that we use today is an interpretation!!! There are many debates including authors, time references, word meanings, and quotes. We learn more each decade, each century such as after the findings of the Dead Sea scrolls within the last century. All these things help scholars to continue refining and understanding the original scriptures in a deeper way.

And loving biblical scholars spend their entire lives dedicated to continuing to refine our current biblical interpretation from the original languages and cultures of that time and that's why we have all these different types of Bibles. The English Bible didn't fall out of the sky from God. It is an interpretation as scholars continue to study the original languages and books.

Sadly, what the person actually seemed to be saying was that their personal interpretation of allowed animal abuse could never be just an interpretation ... It had to be God's will because they don't want the uncomfortable truth that they and many others may be acting in error. (Ugh).

Slave owners once held firm to their twisted concepts too and attempted to justify human slavery from the Bible, but that too was a lie. The Bible gets blamed for all kinds of shit. And I can't imagine anything much worse than using the Bible to justify misery and abuse when it was originally meant to bring us out of the darkness of child and animal sacrifies and idol worship and into supernatural love and compassion.

Greed, abuse, ignorance, and much more are the idols of today. We are so far from where we are meant to be.

For the record ... The scriptures never gave us the right to do what we are doing to creation today. Or what we are doing to each other. We are to bestow lovingkindness, grace, and mercy on all. Get real!!

((And if you are non-Christian, please don't bash my post. I respect your beliefs and posts and ask the same about mine. Thanks.))

Tams

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