As I write this, Kristine is still mourning the loss that so many people feel when having to put a family pet to sleep. It has been quite an introspective process for each of us in the family. We do keep coming back to the fact that we’re talking about an animal. Is it our own sinful desires that cause us to miss being needed by it? Is it idol worship? How do we look at this sense of heartache and loss from a Christian perspective?
Gen 1:25
And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
Prov 12:10
A righteous man regards the life of his animal, But the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.
Let us remember that animals, part of God’s creation, are good.
Gen 1:26-27
26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
That sounds well and fine you may say, but it doesn’t seem to allow for us to worry about them and pour our hearts out over pets does it? Consider the prophet Nathan, who reproached David for his adultery with Bathsheba and his murder of Uriah.
2 Samuel 12:1-15
1 Then the Lord sent Nathan to David. And he came to him, and said to him: “There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor.
2 The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds.
3 But the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom; and it was like a daughter to him.
4 And a traveler came to the rich man, who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him; but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”
5 So David’s anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this shall surely die!
6 And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity.”
7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man!
Now it is not my point to talk about what David did and to deal with his sin. What we do see here is a biblical example of caring for an animal. Notice that I say caring for. Let us not become guilty of “worshiping” or in any way ascribing characteristics, or elevating the animal above the level of people. It seems clear to me, that we humans, being created in the image of God, can have a tender heart for our animals as long as we place them below humans, and remember their proper place.
Humans have pets. Whales don’t keep clownfish as pets. Gorillas don’t keep chimps or squirrels as pets. They don’t even seem to keep inanimate collections for nostalgia. Only people do that, and to the extent that people understand the divinely ordained relationship between themselves and their pets or animals, I believe it is biblical.
Is it idol worship to grieve the loss of a pet? That depends. It does seem that pets give us unconditional love. That may not really be what it is however. Animals such as dogs see us as leaders of their pack and know their dependence on us, which to us feels like love. It feels like love, and I’m guilty of this too. I don’t believe it is love by the animal but rather its own desires. We are selfish in our desire for this apparent love and affirmation.
It is good, however, that our hearts are quickened by this relationship since the animals are, after all, a gift from our creator to us. We do not worship the animals, but we can and should cherish that our God has so blessed us. It is because of the way our hearts and emotions are made, that we grieve loss. Again, this is because we are created in the image of God. What other creature reacts such as the human? And when they depart, we should remember that God is the giver and taker of life for us all.
Thank you Lord for your blessings upon us. Thank you for giving us some great years with our beloved pets and your using them to reveal yourself to us.
Tom
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