The treatment of Animals in the Christian Church - I am troubled. (believe, Jesus)
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I have. There is a blessing of the animals held every year on Olvera Street which is the birthplace of Los Angeles. (L.A. was founded because of a Catholic mission at that site. The Church hosts the event.) People, including non-Catholics, bring not only cats and dogs but chickens, llamas, horses.... there's always a little of everything. It's quite wonderful to watch a small child hold his pet while it gets a blessing. Things like that are what build consciousness and awareness that animals count and should be valued.
My Episcopal church (and I think most Episcopal churches) do the Blessing of the Animals on the Sunday nearest St. Francis's Day. My daughter took her guinea pigs every year when she was a kid.
In the church I'm in now, not only do they do Blessing of the Animals, everybody brings their dogs to stay for the Eucharist. Amazingly, they are well-behaved except for this year when the priest's dog kept whining because she wanted to go up by him at the altar. His wife had to take the dog outside for a little while.
I asked the priest to bless my cats remotely. They aren't fans of car rides.
This is a genuine question - why do you have a problem with the kosher/halal slaughtering of animals, which is far more humane and individual than what is done in large scale slaughterhouses?
I have a problem with Kosher slaughter because today, it is just as; if not worse than commercial slaughter. Kosher slaughter was supposed to be humane. Perhaps it was at one time, it's not now.
I admit to not knowing as much about the etiology and practice of halal slaughter. I do know that today it is every bit as cruel as Kosher and conventional slaughter.
I also agree with the poster who said that churches waste food. We do.
Many mainline churches have position pieces about the environment and the humane treatment of animals. You can't hold the position of being "Green" and not care about factory farming. In terms of pollution of the ground water and emission of toxic gasses - FACTORY FARMS are one of (if not the greatest) contributors to destroying the fabric of our planet.
Once I went to a congregational dinner. There was a piglet impaled on a spit. Two of my children began crying. It was upsetting to my wife and me, also.
Watching a small baby animal being roasted over a pit of fire for the enjoyment of a bunch of mostly portly Christians made me sick. We left the grim celebration.
I think that compassionate and responsible Christians of every denomination should urge the governing body of their churches to "start walking the walk".
The earth has been entrusted to us and the day of Christ's return is unknown.
Instead of sitting around stuffing our collective over fed faces with barbecued meat (one of the worst things to put into the Temple of the Holy Spirit) or the latest ham dinner or hunting expedition, why not figure out ways to help animals and our planet?
Christians (Church going ones) are fatter and sicker than many of their non Christian counterparts.
Barbecue, Roast Beef and Ham dinners are killing people, and well as animals.
Just because we've "always done it that way" does not mean that it's right.
Does anyone have any ideas of how local churches can eat lower on the food chain and promote a healthier planet - while being healthier themselves?
I was raised in a holiness denomination, my parents went on to Assembly of God and then a really conservative branch of the Church of God.
I went on to find myself at United Methodist, Episcopalian, Presbyterian, non-denominational churches with a fling in the Unitarian Church.
I found my home in the Evangelical Church in America. ELCA. - (I do NOT want to argue about my denomination with anyone, OK?)
My problem is this. I don't eat meat. I eat fish that isn't farmed and occasionally, seafood.
Generally I attempt to respect the earth and it's creatures. I am morally opposed to factory farming on many levels. It is born of greed and gluttony. It pollutes the earth and it's responsible for the torture of millions of animals. There was no factory farming in the time of Jesus.
Originally, Kosher slaughter was intended to reduce pain to the animal. Today, as carried out, it's one of the most horrific forms of slaughter. I am not comfortable with it.
Church dinners and fellowship meals seem to always include meat. Especially pork Pigs are one of the most intelligent, friendly animals. And yet their lives in factory farms are some of the most brutal, as is their terrifying slaughter.
Eating meat, in the quantity that we do, is not good for us. Saturated fat is bad and contributes to elevated levels of cholesterol. We can get protein from other sources.
It's hypocritical to pray for the environment, and the creatures that inhabit the earth and yet to chow down after service on the tortured flesh of animals and to be OK with hunting as a "sport".
Has anyone else felt this way? Has anyone's church addressed this issue?
Here are some verses that I've been considering off the top of my head. (There are others.)
Matt 6:26
Deut 25:4
Psalm 156
So you are morally opposed to farming and hunting but you don't care about the poor fish caught in nets or pulled up from the sea with a hook in their mouth? Are you being a species-ist? Why aren't fish also deserving of your concerns?
Thank you for sharing this, Katzpur! I'm happy that the LDS Word of Wisdom addresses the quantity of meat that is eaten. I never knew that it was technically a part of LDS doctrine, but I can certainly see that it is part of the same line of thinking.
Last week a study was released that stated that eating meat was as deleterious to our hearth as is smoking.
Does the LDS church have a position on hunting for sport?
Since I am always calling people out on quoting LDS leaders and insisting that their statements constitute official doctrine, I don't want to be guilty of the same thing. The Church has never issued an officially statement on the subject, but here's a sampling of some of the things our past leaders have said...
"Men must become harmless before the brute creation." (Joseph Smith, Jr.)
"No man or woman, no boy or girl, who has any kind feelings will inflict unnecessary pain upon any creature." (George Q. Cannon)
"While moving slowly forward in pursuit of something to kill, my mind was arrested with the reflection on the nature of my pursuit -- that of amusing myself by giving pain and death to harmless, innocent creatures that perhaps had as much right to life and enjoyment as myself. I realized that such indulgence was without any justification, and feeling condemned, I laid my gun on my shoulder, returned home, an from that time to this have felt no inclination for that murderous amusement." (Lorenzo Snow)
"It is wrong, and I have been surprised at prominent men whom I have seen whose very souls seemed to be athirst for the shedding of animal blood." (Joseph F. Smith)
"A true Latter-day Saint is kind to animals, is kind to every created thing, for God has created all." (David O. McKay)
"It is a grievous sin in the sight of God to kill merely for sport. Such a thing shows a weakness in the spiritual character of the individual. We cannot restore life when it is taken, and all creatures have the right to enjoy life and happiess of the earth where the Lord has placed them." (Joseph Fielding Smith)
Note: Joseph Smith, Jr, Joseph F. Smith, and Joseph Fielding Smith were three different individuals. This is just a small sampling of quotes I could have provided concerning animal cruelty by LDS leaders. Again, though, while these are the opinions of high-ranking LDS leader (all but one of them served as President of the Church), they do not constitute official doctrine.
People do need to talk about this topic. And not in a silly way. The way we treat living beings that god created isn't silly.
There is a poster who was told to eat vegan after heart surgery and he's looking forward to eating meat in heaven.
That sounds to me like an addiction
From what I have read, there will be no sorrow or death in heaven. So don't be expecting steak.
Addiction? Let's be real. I ate meat 2 times a week at most. The cardiologist told me since my dad died of a heart attack at 38, I simply inherited the genetic makeup that leads to heart disease, in large part no matter what I eat. 1 in 30,000-100,000 with those genetics. My best bet to enjoy time with my grand kids is change what I can. BTW, he did not say I could never eat meat. He also said to avoid dairy, eggs, oils, and meats and your favorite, FISH-which he said is no better than beef.
Guilt trips, false accusations, false assumptions (I never said have a steak on the grill for me at that heavenly barbecue) and holier-than-thou attitudes score a big fat zero in my book.
People do need to talk about this topic. And not in a silly way. The way we treat living beings that god created isn't silly.
There is a poster who was told to eat vegan after heart surgery and he's looking forward to eating meat in heaven.
That sounds to me like an addiction
From what I have read, there will be no sorrow or death in heaven. So don't be expecting steak.
Then you should put a presentation together for your church and give a talk, using biblically based reasoning, to get your message across. Include information about what happens in factory farms and slaughterhouses, because so many people are still ignorant about what really goes on. See if your church would let you put your presentation or a slideshow on their website. Reach out.
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Let's be real. I ate meat 2 times a week at most. The cardiologist told me since my dad died of a heart attack at 38, I simply inherited the genetic makeup that leads to heart disease, in large part no matter what I eat. 1 in 30,000-100,000 with those genetics. My best bet to enjoy time with my grand kids is change what I can. BTW, he did not say I could never eat meat. He also said to avoid dairy, eggs, oils, and meats and your favorite, FISH-which he said is no better than beef. 
