From dust to dust?
Ecclesiastes 3: 16-22 (NRSVA)
16 Moreover, I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, wickedness was there, and in the place of righteousness, wickedness was there as well. 17 I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for he has appointed a time for every matter, and for every work. 18 I said in my heart with regard to human beings that God is testing them to show that they are but animals. 19 For the fate of humans and the fate of animals is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and humans have no advantage over the animals; for all is vanity. 20 All go to one place; all are from the dust, and all turn to dust again. 21 Who knows whether the human spirit goes upwards and the spirit of animals goes downwards to the earth? 22 So I saw that there is nothing better than that all should enjoy their work, for that is their lot; who can bring them to see what will be after them?
I’m going to be honest and tell you I have wrestled with today’ passage. Especially verse 21 “Who knows whether the human spirit goes upwards, and the spirit of animals goes downwards to the earth?” I have struggled with this verse as animals are part of God’s creation and they have pure spirits, untouched by evil. When they die they do not need to be judged, so surely their pure souls would go directly to be with the Lord in heaven?
I’m not trying to be controversial. I ask this sincerely as a woman who has been blessed by the devotion and friendship of many companion animals. I have connected more deeply with these creatures than most humans. I’ve got to know and love their unique personalities. I’ve mourned when they die. For me there is nothing more comforting than stroking soft fur and I know the pleasure that connection brings to my companion animals. They long to be touched and spoken to and loved. We are connected in love. Surely that connection, that love, does not end on the earthly plain but continues into the next world for eternity?
And it isn’t just me, I know it isn’t. Many of my friends and family have experienced the joy of a deep relationship with a companion animal. And the devastating grief when their companion animal dies.
Since time began humans and animals have been drawn together in partnership, dogs, cats and horses. With the best, most productive partnerships being the ones based on love, kindness and respect.
We are connected.
PRAYER:
Thank you, Lord God, for blessing us with the friendship of your creation
For the companion animals in our lives who teach by their example,
To live fully in the present,
To enjoy all of life, from the mundane to the glorious,
To be cheerful,
To forgive,
To love whole-heartedly,
Amen.
What are people saying?
Amen…...
I think Koheleth was simply taking the view of his age, and then saying, ‘we don’t even know if that is true!’ But it’s a good starting point for your reflection on animals.
Only mankind was made in God’s image with a spirit, not animals. It’s easy for people to be attached to animals as they were made to be subservient to man: they give unconditionally without ulterior motives; they don’t have freewill which man has. Questioning whether animals will continue after death may give you comfort, but animals are not at all like people in their connection to God, they have not been promised eternal life. This reflection makes it seem like our animals are from Narnia, unfortunately.
I don’t know the theological answer, but God said of his creation that it was good, and C S Lewis had an inspired imagination I believe. A lot of Ecclesiastes comes across as a man searching for the truth, pre Jesus. Thank you for your reflection.
God created all animals and He loves them. It seems to be this passage says we are all the same and anything else is vanity, so I see no reason why animals would not go to heaven. Thank you for this beautiful reflection Laura.
This post has certainly opened a can of worms. Scholars have debated for centuries over whether animals have souls and go to heaven (see https://www.biblesprout.com/articles/christian-life/animals-eternal-souls/).
If animals go to heaven, Jane, does that include every turkey eaten this Christmas, and every chimpanzee in their chimp wars, or every dog pack which has attacked humans, or cat which has toyed with a terrified mouse? You see, animals are not all pure in spirit as Laura would have us believe. Have you thought that God gave man dominion over animals so that we can be comforted by them, as Laura describes? They have an unquestioning innocence because they have not been given the same blessings as we have of free will and understanding. This makes it easier to connect with them than to other people, again as Laura points out. However, when man is invited into God’s presence, won’t that be enough? Are we really going to need an animal which we miss from our earthly lives? We may miss nothing from that earthly life, we have no concept of what it will be like.
Rhona, C. S. Lewis may have had an inspired imagination, but he would have been the first to agree that it was just that, his ‘imagination’, not fact or a divine message. He used anthropomorphism, i.e. the animals took on human traits, human emotions, human failings. They are not actually animals. The whole series is a fictional parallel where Lewis wondered what Jesus would be like in that fictional world - not a message from God to tell humanity about his relationship with animals.
For Christians, the important thing to remember is that the Bible tells us that human beings have a special place in God’s plan. Only human beings have been created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). Because of this, only people (not animals) can look forward to being sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father after death.
For the rest, such as will the spirits of dead animals be there, we can agree to disagree until God’s plan is worked out.
We will indeed have to agree to disagree Maisie. We’ll find out when we hopefully get there ourselves.
I want to say something!