Animals In Heaven

white avenger

white avenger

white avenger
Joined
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rome, georgia
this is a subject we talked about in church yesterday (I swear, this was a srious conversation, with Scripture references and everything!) and I thought that maybe someone here might like to share their opinion.

Do you think there are/will be animals in heaven?
 
Being that I was brought up in a Church of Christ household, the belief was animals don't have souls so there will be no animals in heaven. This is one of the things I have always strongly disagreed with. How is it that something as innocent as an animal, who clearly has a soul, wouldn't go to heaven. I can look in my cat's little eyes, I see a soul there. It's like I can tell what he's thinking and what he's feeling. If my dog didn't have a soul, then she wouldn't feel emotion and get upset when I scold her. She wouldn't be so happy to see people.
 
I was raised as a Southern Baptist myself. I remember when I was very young, heartbroken because my dog had been ran over, our minister told me that, while he could find nothing in the Bible that said one way or another, he himself would never want to spend eternity without animals.
 
Well, first of all one perhaps should discuss whether there is a heaven or not, if you're not a christian that is. Which I am not. But then again I can't be sure if there is a heaven or not, but I mostly believe that not. If you choose to see heaven as a metaphor for a place where souls go to rest, then sure.

I really oppose the thought of animals not having a soul, I think it's quite frankly simple-minded. I would like to believe that there is a place where the souls go to rest where all animals (included us) are welcome since we all have souls.
 
I'm somewhat Christian myself, albeit very liberal and idiosyncratic and I strongly disagree with the notion of animals not having souls. Humans themselves are no more than animals with a monetary systems. So, saying animals have no soul, in my opinion, would mean you also don't believe humans have a soul. Since I don't think many people believe the latter to be true, I don't see how they could believe that (other) animal don't have souls. I guess it all depends on whether you believe Darwin or not.

Some food for the mind: If having a soul is the requirement for getting in, I guess animals can come too. There is one problem though: the one of good vs. evil. Supposedly the virtuous go to Heaven and the sinful go to Hell. However, since animals have not eaten from the tree of knowledge and thus are not aware of the difference between right and wrong. Is it possible to label their actions either good or evil? If it is labelled good, can they be rewarded for it, even though they don't know they're doing it?
 
Allycat said:
I'm somewhat Christian myself, albeit very liberal and idiosyncratic and I strongly disagree with the notion of animals not having souls. Humans themselves are no more than animals with a monetary systems. So, saying animals have no soul, in my opinion, would mean you also don't believe humans have a soul. Since I don't think many people believe the latter to be true, I don't see how they could believe that (other) animal don't have souls. I guess it all depends on whether you believe Darwin or not.

Some food for the mind: If having a soul is the requirement for getting in, I guess animals can come too. There is one problem though: the one of good vs. evil. Supposedly the virtuous go to Heaven and the sinful go to Hell. However, since animals have not eaten from the tree of knowledge and thus are not aware of the difference between right and wrong. Is it possible to label their actions either good or evil? If it is labelled good, can they be rewarded for it, even though they don't know they're doing it?
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If you believe that animals have souls, which we agree on, then the animals, having not eaten from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, would be in the same state of grace that an infant is in, and thus assured entry into Heaven. By that logic, animals are assured of what Christians are required to earn.
 
ok heres the deal... I have never been baptised i guess is what you call it... My Mother is Methodist and my dad well i dont think he is anything either.... My mom raised me to believe in God and heaven and Honestly....

I WANT to believe there is a higher being or power or something.... I WANT to believe there is somewhere we go when we die thats filled with family and you look down on the ones you love.... or even to believe you get reborn as long as i'm not reborn into a stupid tree lol....

IF... there is a heaven i hope it has animals cause i love animals and all of my animals that die call me childish if you will but i want to see and play and love on them agian 🙂 and GOD accepts all as long as their not evil or damned right? Who's to say Animals dont have a soul? Do you have funny goggles that let you see souls? The point is you dont know... no one does except this "higher being"

Me i just i dunno i find it hard to believe things people say or whatever because people lie all the time.... How do we really know if the bible is real and was written by the man himself or whatever and not by some looney old man who was bored?

I dunno anyways point is.. If there is a heaven yes i believe there are animals there too 🙂
 
Angels baby101 said:
ok heres the deal... I have never been baptised i guess is what you call it... My Mother is Methodist and my dad well i dont think he is anything either.... My mom raised me to believe in God and heaven and Honestly....

I WANT to believe there is a higher being or power or something.... I WANT to believe there is somewhere we go when we die thats filled with family and you look down on the ones you love.... or even to believe you get reborn as long as i'm not reborn into a stupid tree lol....

IF... there is a heaven i hope it has animals cause i love animals and all of my animals that die call me childish if you will but i want to see and play and love on them agian 🙂 and GOD accepts all as long as their not evil or damned right? Who's to say Animals dont have a soul? Do you have funny goggles that let you see souls? The point is you dont know... no one does except this "higher being"

Me i just i dunno i find it hard to believe things people say or whatever because people lie all the time.... How do we really know if the bible is real and was written by the man himself or whatever and not by some looney old man who was bored?

I dunno anyways point is.. If there is a heaven yes i believe there are animals there too 🙂
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Have you ever heard the story of the Rainbow Bridge? It's on several sites in the Net devoted to pets and the people who have lost them. It's really a beautifuf story, and cracks me up every time I read it. If I knew how, I'd post it here, but I'm barely Computer Semi-literate
 
A
Allycat
Internet for Dummies: If you wanna find something on the internet Wikipedia is probably the first place you should look ;)
B
Blondie Bear
Thanks for that; if I ever have that argument again I'll keep that in mind.
white avenger said:
Have you ever heard the story of the Rainbow Bridge? It's on several sites in the Net devoted to pets and the people who have lost them. It's really a beautifuf story, and cracks me up every time I read it. If I knew how, I'd post it here, but I'm barely Computer Semi-literate
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I looked it up on Wikipedia. I read the story and it's quite touching:

Unknown Author said:
Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable. All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together…
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Source: Rainbow Bridge (pets) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
white avenger
white avenger
Thank you for posting it for me. Someday if I EVER get time, I'm gonna take a basic computer course (Do they make a "Computers for total idiots?" because I tried "Computers For Dummies," and it was way over my head.
Awwwww i dunno if its the hormones or what but that just made me cry like nothin then agian i cried watching independence day yesterday lol... but that was just so sweet!!!!!
 
Man according to the Bible wether you believe it or not, is made in God's image, we consist of body soul and Spirit, Animals were not made so, so It is easy to say they don't have a soul, but have a spirit, so I heard,I know scripture doesn't say either way, doesn't make em unable to feel emotion, and why can't they go heaven if they don't have one? i believe there are animals in heaven, and no-one is gonna convince me otherwise.
 
I had this argument with "leaders of the Church" ALL THE TIME. I have been told (and I don't read Aramaic, so I don't know for sure) that the word used in Genesis when God "breathes life" into Adam is the SAME WORD used when he creates the animals. The difference is that we are "made in God's image," meaning we have an intellect and free will that animals really don't, being mostly driven by instincts.

If that argument doesn't get you, my mom used to tell me that Heaven is a place for people to be happy, and if you can't be happy without animals, then of course there will be animals there.

I personally don't believe that God would create so many things and then abandon them all at the end of the world. I think that's incredibly arrogant of us to assume that He would; just as arrogant as assuming that He didn't create life on any other planet but this one.

But that's a different argument.
 
white avenger
white avenger
You can add this to your argument: Man's first duty after Creation was to "tend the garden," and care for the animals. In that light, we're only here because God needed a gardener. The animals are here because he wanted them here.
Blondie Bear said:
I personally don't believe that God would create so many things and then abandon them all at the end of the world. I think that's incredibly arrogant of us to assume that He would; just as arrogant as assuming that He didn't create life on any other planet but this one.
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That's how I see it too! Except not being a christian I don't use the word 'God' as it is used by said people. But I consider myself to be a very religious person and I do believe that life on earth is the result of some greater power. With the exception that I don't believe that "someone" did it personally, it just happened. Therefor, animals have just as much soul and spirit as we have. Actually, I believe that it is us humans who are the deviant ones, since we have drifted appart from our instincts.

See, as for the discussion of Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, I really don't buy that story but I do accept it as a metaphor for what happened to humans once they deviated (for some reason, I dunno, "evolution"?) from their nature or instincts. Since animals let their instincts guide them, they cannot do wrong or evil, they can only do good. They don't need what we call an "intellect" because they exist on a whole different leven, symbiotically with nature. The argument that humans are "worth" more than animals just proves how idiotic mankind is.

With that I'm saying that if anyone is getting into heaven, it's animals. As we humans treat our animals and our nature, we really don't deserve an eternity in paradise.
 
L
Lou
And isn't PRIDE one of those 7 deadly sins. Of course, my dog, Sushi, she's guilty of SLOTH a lot of the time.
I was brought up Catholic, and while I am no Holy Joe I believe there is heaven. I don't know why I just do, I guess thats why they call it Faith. I can't quote you scripture but I was taught that we are all God's creatures so to me that means that ALL of his creatures have hope of heaven. I have a dog, and he is the most adorable, well natured mutt I have ever seen. You would have a seriously hard time convincing me he doesn't have a soul, and anyway like the movie says 'All Dogs Go To Heaven'🙂.
 
white avenger
white avenger
"Does that make you an "Unholy Joe?" Well, from one Unholy Joe to anothere, we see things exactly the same.
I personally think that the words "soul" and "spirit" are basically synonyms. I believe that without a spirit residing in a body, the body is just lying there. So I definitely believe animals have spirits/souls, and that they go to an afterlife when they die.

I do believe in God and everything but I *don't* believe in the afterlife like most Christians do, but I do believe there is an afterlife for animals, it seems ridiculous to think otherwise.
 
I'm an atheist so I don't believe in heaven or hell. But I thought about it a lot as a kid (before I was an atheist). I went to Catholic schools most of my life (from Kindergarten-12th grade) not because we were religious but because it was a good education. My perception was that heaven is whatever you want it to be so if you want animals there they will be there. I think if there is a heaven it will be different for every single person based on their desires in life.
 
The running theory in most religions seems to be that if you are "good" then you go to heaven.
Between Christianity and Judism, that at least means the 10 Commandments. And, I've yet to come across as religion that believes in God that doesn't have "rules" close to those.

And, I know that all my pets (with the exception of my cat who's got childhood issues) are all a LOT better "people" than I am. Heaven's gotta be a pretty barren place without animals!
I find it very hard to believe I could be more worthy than my dogs just because I can write and they weren't included by who ever actually wrote the Bible down into words.
Besides, I just watched multiple episodes of Animal Cops and people are MUCH more evil than animals! There may ONLY be animals in Heaven, if you ask me!
 
D
doppelgänger2
That's what I'm saying! Heaven is a place for animals :p
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