Animals

[Faith1960]

I just read an article about a baby elephant who was injured and rejected by his mother. They say this poor baby “cried for five hours.”
It went on to say that elephants seem to understand death and will circle a member of their herd when it dies and they do other mourning behaviors.

I know that dogs have emotional ties to their humans and, and if they have other dogs in he house they seem to have emotional ties to them, as well.

Does any of this conflict with Church teaching that only humans have an intellect?

 

[sunnygt]

Personally, I can’t accept that animals aren’t intelligent beings… in a different way from humans, yes, but intelligent and emotional nonetheless. I firmly believe that all of God’s animals have a place in paradise. St. Francis of Assisi is my patron saint and so much of his ministry revolved around animals. I just can’t imagine that God would forsake His beautiful, loving creatures of an eternity in paradise with him. Maybe not everyone in the Church would agree with me, but I know many priests who share this viewpoint.

Animals are such a gift in a world that can be so cruel.

 

[Faith1960]

Personally, I can’t accept that animals aren’t intelligent beings… in a different way from humans, yes, but intelligent and emotional nonetheless. I firmly believe that all of God’s animals have a place in paradise. St. Francis of Assisi is my patron saint and so much of his ministry revolved around animals. I just can’t imagine that God would forsake His beautiful, loving creatures of an eternity in paradise with him. Maybe not everyone in the Church would agree with me, but I know many priests who share this viewpoint.

Animals are such a gift in a world that can be so cruel.

I agree with you!

 

[IvanHR]

It definitely proves that animals can comprehend the death of someone they gave birth to, or spent most of their lives with. It really shows us the beauty of God’s creation.

 

[LibralAteoJesus]

Personally, I can’t accept that animals aren’t intelligent beings… in a different way from humans, yes, but intelligent and emotional nonetheless. I firmly believe that all of God’s animals have a place in paradise. St. Francis of Assisi is my patron saint and so much of his ministry revolved around animals. I just can’t imagine that God would forsake His beautiful, loving creatures of an eternity in paradise with him. Maybe not everyone in the Church would agree with me, but I know many priests who share this viewpoint.

Animals are such a gift in a world that can be so cruel.

You don’t need scientific complexities to know that animals are sentient and conscious, you can know that by their behaviors but here’s an article where scientists declared that they have feelings and conscience:

www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201208/scientists-finally-conclude-nonhuman-animals-are-conscious-beings

 

[LibralAteoJesus]

Personally, I can’t accept that animals aren’t intelligent beings… in a different way from humans, yes, but intelligent and emotional nonetheless. I firmly believe that all of God’s animals have a place in paradise. St. Francis of Assisi is my patron saint and so much of his ministry revolved around animals. I just can’t imagine that God would forsake His beautiful, loving creatures of an eternity in paradise with him. Maybe not everyone in the Church would agree with me, but I know many priests who share this viewpoint.

Animals are such a gift in a world that can be so cruel.

 

[GEddie]

Emotions != intellect.

Many animals have the first. I doubt they would have the second.

It doesn’t have to be something as powerful as an elephant. When my DBS left town without her puppy dog, the dog was sulking six hours later.

Animals have a soul by definition; soul in Latin is anima. I’d expect at least some of them to behave in “soulful” ways even if, as I believe, they have no cognitive mind.

ICXC NIKA

 

[Faith1960]

Emotions != intellect.

Many animals have the first. I doubt they would have the second.

It doesn’t have to be something as powerful as an elephant. When my DBS left town without her puppy dog, the dog was sulking six hours later.

Animals have a soul by definition; soul in Latin is anima. I’d expect at least some of them to behave in “soulful” ways even if, as I believe, they have no cognitive mind.

ICXC NIKA

I agree with you, too. What is your opinion on what the previous poster said, about annals having a conscious?

 

[Beryllos]

How do you define intellect? Corvids (birds in the crow family) can fashion tools from simple materials to solve problems like reaching food that is inside a tube. Some people would say that is intelligent. This article from the BBC describes that and other intelligent bird behavior.
BBC News: Meet the brains of the animal world

 

[Richca]

I just read an article about a baby elephant who was injured and rejected by his mother. They say this poor baby “cried for five hours.”
It went on to say that elephants seem to understand death and will circle a member of their herd when it dies and they do other mourning behaviors.

I know that dogs have emotional ties to their humans and, and if they have other dogs in he house they seem to have emotional ties to them, as well.

Does any of this conflict with Church teaching that only humans have an intellect?

Human beings have spiritual souls due to the intellectual power God created them with. We are made in God’s image according to our spiritual power of intellect and free will. Animals have souls but they do not possess the spiritual or intellectual power that human beings have, but they have the nutritive and sensitive powers of the soul in common with us.
Many animals, such as dogs, cats, lions, possess the 5 external sense powers as well as interior senses such as the imagination, phantasy, common sense, and the estimative and memorative powers of the soul.
Animals also possess, in common with human beings, a sensory appetitive power from which arise the passions or emotions. For passion is a movement of the appetitive power accompanied by a bodily change. According to St Thomas Aquinas, sensible love is the first passion from which all the other passions flow. He also says that joy, sadness, hope and fear are the principle passions. The more perfect animals such as dogs, horses, cats, lions, experience these passions in common with humans.
Animals cannot experience spiritual love which humans can. This spiritual love arises from the intellectual nature of humans. Man’s intellect and will rule the lower powers of his soul such as the sensitive power. Man’s passions can be turned towards moral good and evil, not so the animals’ passions.

 

[billcu1]

I’m not quite sure why everyone thinks animals are so dumb. I’ve seen some very intellegent ones. And they can be taught many things. As far as consciousness that would be different than ours. The levels of life in creation have different levels of consciousness. Plants are in a dreamless sleep as far as consciousness and minerals the most dormant from of life in creation have the lowest consciousness. We go to different places when we die. Us to Sirius or Kepa in Hebrew I believe. Horses to Archturus, some to Antares and very advanced non-corporeal life to Vega. As far as Horses I speak some of the language of the spirits of horses and have been graciously in sleep been allowed to go to the place where they go when they die. A sheoul-like for them.
These animals are intelligent. All of them.

 

[GEddie]

I agree with you, too. What is your opinion on what the previous poster said, about annals having a conscious?

Of course they are “conscious”. That is true of every being with a brain.

If you meant “conscience” as in, a sense of right and wrong, I’d say no. Only human beings are responsible for right and wrong.

ICXC NIKA

 

[billcu1]

I just read an article about a baby elephant who was injured and rejected by his mother. They say this poor baby “cried for five hours.”
It went on to say that elephants seem to understand death and will circle a member of their herd when it dies and they do other mourning behaviors.

I know that dogs have emotional ties to their humans and, and if they have other dogs in he house they seem to have emotional ties to them, as well.

Does any of this conflict with Church teaching that only humans have an intellect?

THey also have burial places. They gather up the bones of their group and take them to their group’s burial place. Every year they gather at the water hole and check out each of the new borns from the previous year. The mother’s will show their young what trees and plants are good to eat and what parts aren’t poisonous. When we destroy that habitat. They are confusesd and damage all the trees around. I’m not quite sure why or what if anything the church would teach about animals. They have been given the “deposit of faith”. Animals aren’t a subject I don’t believe concerning faith and morals. The church has what Jesus wanted to talk about and I don’t know that the gospel touches this. The church will probably tell you all about it though

 

[Allegra]

I think that some animals are intelligent and are very social. (ex. dogs, elephants, dolphins, etc.) I think the Church teaches that only humans are made in the image of God though and have immortal souls. I don’t know that there’s any reason to believe that animals go to heaven when they die. The strongest argument I’ve ever heard in favor of the idea is something along the lines of, “Well, I NEED my dog in order to be happy, so if my dog isn’t in heaven, then it’s can’t be paradise.” I really find it to be a weak argument. I mean, think about it for a second. You’re kneeling in the pesence of the Creator of the Universe, the One who created you and gave you an immortal soul, and the One who died on the cross so your soul could be saved, and yet you can’t be truely happy unless you are presented with a kitty cat? It seems pretty unlikely to me. On the other hand, “Eye hath not seen…” and all that.

 

[Faith1960]

Of course they are “conscious”. That is true of every being with a brain.

If you meant “conscience” as in, a sense of right and wrong, I’d say no. Only human beings are responsible for right and wrong.

ICXC NIKA

Ooops. I meant concience.

 

[thistle]

I just read an article about a baby elephant who was injured and rejected by his mother. They say this poor baby “cried for five hours.”
It went on to say that elephants seem to understand death and will circle a member of their herd when it dies and they do other mourning behaviors.

I know that dogs have emotional ties to their humans and, and if they have other dogs in he house they seem to have emotional ties to them, as well.

Does any of this conflict with Church teaching that only humans have an intellect?

Modern Catholic Dictionary:

INTELLECT. The spiritual power of cognition, knowing reality in a non-material way. The faculty of thinking in a way essentially higher than with the senses and the imagination. It is possessed by human beings, disembodied souls, and the angels, both good and demonic.