Do animals go to Heaven?

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meltzerboy said:
One other point I’d like to mention. In Jewish lore (rather than Law), it is said that when G-d passes sentence as to whom will go to Heaven and whom to Hell, our pets will testify regarding how we treated them.
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That is a very interesting idea. It should worry those who mistreat animals to realize that we humans will be judged for every idle word, even more so on how we have treated (or:( mistreated) His creatures.
Catholic90 said:
Some people just like being mean. They would look a child in the eye who is weeping over the death of a dear beloved pet and tell them the pet us gone forever and they will never, ever see it again.

I believe our God is more merciful than that. So did st. Francis.

Pets are in heaven, IMO.
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đź‘Ťđź‘Ť

Bless you!! I tell people that I know that my Daddy is in Heaven, he was a living saint. And he, I assure you, lets in all manner of animals, but especially :)cats.
 
Catholic90 said:
Some people just like being mean. They would look a child in the eye who is weeping over the death of a dear beloved pet and tell them the pet us gone forever and they will never, ever see it again.

I believe our God is more merciful than that. So did st. Francis.

Pets are in heaven, IMO.
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I’ve noticed this, and I agree with you fully.
 
Ecclesiastes 3:21 gives the answer to the question of this thread: “Who knows?”

The Holy Spirit inspired this scripture: “Who knoweth if the spirit of the children of Adam ascendeth upward and the spirit of the bests goeth downward?”

If the Holy Spirit inspired the scripture “Who knows” in the Old Testament–can anywone point to any other time where the holy spirit inspired a different answer to the Catholic Church?

I think we simply don’t know.

My guess and it is only a guess is that ALL of God’s creation before and after the fall will be restored to an even greater level in the New Jerusalem which is Heaven.

This will happen because God is not only a God of justice but of mercy.

If the same God who described with relish the greatness of animal creatures to Job loved animals then–does it make any sense to believe that he will not love them in the future?

Does it make any sense to believe that if God is truely a God of justice that He would not UNDO the death of animals that came about NOT because of the animals but because of man in the fall? And how merciful would that be? How would that glorify God?

Jesus said “In my fathers house are many MANSIONS. I go to prepare a PLACE for you!”

Someone need to tell the current theologians hwo think that they know it all that Heaven does include PLACES! It is not simply a STATE!

If Jesus will provide us a MANSION are you going to tell me that He would not include with that mansion some of our favorite animals?!

I look forward to seeing Balaam’s donkey that talked and look forward to petting the donkey that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on.

The animals will help bring me joy as I remember the grace of God in the Old Testament and the grace of Jesus in the New Testament!

But if God doesn’t want to do any of that it is OK for He is god and always does what is good.

The one thing I can do is just thank God for all the beautiful animals and creation that He has given all of us.

God bless all creatures great and small!
 
For those of you answering one way or another for sure, I must ask, have you been given divine revelation?

The sujbect matter is never truly answered clearly, and nothing is impossible for God.

While I think the answer is yes, I will recognize that there is no clear cut, absolute answer. Is it bad that, as human beings, we can’t just say “we don’t know for sure?”

His thoughts are not our thoughts…who knows?
 
Nope, no personal revelation here. Just the Book of Revelation, in which Christ is quoted as saying, “Behold, I make all things new.”

I don’t know for sure that pets don’t go to heaven, or do go to heaven. Neither does anyone who has not actually been there, and the ones who are there aren’t picking up a laptop to post. But if “all things” are to be made anew, by logical extension, could that not include other than homo sapiens (who sometimes just ain’t very sapient?)

My sole point here is that this may or may not happen, but I think it’s pretty arrogant to assume either way. God can do anything He wishes, including suspending His physical laws, whenever and however He sees fit. That’s part of the definition of being sovereign. And that is why He is God. We can’t assume that His behavior or actions fit our limited knowledge of Him. His ways are far above our ways, and far too awesome for our limited intellects. Rest assured, if He wants pets there, they’ll be there. And we have no real evidence either way what His opinion is. We’ll just have to wait and see, assuming we’re blessed enough to get there ourselves.
 
odile53 said:
Neither does anyone who has not actually been there, and the ones who are there aren’t picking up a laptop to post.
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Off topic, but it would be nice if someone up there did! We’d for sure learn a lot!
 
buffalo said:
Consolation should not be based on a falsehood.

How would you like your Priest preaching something to console you by withholding or misrepresenting the truth?

Many times at funerals I hear claims that our dearly departed beloved is in heaven. God is all loving, etc… Everyone goes to heaven.

That is not the Catholic understanding. What is not taught is God is perfectly just as well as perfectly loving. Hell is real.

We need to know the truth in all things.
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But I think the point Zhenia is making is that whether or not animals go to heaven is not an essential doctrine of the Church which will make a difference to a person’s salvation. And insofar as funerals are concerned, so you would prefer to preach to the bereaved that their loved ones may be in Hell rather than giving them some comfort that their loved ones are with G-d? Or say nothing to comfort them? I think there is a time and place for everything, including uttering the truth.
 
meltzerboy said:
But I think the point Zhenia is making is that whether or not animals go to heaven is not an essential doctrine of the Church which will make a difference to a person’s salvation. And insofar as funerals are concerned, so you would prefer to preach to the bereaved that their loved ones may be in Hell rather than giving them some comfort that their loved ones are with G-d? Or say nothing to comfort them? I think there is a time and place for everything, including uttering the truth.
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Exactly!
 
With regard to human death, of course you do not say that the deceased “might be in Hell”. Neither, however, should the dead be imformally canonized, since they may need praying out of Purgatory, and that in fact is what the funeral mass is for!

And, to get back on topic, the Church has no memorials for animals; because we do not know and in fact CAN’T know if they ever go to Heaven. Kvetch all you want, there’s not a yodh or iota in Scripture, nor a line in Vatican writing concerning this issue.

It’s an open question.

Don’t get me wrong, I’d absolutely love it if my dog made it to Heaven. But I doubt that will be uppermost in my mind when the moment comes to leap into our LORD’s arms 🙂

ICXC NIKA
 
This question was raised in the past on this site’s “Ask an Apologist” forum, and the response was, “If we require animals to be happy in Heaven, then God will give us animals.”

It’s in God’s hands, I trust Him. As Hans Urs von Balthasar wrote of the idea of Universalism, we can accept the Church’s teaching, scriptural authority, and God’s authority and wisdom in such matters, and yet hope in charity that animals live on eternally in some fashion; even as we can hope that all men are saved.
 
Arizona_Mike said:
This question was raised in the past on this site’s “Ask an Apologist” forum, and the response was, “If we require animals to be happy in Heaven, then God will give us animals.”

It’s in God’s hands, I trust Him. As Hans Urs von Balthasar wrote of the idea of Universalism, we can accept the Church’s teaching, scriptural authority, and God’s authority and wisdom in such matters, and yet hope in charity that animals live on eternally in some fashion; even as we can hope that all men are saved.
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That would mean the beatific vision is lacking?
 
Yes, I do believe animals will be in Heaven because they are part of Creation.
 
Arizona_Mike said:
This question was raised in the past on this site’s “Ask an Apologist” forum, and the response was, “If we require animals to be happy in Heaven, then God will give us animals.”

It’s in God’s hands, I trust Him. As Hans Urs von Balthasar wrote of the idea of Universalism, we can accept the Church’s teaching, scriptural authority, and God’s authority and wisdom in such matters, and yet hope in charity that animals live on eternally in some fashion; even as we can hope that all men are saved.
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I was told that exact same thing (what “Ask An Apologist” said) by a nun many years ago! It comforted me so much I never, ever forgot her telling me that.
 
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