I feel crushed after this article

  • Thread starter Thread starter angell1
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
A

angell1

Guest

I just lost my dog Macy, it’s completely unbearable, I just can’t understand why she had to go at such a young age. I keep crying out to God for answers but nothing has come so far. .

and this article seems to indicate that God has no ablity to recreate them at his second coming and that cahtoli teaching is absolutely sure of that fact. . I mean why not? there are no limits to God. and I have seen other articles elsewhere that say that God may be able to remake the same animals we knew, there was one on ewtn, and peter kreeft has said similar things.

is this article definitive catholic teaching? or are apologists in disagreement on the issue. I just need some consolation, I just can’t believe she is gone and I will never see her again
 
Pet souls, such as dogs and cats, do not go to heaven. However, God is able to recreate a beloved pet after the general resurrection. This would not be a pet raised from the dead, but a recreation of the same pet. There is no theological obstacle to this proposition, though it is speculative.
 
I have 2 dogs I love as much as anything. But really, think about it.

A dog is not a person. They are not human, they are not made in God’s image as we are, it makes no sense to expect us to see pets in heaven.
 
There is what we know and what actually is. A pope hasn’t spoken infallibly on the matter as far as I can recall. If we don’t see them, heaven would be a place where they are not missed. Grieve your pet, smile in remembrance.
 
angell1 said:
is this article definitive catholic teaching? or are apologists in disagreement on the issue. I just need some consolation, I just can’t believe she is gone and I will never see her again
Click to expand...
When it comes right down to it, we just don’t know. Don’t let one article crush you.
 
I’m sorry about the loss of your pet. I love mine too!

Animals do not have eternal souls. What God decides to do, however, is up to God. He is certainly capable of recreating them.

In heaven, as we hope to be there, our happiness there is beyond comprehension. It will not be earthly happiness. We will also have the perspective of the glory of God’s justice and perfection. All that we do not understand on earth will be clear and we will understand and agree.

Just remember, God created your Macy. The Bible says he knows when a sparrow falls. God loves all that he created including the animals. You’ll heal in time. Ask God to help you, to give you strength, and remember your dog and the joy she brought you.
 
The church is meant to lead to humans to heaven. Not animals. So why would the church even wonder about pets?
 
The Church has no theological stance on whether pets will be in Heaven. Thus, you are completely within your rights to disregard that article and just believe your dog is in Heaven.
 
No one can answer that question. It is too bad when someone speaks as if they know.
 
It sounds like you had a strong attachment to your dog, but if God really wills, He can create another dog just like it in Heaven, but “no eye has seen, nor ear heard what God has in store for those who love Him”. Maybe there are dogs in heaven, maybe not.
 
Please accept my condolences on the loss of your friend. I too have lost pets over the years, and I have known the anguish that torments you. May you have peace, and soon.

That said, please consider that Heaven, in a sense, is not about us. It is about Christ. We often make the elementary mistake of thinking that Heaven will be a place where we will have everything we want, like a child who wants to eat ice cream for breakfast, play video games constantly and ride roller coasters till nightfall. Or if we are adults, we might have an image of Heaven where we are constantly with those we loved here on earth: family members, friends, even pets. But Heaven is not about us and what we want. Our focus there will be strongly on the Beatific Vision. We will be so filled with joy and Christ’s love that we will want nothing else. Our faces will all be turned, not towards one another, but towards Him, in the constant Now of eternity. This is not to discount the powerful love we had for our dear ones, including pets, here in this life; rather, we will then see that the whole purpose of us loving others here was to prepare us, to get ‘practice in loving’, if you will, to enable us to love Christ perfectly there. Please forgive my presumption in speaking to you this way, and certainly if my words are of no use to you, or if they get in the way of your love for Christ, feel free to disregard them. God be with you, my friend.
 
I once heard a priest say that in God’s Kingdom, he will provide for you all that you wish for happiness, joy, and love in that realm. Includes pets. Nice thought, not doctrine, but one from the idea of God’s eternal love for the saved. Keep the thought. In that kingdom, your heartache here will be washed away.
 
The thing that made me cringe when I read that article was the line " the powers of rational knowledge and love, which animals do not have." I have to take exception to that.

When I graduated from medical school, I did a residency in emergency medicine at a small hospital in rural Indiana. One day, the squad brought in this elderly gentleman who had gone out to get his newspaper on the porch, slipped on the ice, and fell behind the railing where no one could see him. He would have frozen to death, and was darn close to that point when they brought him in, were it not for his (very large) dog, who got on top of him to keep him warm and barked for hours before a neighbor finally came and checked. I find it very difficult to believe that that dog did not possess rational knowledge of what he was doing and did not act out of love.

If he’s not in Heaven, I have to ask whether any of us deserve to be there, either.
 
Last edited:
@Ron_Conteguess I’m a little fuzzy between resurrection and recreation. I guess if a pet’s souls ceases to exist after death, the there is nothing to bring back necessarily, but I don’t see why God couldn’t remake them again exactly the same as they were, or perhaps a replica or something, I think this is probably what you meant, correct me if I am wrong.
 
C.S. Lewis thought they might. As other posters have said, if a theologian/priest/writer of a certain article claims that pets would or would not be in Heaven, they are not proclaiming doctrine, only conjecture. Maybe their conjecture is correct; maybe not.

My condolences for your loss. A friend of mine lost their dog last year during intense thunderstorms. I had known the dog for a long time, as long as my friend had him, so I took it as hard as he did. I’ve been lucky to have none of my own dogs pass, but I do know the hurt well.
 
It would seem Church teaching suggests that pets don’t go to heaven, as they don’t have eternal souls but really we can’t know for sure. God created animals so we could find joy in them and I believe its like anything on this earth. We take pleasure in eating, in looking at the beauty of nature, in using our talents and pursuing our hobbies, etc. We don’t know what heaven will be like, what it will look like, what will be there. But we do know one thing: We will see God face to face. THAT will be much better than anyone can possible imagine. The dark veil will be drawn and we will be so happy. So whether there are animals there or not, honestly, it probably wouldn’t even go through your mind.
 
I am so sorry for your loss - your Macy was more than a pet, she was your helper, best friend, confidant, and much more. You trusted her with your life. Hold on to faith that your life is in God’s loving hands and He loves you so much that he sacrificed His Son so that you can be with Him. He loved His Son and you love His Son. He created Macy - He loved Macy. As we understand with our limited human understanding, the article may be true. However - don’t doubt that God is God and He can do whatever He wills. I’m not trying to give you any false hope of being reunited with Macy, but honor her as you do with remembering her dedication to you and that God created her for YOU! We don’t know all that God has for us in heaven. I’d like to think that if He gave us dogs to love on earth, He will give us dogs in heaven. Prayers for you.
 
Last edited:
I read a quote long ago and cannot remember who said it, but it goes something like this:

“I regret that I will not live long enough to know all the dogs I could have loved.”
 
So, do we want to step in dog doo in heaven?

I seriously think that the Beatific Vision, which is stronger than all forces, all perceptions, all experiences in the universe, will be slightly more attractive and desired than anything of this earth.

Yes, pets included.

As a kid, I had a pet crayfish. Should I despair that it will not be pinching my fingers and crawling around in heaven?

You are mourning your loss. Give yourself time to mourn, for you will be comforted.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top