The Killing of Animals

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Is it lawful or not?

I am very interested to hear what some of the opinions of the community here are on the subject of killing of animals.

The Catechism of the Council of Trent states it is perfectly lawful to kill animals, as they are not made in the image of God. In fact it mentions animals are indeed made to be our food, so it makes sense to kill them and eat them.

But what about other circumstances?

The Catechism of the Catholic Church further states that animal experimentation is lawful and permissible as well.

Does this mean if I run over a cat with my car (I have never done such a thing mind you) I should not think twice about it? Is there no restrictions then on the killing of animals?
 
I’ve just been reading through the book of Leviticus and there are animal sacrifices everywhere. God commanded the Israelites to sacrifice animals. Bulls. turtledoves, pigeons, lambs and goats were sacrificed all the time. There are even some cases in which God permitted the priests to eat meat (the meat that came from the sacrificed animals). The priests probably ate meat every day.

The New Testament never commands us to eat meat, so you can be a vegetarian or a vegan if you want. I would advise against the idea of running over a cat because cats have been domesticated, so they are seen as being off limits. I have six cats and the thought of eating one of them makes me sick.
 
Tbh, I’ve run over my fair share of small animals on accident (never on purpose). I was taught in driving school to never stop for them as it can endanger the driver behind you. That it is nature taking it’s course by weeding out the weak genes in the animal kingdom. Now killing animals on purpose without the need for food can be a concerning sign. I think the psych community concludes that people that murder small animals for fun (think cat in a microwave) is one of the first signs of being a psychopath. I’m sure there is demonic influence involved when it comes to “the thrill of the kill”.

Here is St. Thomas Aquinas on murder (including animals):
http://www.newadvent.org/summa/3064.htm
 
You are correct there is nothing in the NT against eating meat.

I found this ;

[Romans 14:2-3] tells us, “One man’s faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him.”

Jesus ate Fish & Lamb.
 
If you’re going to take a life, it can be through accident (a squirrel darts into the road, all the bugs on my windshield), for a purpose (food, product safety), or for defense (ack, I’m being charged by a mountain lion, I’m spraying for wasps).

Back in the pre-industrial period, it was common to kill off all your animals that you weren’t going to breed in the spring, so that you didn’t have to feed them through the winter. So if you had ten dogs-- you might kill all but two or three come November, because they couldn’t just go get a bag of Alpo every week. If you had twenty barn cats, they would either have to fend for themselves, or the excess cats would be drowned so that they wouldn’t die slowly by starvation in January.

But in general, people who take lives casually for no purpose, or who deliberately torture animals prior to their legitimate deaths— that’s more of an abuse of power, and they probably have other problems on their souls, of which animal cruelty is merely one manifestation.

So in your example, if a cat is chasing a squirrel across the street, runs under your tires and dies, that’s not a bad thing. But if you’re driving down the road, see a cat hanging out in the street, and speed up in the hopes of squashing it-- or perhaps you swerve a little bit to give yourself a better chance of running over it— you’ve got other problems going on inside, which takes the form of finding pleasure in the suffering of other creatures. 😉

But likewise, if you own a cat, and it digs up the neighbor’s flowerbed to poop in, and your neighbor has told you a hundred times to keep your cat out of his yard— and then the cat mysteriously disappears one day— then perhaps the guilt is less on the neighbor, who gave good warning, and more on you, who by your disregard for the neighbor’s warnings allowed your cat to annoy him to the point of killing it.
 
They can only be killed if it is for necessity (like to eat them) but they must be killed humanely
 
I think that deliberately killing animals for fun- not for food or by accident- is an abuse of the power that God gave us over the world. We are meant to be responsible stewards, not self-indulgent sickos.
And yes, when we do kill animals on purpose, it should be done humanely. No twisted experiments that cause unnecessary pain.
 
That is true, psychologists have said that many serial killers start out first by killing small animals before eventually moving on to human beings.
 

The Atheist and the Bear​

One beautiful morning, an atheist was walking through the forest, admiring natures surroundings…

He looked up and saw the trees swaying in the wind high above him and smiled…

He saw the river glisten and the sun twinkle like a new born star and it made him warm inside…

He thought to himself that mother nature had made a true and wonderful world…

The atheist had walked a little further down the track he had taken when suddenly a bear jumped out of the bushes only a few yards ahead of him and started growling, looking hungry and ran quickly towards him…

Seeing the big bear bounding towards him he screamed in horror and started running as fast as he could away from the bear…

Knowing that the bear would catch up to him and he had no chance, the atheist soon ran out of breath and in a few paces fell to the ground…

As the bears shadow fell upon his face and his paws come down upon his chest, the atheist screamed, “Oh help me God!”

Suddenly the trees that he so much admired stopped swaying…

The river he loved suddenly stopped flowing…

And the sky opened up and a voice begun to speak…

“I am God, and even though you don’t believe in me, I am here for every being on this earth.”

The atheist felt relieved a little bit and asked God, “I’m sort of in this situation, I’m only asking if you can help me get out of it.”

God thought for a moment and said…

“I will give you one wish to help you and that is all, you may proceed with this wish.”

The atheist thought about this wish for a moment and then spoke to God…

“Well I don’t really want to become a religious person, so I wish the bear to become religious himself.”

God spoke…

“So be it done.”

Suddenly the sky closed up…

The river turned back into its flowing glory…

The trees began to sway again…

And the bear clapped his paws together and said…

“Thank you God for this meal I’m about to receive!”
 
It is quite certain that there is nothing in Catholic tradition against the killing of animals. But it is hard to find anything much about caring for them either before this became a preoccupation of secular society. And tradition seems to provide no answer to the question of why animals should suffer as a result of human sin, given that they have no chance at eternal life.

And I don’t think the Church in some countries has historically been active in stopping ritualised cruelty, including some involving churches. (Warning - not anti-Catholic link, but may be upsetting: https://elpais.com/elpais/2014/09/23/inenglish/1411483320_523650.html
 
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I agree with everything that @GraceJ wrote.

Where it gets a bit hard though,is should we accept animal testing for human purposes?
I definitely don’t believe luxury items like perfumes should be tested in animals but I don’t know when it comes to medical treatments.

I believe that humans are superior to animals,but not as in some cold way,but more due to our abilities to reason and make choices.

At the same time,because we are “superior” is the exact reason why we have responsibility to ensure that animals are not treated in cruel ways when being killed for food.
 
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Scott84 said:
Is it lawful or not?

I am very interested to hear what some of the opinions of the community here are on the subject of killing of animals.

The Catechism of the Council of Trent states it is perfectly lawful to kill animals, as they are not made in the image of God. In fact it mentions animals are indeed made to be our food, so it makes sense to kill them and eat them.

But what about other circumstances?

The Catechism of the Catholic Church further states that animal experimentation is lawful and permissible as well.

Does this mean if I run over a cat with my car (I have never done such a thing mind you) I should not think twice about it? Is there no restrictions then on the killing of animals?
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Some people will feel the death of an animal more deeply and this is perfectly normal because we can understand that they all were created by God. The Church regards deliberate and unethical cruelty to animals to be a serious sin.

CCC 2415 The seventh commandment enjoins respect for the integrity of creation. Animals, like plants and inanimate beings, are by nature destined for the common good of past, present, and future humanity.195 Use of the mineral, vegetable, and animal resources of the universe cannot be divorced from respect for moral imperatives. Man’s dominion over inanimate and other living beings granted by the Creator is not absolute; it is limited by concern for the quality of life of his neighbor, including generations to come; it requires a religious respect for the integrity of creation.196

2416 Animals are God’s creatures. He surrounds them with his providential care. By their mere existence they bless him and give him glory.197 Thus men owe them kindness. We should recall the gentleness with which saints like St. Francis of Assisi or St. Philip Neri treated animals.

2417 God entrusted animals to the stewardship of those whom he created in his own image.198 Hence it is legitimate to use animals for food and clothing. They may be domesticated to help man in his work and leisure. Medical and scientific experimentation on animals is a morally acceptable practice if it remains within reasonable limits and contributes to caring for or saving human lives.

2418 It is contrary to human dignity to cause animals to suffer or die needlessly. It is likewise unworthy to spend money on them that should as a priority go to the relief of human misery. One can love animals; one should not direct to them the affection due only to persons.
 
Scott84 said:
The Catechism of the Council of Trent states it is perfectly lawful to kill animals, as they are not made in the image of God. In fact it mentions animals are indeed made to be our food, so it makes sense to kill them and eat them.
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That is a general statement, but when it comes to the practical application the way animals are killed in slaughter houses can be horrific. I don’t think people realize the incredibly cruel and gruesome treatment of animals as they are being butchered alive.
 
I second this argument. Slaughter houses can e incredibly cruel to animals. Especially large mammals like cows and pigs.

According to the council of Jerusalem Christians are suppose to stay away from the flesh of strangled animals.
 
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