Why can't God let animals be in heaven?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Upgrade25
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
He could if He wanted to, but they won’t derive any happiness from the beatific vision so it is essentially futile. The people in Heaven couldn’t care less whether animals are there or not and they are not created to live forever since they don’t have an eternal spirit like man, so it wouldn’t make sense if God brought animals into Heaven. They are created to be fully content with the carnal satisfactions they receive on earth, and nothing more than that.
 
I’d like to think St. Francis of Assisi ushers our loved pets into the Kingdom.

All God’s critters got a place in the choir
Some sing low, some sing higher
Some sing out loud on the telephone wire
And some just clap their hands, or paws or anything they got now

I suggest reading Animal Theology by Andrew Linzey
 
It’s an open question.

Certainly animals are **not **“needed” in Heaven, but neither are WE!!

And when professional philosophers make Life Everlasting contingent on the possession of the kind of soul that can do philosophy – well that’s the classical “self serving argument.”

As much as I miss my dog, I doubt that she would be foremost in my mind once I could hide in our LORD’s arms!

So I leave it an open question, as HE did.

ICXC NIKA
 
I believe that it’s important to think with the church on things like this and, having dealt with the loss of several beloved friends, both canine and feline, I made the following study which informed and consoled me very much,

Material soul.

Taken from Catholic Answers (Catholic.com)
All living creatures – angels, humans, animals, plants – have souls. However, there are two kinds of souls: spiritual and material. Angels and humans have spiritual souls. Animals and plants have material souls. Something that is spirit is not subject to the decay of change. Thus, angels do not die and human souls survive the separation of body and soul at death. Material things however are subject to change, thus they are subject to decay and death. As animals and plants have material souls, at death their souls cease to exist.
Click to expand...
Whether God will choose to re-create animal and plant souls at the end of time when the material universe is transformed (cf. CCC 1060
Click to expand...
) is something we do not yet know. However, the Church does not teach that animal and plant souls are “disposable” in the sense that they are of little consequence and can be wasted if humans wish to do so. Animals and plants do not have inherent rights, but humans, because they are appointed by God to be just stewards of nature, have a responsibility to be kind to animals and prudent in using the world’s natural resources. See the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
Code: 
      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. 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 ([**CCC   2415**](http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/para/2415.htm)). 
    **Recommended reading:**
What Spirits Are and What They Aren’t by Frank Sheed My own Scriptural considerations:
Ecclesiastes 3:21 Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down to the earth?

John 11: 25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,

Luke 20:38 Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living; for all live to him.

2nd Peter 3:13 But according to his promise we wait for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Revelation 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; 3 and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them; 4 he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.” 5 And he who sat upon the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Since we do not know for sure the end of the souls of animals (#1 above) and we know that Christ stated that he is “the resurrection and the life” (#2 above) and since Our Lord stated that all live to God, (#3 above), then we see twice in the New Testament where Christ promises a new Heaven and earth (#s 4 & 5 above) it seems logical that we may comfort ourselves in our loss of our beloved pet friends with a hope that we will see them again since animals cannot sin it seems more likely that God might resurrect them because of the blessing they have been to us in their lives.

Keep in mind that this is not a teaching of the Catholic Church, or anyone else, but nothing more than my own pious theory.
 
Confiteor_Deo said:
He could if He wanted to, but they won’t derive any happiness from the beatific vision so it is essentially futile. The people in Heaven couldn’t care less whether animals are there or not
Click to expand...
And how do you know this? My cat was hit by a car last year I loved her so much and I miss her everyday. I hold onto hope I might see her again one day. I know animals don’t make happiness but couldn’t they be included?
 
Was there an apparition of Our Blessed Mother surrounded by doves?
 
Church_Militant said:
I believe that it’s important to think with the church on things like this and, having dealt with the loss of several beloved friends, both canine and feline, I made the following study which informed and consoled me very much,

Material soul.

Taken from Catholic Answers (Catholic.com)
Code: 
 My own Scriptural considerations:
Ecclesiastes 3:21 Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down to the earth?

John 11: 25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,

Luke 20:38 Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living; for all live to him.

2nd Peter 3:13 But according to his promise we wait for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Revelation 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; 3 and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them; 4 he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.” 5 And he who sat upon the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Since we do not know for sure the end of the souls of animals (#1 above) and we know that Christ stated that he is “the resurrection and the life” (#2 above) and since Our Lord stated that all live to God, (#3 above), then we see twice in the New Testament where Christ promises a new Heaven and earth (#s 4 & 5 above) it seems logical that we may comfort ourselves in our loss of our beloved pet friends with a hope that we will see them again since animals cannot sin it seems more likely that God might resurrect them because of the blessing they have been to us in their lives.

Keep in mind that this is not a teaching of the Catholic Church, or anyone else, but nothing more than my own pious theory.
Click to expand...
This is a wonderful post.
 
Church_Militant said:
I believe that it’s important to think with the church on things like this and, having dealt with the loss of several beloved friends, both canine and feline, I made the following study which informed and consoled me very much,

Material soul.

Taken from Catholic Answers (Catholic.com)
Code: 
 My own Scriptural considerations:
Ecclesiastes 3:21 Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down to the earth?

John 11: 25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,

Luke 20:38 Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living; for all live to him.

2nd Peter 3:13 But according to his promise we wait for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Revelation 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; 3 and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them; 4 he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.” 5 And he who sat upon the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Since we do not know for sure the end of the souls of animals (#1 above) and we know that Christ stated that he is “the resurrection and the life” (#2 above) and since Our Lord stated that all live to God, (#3 above), then we see twice in the New Testament where Christ promises a new Heaven and earth (#s 4 & 5 above) it seems logical that we may comfort ourselves in our loss of our beloved pet friends with a hope that we will see them again since animals cannot sin it seems more likely that God might resurrect them because of the blessing they have been to us in their lives.

Keep in mind that this is not a teaching of the Catholic Church, or anyone else, but nothing more than my own pious theory.
Click to expand...
Thank you for letting us know that this is NOT a teaching of the Catholic Church but nothing more than your own pious theory. Yes, Jesus said HE is the Resurrection and the Life" and HE also said "whoever BELIEVES in ME will have Eternal Life. Animals do NOT have the capacity to ‘believe’ in HIM. If God only takes the animals we love to heaven then what happens to all the mistreated, unloved critters. Good grief this gets silly. God Bless, Memaw
 
Heaven goes by favor; if it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in.

Mark Twain
 
Don’t over think the Twain quote.
It was meant to be tongue in cheek; he was a cheeky fellow after all.
Personally, I hope to see my beloved pets in the afterlife.
 
MT was an atheist; it would be a mistake to turn to him for understanding of the other life.

That said, if dogs, at least have no everlasting life, that would be a monumental waste of loyalty and affection.

ICXC NIKA
 
If God is infinitely powerful, then he knows all about and has power over every being ever created and all of those which could potentially arise, such as alternate versions of yourself in quantum mechanical Everett parallel universes.

If God is infinitely just and all-knowing, then he is capable of sorting them all out, which means he could easily judge in every single case whether or not there should be some sort of pleasurable existence of infinite duration for even the littlest of beings with the tiniest self-awareness.

If God is infinitely merciful and loving, then he will not discard even the tiniest sweet little self-aware innocence, even though the thought of it might boggle the minds of human beings who, overcome by the immensity of the challenge presented by the above, turn aside from it calling it “silly”.
 
Animals are not made in the image and likeness of God as we are. Their souls are not eternal.

That said, it seems perfectly reasonable to me that if there are plants and animals on Earth, there would be plants and animals in the new Heaven and new Earth. God is a creative God. Why let such good ideas pass away?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top