All things were not revealed to Jesus Christ at birth, and though he was the Son of God he was required to learn obedience "by the things he suffered". (Hebrews 5:8,9).
I am sure he would have been fully aware that when God created humans he specifically designed them to be vegetarians. With this in mind many of his teachings centered around acting as compassionately as we can, St Paul agreed and echoed this in the words that "we should learn to widen out in our tender affections" (2 Cor 6 11,12).
Jesus didnt tell anyone they must be vegetarian after all food was provided in abundance in eden whereas in ancient Israel life was a hard and bitter existence where sometimes they were forced to kill to eat or they and their offspring would have died. What Jesus did do was leave it up to us as individuals to grow and improve in our acts of mercy and compassion, this would serve a three -fold purpose( Matt Chapter 5:7,9,14)
1) It would demonstrate our depth of genuine Love. 2) It allows us to show respect for other creations of God. 3) It reveals a persons true desire for peace on earth.
Image above: Adam & Eve were created as vegetarians.
Image above left: Ancient Celtic Cross, emblem of Jesus Suffering, Pain and Death Unlike Jesus people of the 21st century don't "have" to suffer in order to learn, we can learn much of what we need by studying the mistakes of others, all we have to do is look around at all Christians who die young in their 40s 50s 60s from heart disease and cancers that could have been largely avoided by following a compassionate vegetarian lifestyle that does not clog the arteries and damage our DNA as dairy and meat products do. It would benefit us all to keep in mind that these products cannot be obtained by any other means than by acts of brute violence and abuse, so if we cause suffering to others when their are alternatives abundantly available then we can only bring sorrow and suffering upon ourselves (in other words as the Bible indicates we will reap what we sow (Job 4:8). Many have deduced then that a life of Mercy, Compassion, Pity, Empathy and Love can never be possible for Christians who wilfully support the unecessary encarceration and slaughter of animals in farming. A sincere Christian person cannot fail to realise that only by applying the Golden Rule ( "treating others as you would hope they would treat you") can they ever live a spiritualy progressive and rewarding life, otherwise ones faith and religion can only be defined as still damaging to others. In line with this many highly respected people throughout history have examined mainstream Christianity's record of progress in this area but have found it sadly lacking as respects the genuine application of love and compassion, and a look around us today shows things havent changed that much (1st Chroni 29:17).
We could ask ourselves this question "Could we ever imagine Jesus Christ walking past a slaughterhouse and feeling no empathy"? of course not. It would seem then that since his death the religion bearing his name hasn't really been the blessing to all creatures of this earth that it could have been, probably because the interpretation of the scriptures has taken on far too many forms and the growth toward universal love has been lost along the way. Christianity in its infancy was really a very simple concept of Love and Peace and the early followers of Christ were said to belong to the "Way", however its disheartening that most of its present day leaders have done precious little to direct their flocks in "Ways" of becoming wise compassionate and peaceful stewards of the planet, so it's this that we seek to address and improve. Many sects of Christianity today show little moral backbone when it comes to the delivering sermons from their pulpits that mention peace toward animals, and so many people have lost their trust in the churches ( Isaiah 56:9-11). Those who truly seek to follow "The Prince of Peace" now have the opportunity as never before to help make grow what Jesus Christ himself had planted, and promote and expand the principle of universal Love and Respect to the masses, quite simply this means being a good example of peacefulness themselves.
"If a man aspires towards a righteous life, his first act is abstinence of injury to animals." Leo Tolstoy
Ritual Slaughter and Sacrifice The stand that Jesus took on the ritual slaughter of animals is clearly seen in that he in no way encouraged the people to sacrifice other creatures, in fact he clearly rebuked those selling animals for sacrifice in the Temple. Biblical history shows that his final acts were those of an "animal liberater" and this is depicted in him driving out the innocent beasts from torment and away from the terror that had awaited them, so then this the was clearly "not" an example of a lover sacrifices and the flesh of other beings, no, but of one which showed that he favoured compassion toward animals, one thing is clear "Jesus Christ never taught that the untimely death of any sentient creature is pleasing to God". ( John 2:13-16 )
The Birth of Jesus
Have you ever wondered where Jesus was born, no it wasnt in a great house among nobles it was among in a stable his animal brothers, the cattle, the donkey and the sheep. Jesus often used animals birds and fish in his illustrations and little did anyone know that he was forordained by the creator to be the Lamb of God that was to take sina away from the world. What an indignity some may have thought for this man who was to become more famous than anyone who has ever lived to be likened to a sheep, Jesus willingly accepted this role and carried it out untill the very end. What a great example of humility in a man humbled himself as far as death to make the forgiveness of sins possible and at the same time deal the death blow to the perpetual sacrificing of animals at the temple. Even after his ascension to heaven he was still identified as the Lamb of God yet he never viewed this as a lowering of himself even though he is also a great King, and he never forgot his humble origin in being born as a human among those creatures that were often abused and exploited as he had been. Jesus asks a very simple thing, to learn what this means, I want mercy: (Matt 9:13)
The Devil Within Us!
Some have called Christianity an evil religion because of the barbaric acts carried out during the inquisition, for if theres one thing that characterizes some of the Christian sects throughout history its just how merciless they can be when it suits them. Of what use can it be for anyone to pray: “Be merciful to me Oh Lord, for I am a Sinner“ if we justify showing no mercy to others, including animals?. Should we think that Christians really deserve mercy from God if they consign Gods creatures to a “Merciless-Living-Hell in factory farms" or wilfully and knowingly eat meat that is produced in this way?, if nothing else its food for thought!.
Image right: Christs Temptation by Satan
We have enslaved the rest of creation, and have treated our distant cousins in fur and feathers so badly that beyond doubt, if they were able to formulate a religion, they would depict the Devil in human form!
WILLIAM RALPH INGE Professor of divinity at Cambridge.
Many Christians seem to forget that the dietary advice as recorded in the Bible was meant for existence over 2-6000 years ago and not for our day, however since the main religions have mostly failed to aspire to peacefulness the world remains a violent and hostile place as a result, and thats were the Devil comes in as he is the one who Jesus said blinds generation after generation to their acts of brutality.
The Fruits of the Spirit (The Mark of a True Christian)
LOVE... This is primarily achieved by putting God first (as he first loved us) and by striving to live by all the other fruits, then we put others second, and ourselves last. However a life of complete total peace isnt possible as yet though as we must battle against a barrage of harmful viruses and bacteria, these often have one thought and one objective which is to proliferate and thereby kill us, domestic animals on the other hand mean us no harm . We believe that doing our best to extend peace toward all sentient creatures is the road to Universal Love and sincere Christians remain ready to make other adjustments in this as they are able, this we are sure is the road which Christ would have approved of if he where here today.
JOY... If creatures have a measure of health and freedom then the joy of living is a glorious thing to them just as it is to us, but if we destroy the joy of others ( be they man or beast) we will eventually only harm ourselves for as the Bible says "if we go on seeking the Joy of others and we should rightly reap it bountifully ourselves".
PEACE... What religion can be genuinely peaceful if it approves of killing other creatures without the dire necessity to do so, wouldnt those who do actually be acting as enemies of peace on earth and of the very Prince of Peace himself?. How we treat animals has long been seen as the indicator of how we will actually one day treat our fellow humans, so if Christians dont pursue peace with all things "aren’t they acting more like the servants of the Devil than of God"?, especially when Jesus describes the devil as the one who causes death.
LONG SUFFERING... Many people go out of their way to ridicule spiritual Vegetarians and Vegans for making moral adjustments in behalf of animals but doing what is right has never been easy even for Jesus and his early followers, and we suppose it never will be. KINDNESS... There are a multitude of (presently legal) farming practices which make a mockery of human kindness such as the keeping of hens in cages the size of an A4 sheet of paper, and keeping veal calves in tiny crates in which they are even denied the light of day. Pregnant sows have also been treated badly having been restricted to tiny farrowing crates which make it impossible for them to even turn around, mares as well have been kept in narrow stalls for anything up to 18 hours a days with their vaginas hooked up to a catheter which extracts HRT from their urine. These as you can see are all clear atrocities and as such any true Christian who seeks to be kind should rightly condemn them and choose alternatives.
GOODNESS... Seeking what is good doesn’t only mean seeking it for our fellow man, but also for that of beast bird and insect also, God is very interested in goodness in fact its one of his formost qualities and the book of Genesis agrees stating that after creating the earth the plants and the animals, God declared them to be very good!, so take pleasure in creation it is a godly thing..
FAITH... Faith is born out of the firm conviction that treating one another and all creatures with due respect is the right thing to do, and that by doing this that you are ultimately pleasing the creator.
MILDNESS... Nobody can possibly be mild yet kill another creature unless it is in that creatures best interest to do so, ( i.e. to end excruciating pain etc). Meat for human consumption can only be obtained by subjecting animals to acts of gross violence which are in total opposition to a spirit of mildness. The only ones who can be truly mild are those that do their best to put away harmful acts against man or beast, for how can a truly mild Christian deny powerless animals mercy?, if they willingly destroy others then their consciences can only be described as seared with a branding iron and blinded to the reality of the harmful and sinister force acting within them. If an a animal means you no harm, then why harm it?.
SELF CONTROL.... This is vital for those who set out on the road to the Edenic (pure vegetarian ) diet, as the smell of hot death such as (bacon, sausage etc) can even seem sweeter to the senses of some than the desire to see fellow creature run free, to overcome this often takes a great deal of hard work and sacrifice not to mention awful lot of self denial, but for those who overcome the desire for the flesh of other creatures there are many blessings in store, notably better health and longer life.
Against the above things there is no law, only a duty live up to them as best as we are able.
He prayeth best, who loveth best All things both great and small; For the dear God who loveth us, He made and loveth all.
Samuel Coleridge
Prove your Love! Christianity should be active in spreading compassion and establishing the kind of global harmony that the founder himself envisioned and promoted with his very blood, sweat, and tears, indeed within the original teachings are everything necessary to create a truly compassionate world.
If Christian denominations take up the cause to help end all wilful harm , and if they promote from their podiums and pulpits environmental respect, social harmony and fine stewardship toward the planet then we may yet be able to right some of the ecological sins, and other wrongs we have commited against our beautiful earth and its creatures.
Many believe this can only be achieved by universally embracing the spirit of the "Golden Rule of Jesus Christ"
Image Right After giving birth to Jesus Mary is said to have offered two Doves as a sacrifice for her ritual cleansing according to the Law of Moses.
THE GOLDEN RULE
In everything, do for others what you would have them to do for you,
for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 7:12 New International Version
Image left: By his sacrificial death, Jesus became the Lamb of God, abolishing animal sacrifice.
By their fruits, True Christians are known. Matthew 7:20
True Christians should not shut the door of tender compassion on other creatures.
Consider carefully the following principles from the teachings of Jesus and the early apostles, which the faithful followers of Christianity are supposed to observe.
Little children, let us love, neither in word nor with the tongue, but in deed and truth. 1st John 3:18
Let your love be without hypocrisy. Romans 12:9
If you love me you will observe my commandments.John 14:15
Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy. Matthew 5:7
Blessed are the mild tempered since they will inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5
Let all your affairs take place with love. Romans 16:14
Therefore, become imitators of God, as beloved children, and go on walking in love. Ephesians 5:1,2
Let us consider one another to incite to love and fine works. Hebrews 10:24
May mercy and peace and love be increased to YOU. Jude:2
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels but do not have love, I have become a sounding [piece of] brass or a clashing cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophesying and am acquainted with all the sacred secrets and all knowledge, and if I have all the faith so as to transplant mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my belongings to feed others, and if I hand over my body, that I may boast, but do not have love, I am not profited at all. 1st Corinthians 13:1-3
Judgement without mercy, will be rendered to anyone who has not shown mercy. James 2:12
Those who without necessity try to justify the slaughter of animals in their behalf are certainly not measuring up to the standard of "Christs Golden Rule" , we should always strive to improve in the "Fruitage of the Spirit.
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"Our task must be to free ourselves . . . by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty." "Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival for life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet." Albert Einstein, physicist, Nobel Prize 1921
to right some of the ecological sins, and other wrongs we have commited against our beautiful earth and its creatures.
