Churches' views
What the churches say about animals
Saint Francis ©
The Anglican view
This resolution from the 1998 Lambeth Conference of the Anglican Church is typical of contemporary Christian thinking about animals:
This conference:
(a) reaffirms the biblical vision of creation according to which: Creation is a web of inter-dependent relationships bound together in the covenant which God the Holy Trinity has established with the whole earth and every living being.
(i) the divine Spirit is sacramentally present in creation, which is therefore to be treated with reverence, respect and gratitude
(ii) human beings are both co-partners with the rest of creation and living bridges between heaven and earth, with responsibility to make personal and corporate sacrifices for the common good of all creation
(iii) the redemptive purpose of God in Jesus Christ extends to the whole of creation.
Lambeth Conference, 1998
The Roman Catholic view
The Papal Encyclical Evangelium Vitae recognises that animals have both an intrinsic value and a place in God's kingdom.
The Roman Catholic Ethic of Life, if fully accepted, would lead Christians to avoid anything that brings unnecessary suffering or death to animals.
The official position of the Church is contained in a number of sections of the Church's official Catechism (the paragraphing within each section is ours).
373
In God's plan man and woman have the vocation of "subduing" the earth as stewards of God.
This sovereignty is not to be an arbitrary and destructive domination. God calls man and woman, made in the image of the Creator "who loves everything that exists", to share in his providence toward other creatures; hence their responsibility for the world God has entrusted to them.
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.
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 neighbour, including generations to come; it requires a religious respect for the integrity of creation.
2416
Animals are God's creatures. He surrounds them with his providential care. By their mere existence they bless him and give him glory.
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. 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.
Some writers have criticised the statements above for being so firmly centred on human beings. Causing animals to suffer needlessly, for example, is described in 2418 as being contrary to human dignity, rather than as being a wrong towards animals.