Peta and Religion

[Guest guest]

 

The Unforbidden Fruit

Saturday, October 08, 2005

David Briggs

Plain Dealer Religion Reporter

 

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In the biblical Book of Leviticus, the Lord is said to tell Moses,

"You may eat any land animal that has divided hoofs and that also

chews the cud." In the Gospel of Luke, the father celebrates the

return of the prodigal son by ordering the slaughter of the fatted

calf for a feast.

 

And in the miracle of the loaves and fishes, when Jesus is said to

have fed thousands gathered to hear him, fish was definitely a big

part of the menu.

 

So you know it ain't easy being a Christian vegetarian, or to seek to

convert meat-eaters to a dietary lifestyle that makes fewer demands

on the environment and is sensitive to the feelings of other

creatures in creation.

 

For the Cleveland-based international Christian Vegetarian

Association, one place to start is in the beginning, in the first

chapter of Genesis. There God is said to speak of an ideal world

where grains and fruits are plentiful, and humans are to care for --

rather than eat -- animals.

 

Fast forward to today, in an era of factory farming that can cause

great suffering for animals slaughtered and housed en masse. Some can

make a strong case that Jesus would leave meat out of his diet,

Christian vegetarians say.

 

"Christian love should apply to animals as well as humans," said Dr.

Stephen Kaufman, a Northeast Ohio ophthalmologist who is co-chairman

of the Christian Vegetarian Association. "Whatever dominion means,

it's not tyranny. It's not cruelty."

 

The association was founded in 1999 to offer a Christian alternative

to a movement that has tended to be dominated by secular people and

people without much sympathy toward religion.

 

Unlike more radical groups such as People for the Ethical Treatment

of Animals, the Christian association tends to be more low-key and

less confrontational, preferring education and persuasion over

confrontation, the group's leaders said.

 

The association, which features a prominent international board of

animal-rights theologians and activists, distributes literature and a

video in which people say why vegetarianism is important to their

faith and encourages churches to hold discussions on the moral issues

involved in deciding which foods to eat.

 

Biblical evidence isn't real clear

 

Christian vegetarianism is not an easy sell.

 

On the left, secular vegetarians are often distrustful of religion,

associating Christianity with the idea that humans have been given

dominion over creation to exploit it for their own needs, rather than

to care for the environment.

 

"In fact, Christianity demands such compassion," said Stephen Webb,

co-chairman of the Christian Vegetarian Association and the author of

"On God and Dogs: A Christian Theology of Compassion for Animals."

 

Yet among religious folks, the many biblical references to animal

sacrifice, the eating of meat and fish, and religious laws regarding

the slaughter of animals make vegetarianism seem somewhat foreign to

the faith.

 

The Bible does not provide definitive direction.

 

While some in the movement make the claim Jesus was a vegetarian,

even leaders of the Christian Vegetarian Association say that is a

difficult assertion to back up.

 

Fish was so plentiful in Galilee that some of it was exported, and it

was a staple of the diet of many of the people Jesus associated with.

The Gospel of Luke tells of fishermen choosing to become disciples

after Jesus leads them to a catch so large "that their nets were

beginning to break."

 

While only the rich would have had meat, it is unlikely when Jesus

ate at a banquet or in the house of a wealthy person he would risk

offending the host by not eating the food before him.

 

Where Christian vegetarians are making headway on the biblical front,

however, is in their interpretation of Genesis that God intended a

vegetarian diet described in the Garden of Eden.

 

In the creation account at the end of the first chapter of Genesis,

God gives human beings power over the fish, the birds and all

animals. But no creatures -- neither animals nor humans -- need to

eat one another's flesh.

 

"I have provided all kinds of grain and all kinds of fruit for you to

eat; but for all the wild animals and for all the birds I have

provided grass and leafy plants for food," God is said to have

proclaimed in Genesis 1:29.

 

Webb, a professor of religion and philosophy at Wabash College, said

it is a key passage "bringing conservative Christians on board to the

vegetarian movement."

 

The Christian Vegetarian Association also holds up several biblical

passages showing God's concern for all of creation, from feeding the

birds of the air to forgetting not one sparrow.

 

If you take away extremes, Webb said, "There's a broad consensus that

the Bible does teach compassion for animals."

 

Vegetarianism as matter of faith

 

The question is not as much what Jesus did in the culture of his day

as what Jesus would do today, proponents say.

 

In its booklet "Honoring God's Creation," the vegetarian association

says justice concerns should prompt Christians to consider a change

in what they eat.

 

For example, it says the greater costs and resources associated with

raising animals for food decreases the amount of grain available for

feeding the hungry and raises the cost of all food. In terms of the

environment, the association says, "The typical meat-eater's diet can

easily consume up to 14 times more water and 20 times more energy

than that of a vegetarian."

 

The association also asks Christians to consider how sausage is made.

Animals raised under factory farming conditions can "suffer greatly"

from stressful crowding, barren environments, amputations without

anesthesia and painful slaughtering methods, the group says.

 

"All things being equal, if we can avoid contributing to factory

farming, if we can avoid contributing to the cruelties . . . the

Bible would support such a position," Kaufman said.

 

Progress for Christian vegetarians is not an all-or-nothing

proposition. It also can be measured in the decision of an individual

to cut back on meat consumption or to buy only free- range meat or

poultry.

 

When it comes to influencing what Christians eat, Kaufman said, "I'm

hoping for them to say let's think about it. Let's talk about it.

Let's make faith-based choices."

 

One member of the Christian Vegetarian Association who appreciates

the group's respectful approach is the Rev. James Antal of Plymouth

Church of Shaker Heights.

 

Antal said he does not proclaim vegetarianism from the pulpit. But he

said he wants to be a witness in his own life to the "Christ-like"

principles of compassion for all creation.

 

How people put those principles into practice in their food choices

is their responsibility.

 

"For me," he said, "I'm going to be a vegetarian."

 

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

dbriggs, 216-999-4812

 

There are victories of the soul and spirit. Sometimes, even if you lose, you win.

 

- Elie Wiesel