The tongue has no bones but is strong enough to break a
heart. So be careful with your words, Band-Aids won’t help here. ~Anonymous
My heart broke as I listened to a young adult share her story with me about an incident that had happened to her when she was an eight year old child. Because my family had just dealt with the loss of our family pet and the feelings were still fresh, her story about the death of her beloved pet really resonated with me.
As adults, we have to be very careful to not turn young
hearts away from the faith with our words.
Some adult’s actions, explanations, lack of empathy, and their robotic
responses to get their mission accomplished and get the world saved has done just that. (Notice
emphasis, their mission, in certain circumstances their mission may not necessarily
be God’s mission.)
Her story goes something like this, and I have loosely
paraphrased it. The young and impressionable eight year old had attended church
one Sunday morning. She had a saddened spirit that day because of the passing
of her precious puppy several days earlier. As she sat in church service she noticed
the pew cards and a pen sitting in the wood pocket holder on the back of the
pew directly in front of her. She knew that the cards were used to list out
prayer requests, so she bravely took one of the cards and wrote about the loss
of her puppy and placed it in the offering plate as it passed by.
Later that week a pastor from her church showed up at her home
with a platter of cookies. Both her and her mother went to the front door and greeted
the pastor. They stood at the door while they visited and shortly into the
conversation her mother asked the pastor to comfort the distraught child by
answering a question that she had about her dog. This was the first time this
little girl had dealt with death and she had a very important question that she
needed answered. As with most people inquiring about death when they have to
deal with it, she was hoping to find a response that would give her peace and
comfort during her time of bereavement.
As she looked up at the pastor, this innocent child cautiously
asked the question, “Is my dog in heaven?”
What happened next was quite honestly jaw dropping. The
pastor quickly, and without any sensitivity at all, firmly stated that animals
do not have souls so therefore they do not go to heaven and she will not see
her pet again. Uhh…you may be thinking what I thought…oh no, he did not say
that to that poor little girl!
Needless to say, she was immediately traumatized. Her mother
quickly grabbed the plate of cookies from the pastor’s hands and slammed the
door shut in his face.
This was a house full of all kinds of beloved pets. As she
ran to each critter she cried out, “None
of them have souls??” Her pain was
horribly compounded by the insensitivity of an adult. An adult holding a
position who should have been able to assess the situation much better and used
appropriate wisdom and judgment in handling this on a level that a small child
could comprehend. Maybe he was caught off guard, I don’t know. This was a visit
that started out with great intentions but quickly turned disastrous.
I apologized to this young adult for what had happened to
her as a child. It wasn’t handled correctly, and I don’t know that it was ever
made right for her. I do know that this was the first time that she had ever had
to deal with the subject of death, and because of the way that her question was
answered, she abandoned the faith for at least ten years, or more. They never
returned to that church either.
I have heard stories like this before and some of those
individuals left the faith, never to return, simply because some life
circumstance was not appropriately handled or explained by an adult who was
supposed to be “in the know” when it came to matters of faith. Although I do
not believe in sugar coating the truth, there is an appropriate way to talk to
children on their level of understanding without destroying their hearts and
their spirits. And I believe that it is okay to say that you don’t know the
answer to some things. It would be arrogant for us to think that we have all of
the answers when it comes to faith questions.
We do not find it anywhere in the Bible that our pets go to
heaven. Do they have souls like ours? I don’t think so. Do they have souls? I’m
not sure, some may have a type of soul. Do they have personalities? Some, definitely
yes. Can they make a decision to follow Christ? No. We may not know all the answers when it comes
to animals, but then again, the Bible wasn’t written for the animals, they are
the innocence of creation.
So what do we know about animals from reading the Bible? There
are many verses written about them and one thing is very evident, they are
important to God.
Listed in Genesis 1:20 -25 we read about the different kinds
of animals that God created. Have you ever created or built something that turned
out great? You kind of stand back and smile a bit at it, don’t you? God did in the
same thing. Verses 21 and 25 states that “God
saw that it was good.”
He created magnificent creatures! Some are adorned with
beautiful colors, feathers, scales, fur coats, and some with unique designs.
Some are graceful while others are aggressive. Some take on human like
qualities, some make great pets, some are work animals, while others should definitely
remain in the wild. Some are simply glorious to look at and are intended for us
to admire as a reminder that God exist, others can be intended for food
(Genesis 9:3), a reminder to be thankful.
God put animals here on earth for us to enjoy, for our pleasure, and for
us to love. Studies have proven that people who have a pet companion live
longer and are healthier, happier human beings.
God cared for the animals by providing food for them in
Genesis 1:30. In Genesis 1:26 God gave man dominion over the animals. The word dominion mean to rule as Gods’ regent.
That is, people are to rule as God would--wisely and prudently--over all that
God has made. In Genesis 2:20, God had Adam name the animals.
In Genesis 6:7 we read where God was grieved that he had
made man and the animals, but he saved man and animals, male and female of each
kind, from the flood in Genesis 6:19. Psalm 36:6 “Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the
great deep. O LORD, you preserve both man and beast.”
In the book of Leviticus, there are instructions for how to
care for animals. In Deuteronomy 14:3-12, an Old Testament list is given for what
animals not to eat. All is permissible under the New Testament, and modern
society has determined what is acceptable for us to eat in today’s times.
Yes, animals are important to Him and he is good to all and
has compassion for all that he has created. (Psalm 145:9) He proclaims in Psalm
50:10-12 that every animal of the forest and the cattle on a thousand hills are
His. Every bird in the mountains and every creatures of the field are His.
Everything in the world is His. Everything God created is good. (I Timothy
4:3-5)
Matthew 6:26 clearly states that we are more valuable than
the animals. We should not worry about our life because God will provide what
we need just like he does for the animals, but even more so. The Bible is a
book about human faith, not animal faith. So, are there animals in Heaven?
Acts 10:11-15 describes a vision that Peter had where heaven
opened and something like a sheet was lowered down to earth that contained
four-footed animals, reptiles and birds. And John describes different kinds of
animals or beasts in heaven in the book of Revelation. Again, these are great
visions given to John by the Holy Spirit. Revelation 4:6-9 describes the four
living creatures who are found at the throne. Revelation 5:11-13 speaks of the
angels encircling the living creatures and the elders at the throne. Verse 13
describes every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the
sea singing. Revelation 6:8 describes a
horse. And there are other animal like creatures described. Maybe animals are
used in the visions so that we can relate, or maybe there are really creatures
there.
Isaiah 11:6-9 describes animals in the peaceful Kingdom of
God after the Messiah returns to establish it.
There just isn’t enough evidence that tells us if our beloved pets go to
heaven, now. But with what we do know about God, animals, and heaven, I think
we can answer a small child’s question with certainty that animals are
important to God. He loves us and them. And I think we can assure a child that
God is really proud of how they had taken great care of their pet, one that God
had given to them to love and enjoy.
No, we adults may not know all the answer to the questions
that children ask us about their pets and heaven. The most important thing we
can do is to make sure that we are sharing the facts accurately and with great
care in order for children to make an informed decision about their faith so
that they are in heaven when the time
comes.
***I would love for
you to respond so that I can learn from your comments: How have you handled
this question in the past, or how would you handle this question coming from a
small child?
I would love to hear from my therapist type counseling
friends on this subject as well!
Blessings!
Debra
Lee
I address the standards and the responsibilities that God holds adults to
in the handling of children in one of the lessons in my Bible study book
“Making Wise Choices…The Most Important Life Skill To Master”, to be published
later this year.
