Deep Church

Before closing the week’s discussion on faith and animals, I thought I’d pass along a bit more information related to consumption and animal products.  While this issue inevitably comes up when discussing animal advocacy, it’s often hard to know where to look for a balanced, let alone faithful, approach to this aspect of animal stewardship.  Is it possible to consider the issue without attaching oneself to PETA or committing to lifelong veganism?  Hopefully the following resources will be of some help:

• “Eating Mercifully,” a short film (26 min.)  produced by the Humane Society’s Animals & Religion program is a very helpful and moderate introduction for the Christian community.  Please check it out, or the shorter preview.  You’ll be glad you did. 
• Greg Boyd, featured in “Eating Mercifully,” has an excellent miniseries responding to a question he is frequently asked about his diet.  The series includes “Why I’m a Vegetarian,” “The First Fruit of the Coming Non-Violent Creation,” and “Compassionate Dominion and Factory Farms.”
• If you’re looking for additional reading material, “Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy” by Matthew Scully, “Good Eating” by Stephen Webb, “Good News for All Creation” by the Christian Vegetarian Association and Andrew Linzey’s “Animal Theology” are highly recommended.  Also, you can download Matthew Halteman’s thoughtful booklet “Compassionate Eating as Care of Creation” and my own “Not One Sparrow is Forgotten: A Biblical-Theological Foundation for Animal Welfare” for free.  
• Lastly, please see my own work with Not One Sparrow, including our consumption page and blog, for more food for thought (sorry for the poor pun).

Many, many thanks again to Jason for the invitation to continue the dialogue this Summer, and to Nancy Janisch for joining me.  It’s been a pleasure, and please feel free to let me know if I can be of any further help.

(image courtesy the Humane Society of the United States, Animals & Religion)