Catholic Question about Animals and Souls

I do realize. I do not know if you are talking to me. If you aren't, I am sorry.:angel:

Like I posted, I used to be Catholic and I do believe that salvation comes with acceptance of Christ. But this is what I believe. I do have some Catholic friends and I do not doubt for a minute they accepted the Lord into their lives. But I am speaking of myself when I posted. Not anybody else. Regardless of what people think, I was not a Christian. Jesus wasn't my savior. I can't lie and say I was just because I was Catholic, I wasn't. :angel:
If you are, then praise God.

 

So you mean at the time that you were just going through the motions.

 

Yes because this is what was expected of me. I went all the way through confirmation but after that, actually a couple of years later, I made the choice to leave the church.

 

Me too. :angel:

Actually, someone told me that there is a verse in the Bible that supports this, but I am not sure where it is.

 

I just had to say that I grew up in a strict Lutheran church. I remember my former pastor telling our confirmation class that animals do not have souls, so they do not pass on to heaven. Many of my classmates started to cry because they had pets that had died. Their parents had told them that they would see their pets in heaven some day. I remember that day in my confirmation class. That has always stuck with me. I really disliked that church. I felt like I never fit in there. I am so glad that I am a member of another church now.

I'm sorry that the little boy said that about animals. I hope he doesn't use that as an excuse to abuse animals.

 

Me too.:?

 

My understanding of this is...
"The Hebrew word nephesh is often translated as soul.
it is the nonphysical part of both humans and animals that makes them living beings.
...
Unlike the animals, humans have another nonphysical asect...called 'ruach' or spirit."
-The Promise and the Blessing M.A. Harbin

This is the part that was "killed" at the fall... this is what the Holy Spirit "indwells" with our acceptance of Christ.
There is not anything in this particular text that relates to the continuity of personality in created beings. (so far) be they human or not.

I find it interesting that people feel the need to make blanket statements about things that they have no firm proof of. (such as whether pets are in Heaven...) it only matters to the children,
once we get to heaven, they (pets) will either be there and we will be happy...or they won't and we will not be sad... so
(as I child I decided I did not want to go to heaven because my father was not going. but that is a whole 'nother discussion)

I cannot address specific Catholic ideas, as I am not Catholic.

This childs mother might want to jump on this situation early as one of the most consistent pathologies of criminals is cruelty to animals as a child. Of course, said child might have misheard something, taken it to heart and was just testing it out for clarification.

 

There was a church I went to in FL before I met DH that did this. It was cute because the little kids would bring in their teddy bears or other stuff animal for the blessing. Of course there was alway a handful of dogs and cats and rabbits. I just liked how they let the stuff animals be part of it. It was the only church that did it and it was an something that started with an E. I was 19 at the time.