"We are Created to Care"

      Today we listen to the Genesis story of the sixth day of creation.  Land animals and people are linked in this creation story.  This may surprise you.  In this first creation account in the Bible,¹ humans are not center stage.  We are not the "pinnacle" of all creation.  We share the earth with the animals.  Let's listen now to what we all believe to be God's word to us today:

²⁴ And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind."  And it was so.  ²⁵ God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds.  And God saw that it was good.

      ²⁶ Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

²⁷ So God created man in his own image,
    in the image of God he created him;
    male and female he created them.

²⁸ God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.  Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground." . . .

³¹ God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.  And there was evening, and there was morning-the sixth day.

      Genesis 1 links human beings with the animal world. Today we consider this link in theological terms, and what this suggests for us to live faithfully in relationship to animals.

      In order to do this, first there is some language we have to talk about.  Specifically, the word DOMINION.

      "Dominion" is a term we don't often hear these days.  It is rather a political term.  The dictionary says dominion is 'the power or right of governing and controlling; sovereign authority.'  A second, briefer definition is 'rule; control; domination.'  Let's listen again to vs. 28 from the NRSV. This time concentrate on the word dominion.

      Then God said, "Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion² over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth."

      For many centuries, English translations of this passage have evoked strong patriarchal and triumphal connotations.  It's hard not to think of kings and despots, the great British empire, or even "Braveheart" when you hear that word "dominion."

      Christians have used these passages to justify the overconsumption of animals and the earth's resources as being our God-given right.  But this is not really what the text says.

      In almost every other usage in the Bible, the word that is translated as "dominion" means something very different.  In other parts of the Bible, this Hebrew word is not translated as "dominion."  Rather it is used to mean "to descend" or "to go down."³  Let's think about these two contrasting definitions for a minute.

Rule over, control, dominate, subjugate

Descend, go down, go down to the level of, join with, be a part of

      Pretty different translations, very different connotations.

      Instead of using animals for our profit or pleasure, what would it mean if we were to live in a communal way with them, "down on their level", so to speak? You actually know the answer to this question if you have pets.

      You may not have thought of it this way before, but the way you treat your beloved pets may reflect God's intention for way people are supposed to relate to animals.  That is one reason it is so satisfying and delightful to have pets!⁴>  Almost half of pet owners sleep with their pets!

      We have a schizophrenic relationship to animals.

      On the one hand, we adore them; they are family.  On the other, we view 'meat-producing' animals purely as products, and treat them with utter disregard to their health, safety, or pain.  We capitalize on animals for economic gain, with deadly consequences to them and to the earth itself.

      In a remote cove in a small town in Japan, every year thousands of dolphins are corralled and captured.  The more attractive are kept alive and sold to aquariums and zoos.  The rest are slaughtered, their meat sold to an unsuspecting public.  Dolphin meat contains toxic levels of mercury; most Japanese do not even know this is happening.

      Are animals property, to be consumed regardless of the cost, to be disposed of at our whim?  Or are they a gift from God?  Are they a thing to be used or creatures to be cared for?

      Let's now look at another part of this sixth day of creation:

²⁶ Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

      We are created in the image of God.  The image of God!  Some translations say, "in the likeness of God."  This is not about a physical resemblance!  It is our nature! This is really incredible, if you actually think about it.  Our essence!  There is something in our very nature which calls us to god-like responsibility.  It is the way we have been created, to love as God loves, to care as God cares.

      God placed the responsibility for the care of the earth and animals on our shoulders.  We are God's representatives in the world.  Even if you don't buy the Hebrew mistranslation argument, it is hard for faithful Christians to deny that scripture says we were created in the image of God.

      Most of us rather like the idea of being created in the image of God. We tend to think of ourselves as higher up than animals!  But along with this "status" comes huge responsibility.  To be god-like means to love and care for the animals and the earth.  To treat animals with respect and benevolence.  This has enormous implications for how we treat animals and the earth itself.

      Here again we may wish the word of God were not quite so demanding.

      This whole issue is a very big thing that can seem so overwhelming we do nothing about it.  It is far easier to pretend this is not in the Bible than it is to faithfully live out care for animals and the earth.

      The first step is awareness.  Awareness that these ancient texts continue to speak a very challenging word to us today, in our own context.  We believe the bible is the living Word of God, not just an old, dusty, archaic curiosity.  The word of God, enlivened by the Spirit of God, powerfully speaks to us where we are today.  We cannot compartmentalize our life, our recreation, our eating habits and our consumption of animals and claim the Word of God has nothing to say to us about these things.

      The second step is to acknowledge that we all do, in fact, participate in the cruel subjugation of God's creatures, whether we are aware of it or not.  We don't have to be clubbing seals with our bare hands to benefit from the products which come from that awful process.  We don't have to be treating farm animals inhumanely (interesting word, inhumane!) in order to participate in and "benefit from" their inhumane treatment.

      The third step is to begin to look with serious eyes at the way we live, the food we eat, the shoes and purses we buy, and what it means for us as caretakers of God's animals.  We can consume far less meat.  We can purchase animal products from companies which obtain them from small, more humane and organic farms.  We can call our own government to task.  We can participate in ways to end cruel practices, as many people did in response to the "Cove" documentary.  A report in the DMN Friday morning told us the annual slaughter of the dolphins, which usually begins September 1, did not happen this year.  A handful of dolphins were kept for aquariums but the rest were set free.

      We can do these things. As people of God, it is not only possible, it is the faithful thing to do.

      I close this morning with a beautiful story which captures the idea of the God-inspired human-animal connection. . .

      Baxter is the perfect hospice care therapy dog.  He is 19 years old.  He can no longer walk.  His owner takes him around to be present with people at the end of their lives.  When Baxter enters a room, something amazing happens.  The family members and the dying one are caught up in the reality of this peaceful dog.  When a dying person lies with Baxter, there is joy evident on her face.  There is an uncanny connection of Baxter at the end of his life and the human being at the end of hers.  For a moment, there is the sense that "everybody was alive, really alive."  There are tears of peace and smiles of recognition.   There is care.

      Baxter died October 16, 2009 at the age of 19 years, 6 months.  At the end of our life, we will be asked about how we lived.  How we related, not just to God, not just to each other, but to all the earth and its creatures.

      We are created in the image of God, created to care.