Morally, as Buddhists, we have three methods we can consider when we ask ourselves whether it is correct to eat animals. In our practice of ahimsa, we can seek to avoid causing harm to others, as well as actively try to change ourselves and others for the better.
Circus animals cannot experience the freedoms they would find in nature. Instead they are abused and forced to perform unnatural stunts. I am flustered to read of His Holiness’ support for circus performers who use wild animals, and urge that he not endorse their subjugation.
Within ancient Jewish culture, your name wasn’t simply what you were called; rather it spoke of your very essence. Today, animals are named as product, experiment, sport, and ingredient. To encourage rethinking of how society regards non-human life, Sarx is now receiving entries to our Named in Love competition.
The bullfight involves a ritual of prolonged, agonizing torture of bulls for entertainment. The Catholic Church needs to speak out against the bullfight partly because of the Church’s ability to exert influence in Catholic countries, and partly because the Church is complicit in this cruelty.
Traditional temple festivals in South India use elephants as part of their rituals. Thrissur Pooram, the biggest festival of all, used more than 60 elephants this year, of which 30 suffered clear animal welfare violations. There are various reasons to rethink the use of animals in such events.
Walking down the aisle of the kennels I realized that my feet were walking towards your enclosure. There you were, sitting all by yourself staring at me. I came in and sat with you. I knew that we would be friends that instant. Your beautiful long coat with that long muzzle. Those brown eyes that spoke a thousand words.
In Western religion, the Earth is merely the host on which we feed in our earthly passage, and the underlying assumption of the new stewardship dogma is that we should preserve nature in order to continue to exploit it. We need a revolutionary transformation that will free us from religious bondage and open our eyes to the beauty, wonder and Mystery of this Earth.
Confucius taught that a noble person should not abandon morality for the space of a single meal. From his time 2500 years ago until the present day, one question has loomed especially large over the Chinese dinner table: is it morally acceptable to kill animals for food?
Laudato Si week will soon be here (June 12-19). One way to show concern for God’s creatures and support for the Pope’s call to action regarding ‘our common home’, is to sign my petition asking the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales to establish a Committee to address the moral aspect of our treatment of animals.
The older I am
The less interested I am
In the petty affairs of men
And the more
I love Earth
And all her other creatures
And systems and seasons…
Earth’s green skin is velvet today
With the mist on it
Crushed velvet with her children’s pawprints
…
Pope St. Pius V described bullfights as “a spectacle for demons rather than men.” As a practicing Catholic, I am saddened to say that the moral aspect of our treatment of other creatures is a part of Catholic teaching that our Catholic leaders have long neglected. Pope Francis is trying to put that right. Let’s take advantage of that and ask him to condemn bullfighting.