Animals in Heaven?

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911child

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911child

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911child

Yeah, i dont recall where i heard it, but ive been told that animals have no souls, there for they cannot go to heaven. But God is possible of all things so im sure he'd allow us to have them again.

I'm not really sure if animals have souls or not. According to parts of the Bible - it seems to agree with that in my opinion since we were given dominion over animals. Also, if we kill an animal - it isn't exactly "murder". We were told in the Bible that we could use animals for food and for some cultures what foods were and weren't appropriate. Animals also don't have self-reflection. They act on the instincts that God has given them in order to stay alive and that can include killing other animals at times. If an animal needs to eat another animal to survive - the animal doesn't feel guilty about it at all. They lack that self-reflection that humans have. It's probably these causes that have lead people to say that animals don't have souls and after they die - they don't go anywhere - neither Heaven nor Hell. That debate makes sense to me. Animals in Heaven also makes sense to me, too. So I suppose I'll have to wait and see what's there. =D

Heh yeah, not saying i beat animals, but as you said only until we are with God will we know for sure.

Yup, when we get to Heaven, we will have to see for ourselves and wait at what surprises await us biggrin

^_^ until then we just need to do as God asked us

Amen to that biggrin  

[911child]

Aquatic_blue

911child

Aquatic_blue

911child

Aquatic_blue

911child

Yeah, i dont recall where i heard it, but ive been told that animals have no souls, there for they cannot go to heaven. But God is possible of all things so im sure he'd allow us to have them again.

I'm not really sure if animals have souls or not. According to parts of the Bible - it seems to agree with that in my opinion since we were given dominion over animals. Also, if we kill an animal - it isn't exactly "murder". We were told in the Bible that we could use animals for food and for some cultures what foods were and weren't appropriate. Animals also don't have self-reflection. They act on the instincts that God has given them in order to stay alive and that can include killing other animals at times. If an animal needs to eat another animal to survive - the animal doesn't feel guilty about it at all. They lack that self-reflection that humans have. It's probably these causes that have lead people to say that animals don't have souls and after they die - they don't go anywhere - neither Heaven nor Hell. That debate makes sense to me. Animals in Heaven also makes sense to me, too. So I suppose I'll have to wait and see what's there. =D

Heh yeah, not saying i beat animals, but as you said only until we are with God will we know for sure.

Yup, when we get to Heaven, we will have to see for ourselves and wait at what surprises await us biggrin

^_^ until then we just need to do as God asked us

Amen to that biggrin

lol ^_^. I already have so many questions i want to ask but i wil be to amazed to ask more then likely.  

[Aquatic_blue]

911child

Aquatic_blue

911child

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911child

Heh yeah, not saying i beat animals, but as you said only until we are with God will we know for sure.

Yup, when we get to Heaven, we will have to see for ourselves and wait at what surprises await us biggrin

^_^ until then we just need to do as God asked us

Amen to that biggrin

lol ^_^. I already have so many questions i want to ask but i wil be to amazed to ask more then likely.

Oh, I know! I have so many things I would like to ask God, but maybe one day when I get there I'll be looking towards God like, "O_O Wowwwwww!" and forget everything I wanna ask xd but I'm sure we will get that chance to ask questions. ^_^ One day, I will totally make sure to ask biggrin  

[911child]

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911child

Aquatic_blue

911child

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911child

Heh yeah, not saying i beat animals, but as you said only until we are with God will we know for sure.

Yup, when we get to Heaven, we will have to see for ourselves and wait at what surprises await us biggrin

^_^ until then we just need to do as God asked us

Amen to that biggrin

lol ^_^. I already have so many questions i want to ask but i wil be to amazed to ask more then likely.

Oh, I know! I have so many things I would like to ask God, but maybe one day when I get there I'll be looking towards God like, "O_O Wowwwwww!" and forget everything I wanna ask xd but I'm sure we will get that chance to ask questions. ^_^ One day, I will totally make sure to ask biggrin

heh same ^_^  

[BjordahlKathryn1991]

I believe that animals are welcomed in the kingdom of God within Heaven and they have a great time with their family and friends. There are probably all kinds of animals there even dinosaurs. When I was younger I believed that there was an animal version of Heaven and it always made me smile. biggrin  

[Smexi Chex Mix]

In school we were always taught that none of our materialistic possessions come with us to heaven. That included our beloved pets, which I thought was quite a depressing thing to tell a bunch of small children. I like to believe that when we go to heaven, our heaven is unique to us, and that it's filled with our loved ones, so why can't there be pets? Pets are less like possessions and more like friends, so if we see our friends in heaven, it would make perfect sense to see our pets.

Interesting topic.  

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BjordahlKathryn1991

I believe that animals are welcomed in the kingdom of God within Heaven and they have a great time with their family and friends. There are probably all kinds of animals there even dinosaurs. When I was younger I believed that there was an animal version of Heaven and it always made me smile. biggrin

I would be a liar if I said I didn't think of there being an animal heaven when I was a kid. I love animals, they're fantastic - can't imagine life without them.  

[Aquatic_blue]

Smexi Chex Mix

In school we were always taught that none of our materialistic possessions come with us to heaven. That included our beloved pets, which I thought was quite a depressing thing to tell a bunch of small children. I like to believe that when we go to heaven, our heaven is unique to us, and that it's filled with our loved ones, so why can't there be pets? Pets are less like possessions and more like friends, so if we see our friends in heaven, it would make perfect sense to see our pets.

Interesting topic.

I always saw animals as companions even though we do have dominion over them in a certain sense such as for food or to use to help us accomplish work (work that is usually done with machines now). Since animals are living, breathing creatures it makes me wonder since possessions don't have any type of truly alive quality that makes them human or animal like. It may be one of those things that we don't know until we get to Heaven. It would make sense to see animals in heaven, but at the same time it doesn't make sense. Just one of those things that will make us wonder, I suppose razz  

[kdke]

I don't have a strong opinion on this. I've always felt that if God has a plan for animals to be in heaven, then He does, but because there's nothing really hinting at it in the Bible, it's not my ultimate concern. Our ultimate concern is the salvation of other human beings, and helping each other focus on God and getting to heaven ourselves.

At the same time, I don't think I am right to say that having my pets in heaven would make heaven complete for me. My reason is that, isn't God enough to make us all happy for eternity in heaven? Isn't He enough to fill up that void? I would think so. I think it's a bit off to suggest that God wasn't enough to make us fully happy, but having our pets would fill up that gap. It just doesn't make sense to me.

Please, no one get me wrong—I am a pet owner, and I love my pets. My two cats are some of my best friends in this life, and I would be very sad when their lives come to an end. If they're in heaven, then that's God's plan. If they're not, then that's God's plan. Would I be depressed if I went to heaven and didn't see my pets? Is there depression in heaven, even though we'll be among YHWH Himself? I don't think so.  

[Aquatic_blue]

kdke

I don't have a strong opinion on this. I've always felt that if God has a plan for animals to be in heaven, then He does, but because there's nothing really hinting at it in the Bible, it's not my ultimate concern. Our ultimate concern is the salvation of other human beings, and helping each other focus on God and getting to heaven ourselves.

At the same time, I don't think I am right to say that having my pets in heaven would make heaven complete for me. My reason is that, isn't God enough to make us all happy for eternity in heaven? Isn't He enough to fill up that void? I would think so. I think it's a bit off to suggest that God wasn't enough to make us fully happy, but having our pets would fill up that gap. It just doesn't make sense to me.

Please, no one get me wrong—I am a pet owner, and I love my pets. My two cats are some of my best friends in this life, and I would be very sad when their lives come to an end. If they're in heaven, then that's God's plan. If they're not, then that's God's plan. Would I be depressed if I went to heaven and didn't see my pets? Is there depression in heaven, even though we'll be among YHWH Himself? I don't think so.

You know, even if there weren't animals in heaven - I'm sure that Heaven itself is so magnificent that it's all we'd ever need.

I see what you're saying and I do appreciate your input on the matter. All input is welcome since this is a discussion topic smile  

[Servant Reborn]

Isiah 65:17-25

The Glorious New Creation

17 “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth;
And the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create;
For behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing,
And her people a joy.
19 I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
And joy in My people;
The voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her,
Nor the voice of crying.

20 “No more shall an infant from there live but a few days,
Nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days;
For the child shall die one hundred years old,
But the sinner being one hundred years old shall be accursed.
21 They shall build houses and inhabit them;
They shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22 They shall not build and another inhabit;
They shall not plant and another eat;
For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people,
And My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
23 They shall not labor in vain,
Nor bring forth children for trouble;
For they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the Lord,
And their offspring with them.

24 “It shall come to pass
That before they call, I will answer;
And while they are still speaking, I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together,
The lion shall eat straw like the ox,
And dust shall be the serpent’s food.
They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,”
Says the Lord.

Also, Jesus rides a horse at Revelation 19:11.  

[Sachie Whitby]

The first thing that came to mind when I saw this thread was the story of how St. Francis of Assisi would refer to the animals as his brothers and sisters, often going so far as to go preach to the birds that would gather around him as if they were listening and understood him. Considering that one of the most venerated and beloved saints would treat animals as if they had souls of their own and going to far as to preach to them as if they had their own means of salvation, I really don't think it is wrong to believe that animals have souls or that they have their own place in Heaven.

However I also believe that whatever means that my cats [along with every other domestic cat] have of achieving salvation thus going to Heaven is something that is only know to God and domestic cats. They have their own relationship with God which is specifically unique to them alone.

If I never meet up with my cats in Heaven, that doesn't prove they have souls. I do think that whoever is in Heaven [including animals] exists in a state where all they need is God to the extent that they won't go seeking out those they once knew during their mortal lives.  

[Aquatic_blue]

Sachie Whitby

The first thing that came to mind when I saw this thread was the story of how St. Francis of Assisi would refer to the animals as his brothers and sisters, often going so far as to go preach to the birds that would gather around him as if they were listening and understood him. Considering that one of the most venerated and beloved saints would treat animals as if they had souls of their own and going to far as to preach to them as if they had their own means of salvation, I really don't think it is wrong to believe that animals have souls or that they have their own place in Heaven.

However I also believe that whatever means that my cats [along with every other domestic cat] have of achieving salvation thus going to Heaven is something that is only know to God and domestic cats. They have their own relationship with God which is specifically unique to them alone.

If I never meet up with my cats in Heaven, that doesn't prove they have souls. I do think that whoever is in Heaven [including animals] exists in a state where all they need is God to the extent that they won't go seeking out those they once knew during their mortal lives.

It's an interesting thought. I don't believe it's an issue of whether animals have souls or not because all animals are God's creatures and are each amazing and unique just as he made them. It'd be interesting to see one day if there are animals that are in Heaven from time to time.

I don't think it's going too far to preach to the animals or to talk about God around them or anything like that.

The Bible does say:

Mark 16:15

He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.

It says "all creation" so it doesn't say "only human beings". I'm open to the idea that all creation could definitely mean all of God's creatures - including the animals.  

[Sachie Whitby]

Aquatic_blue

Sachie Whitby

The first thing that came to mind when I saw this thread was the story of how St. Francis of Assisi would refer to the animals as his brothers and sisters, often going so far as to go preach to the birds that would gather around him as if they were listening and understood him. Considering that one of the most venerated and beloved saints would treat animals as if they had souls of their own and going to far as to preach to them as if they had their own means of salvation, I really don't think it is wrong to believe that animals have souls or that they have their own place in Heaven.

However I also believe that whatever means that my cats [along with every other domestic cat] have of achieving salvation thus going to Heaven is something that is only know to God and domestic cats. They have their own relationship with God which is specifically unique to them alone.

If I never meet up with my cats in Heaven, that doesn't prove they have souls. I do think that whoever is in Heaven [including animals] exists in a state where all they need is God to the extent that they won't go seeking out those they once knew during their mortal lives.

It's an interesting thought. I don't believe it's an issue of whether animals have souls or not because all animals are God's creatures and are each amazing and unique just as he made them. It'd be interesting to see one day if there are animals that are in Heaven from time to time.

I don't think it's going too far to preach to the animals or to talk about God around them or anything like that.

The Bible does say:

Mark 16:15

He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.

It says "all creation" so it doesn't say "only human beings". I'm open to the idea that all creation could definitely mean all of God's creatures - including the animals.

I know that not everyone shares such beliefs though. I have a relative that tried to preach at me a week after a pet died how that pet wasn't in heaven because she had no soul.... that animals exist solely for the purpose of being used by humans.

I don't know. I find such attitudes a little prideful.  

[Islamic Teacher]

Does it really matter if animals go to Heaven, if you're not an animal why should it matter to you?