Part Seven: Do Humans Have Moral Responsibilities over Non-Human Life

 According to Ecclesiastes 3:19-20, on a purely physical level, one can argue that people are little different than animals. Humans and land-bound animals were created on day six. We both depend on God’s gracious provisions for food and shelter, and we will all eventually die.  But the Bible also teaches that there are fundamental and distinct differences between humans and animals. Only humans are created in God’s image. As such, we enjoy a unique spiritual connectedness with God that animals don’t have. But with this position comes responsibility. Because we are created in God’s image, we should reflect the same attitude and care toward non-human life that He does. The fact is God instructed the human race—beginning with Adam—to be stewards over the animal kingdom as part of our overall responsibilities as His designated caretakers in creation.

When God instructed Adam to name the animals He had created and brought to him (Gen. 2:19-20), it showed God was giving Adam authority and responsibility for them. This is not unlike when we name our pets, or when zookeepers name the animals under their care. In doing so, we are acknowledging our responsibility to care and watch over them.

This helps us to understand what God meant in Genesis 1:28 when He told Adam and Eve to have “dominion” (KJV) over the Earth’s newly created animal life. Space prevents an analysis of what dominion means when examined within its full biblical context, but most theologians agree that dominion (“rule” in modern translations) means stewardship. (See my book, Should Christians Be Environmentalists?)  It denotes humanity’s caretaker role in creation; it doesn’t give people a license to use animals any way we please. Here’s another way to see this. At the end of the creation week, God looked upon all He had made and pronounced it “very good” (Gen. 1:31). It doesn’t make sense God would then turned around and gave the Earth’s animals to the human race to abuse and exploit.

This brings us to the matter of ethics. Does the Bible provide moral principles by which we can establish realistic and humane “rights” for animals? I believe it does. Since God instructed the human race to be His caretakers over all of nature, including animals, we can be confident Scripture will contain moral principles to direct this responsibility. In particular, since Jesus is the source and substance of New Testament ethics, we should be able to extrapolate His teachings, where applicable, to embrace non-human life. I believe Jesus taught three foundational ethical principles that will guide us as we seek to identify and establish practical, God-honoring rights for animals. This will be the topic of next week’s blog post. ©