tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post1388875125742202777..comments2024-03-25T13:40:30.747-04:00Comments on Faith and Theology: Boy and dog: an anecdoteBen Myershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03800127501735910966noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-34912939480002913902011-02-13T23:33:38.751-05:002011-02-13T23:33:38.751-05:00John, you're spot on about the dirty aspect. J...John, you're spot on about the dirty aspect. Just observe the way my son lets the dog "clean" his face for him after dinner...Ben Myershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03800127501735910966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-2034597479324437712011-02-13T23:05:00.001-05:002011-02-13T23:05:00.001-05:00Lovely post.
I wonder if anonymous is serious in h...Lovely post.<br />I wonder if anonymous is serious in his/her advice?<br /><br />e demonstrate an intuitive sense of our children's relationship to animals by the pictures and images we put in their cradles and rooms, and of the contents of their early stories.<br /><br />Animals of one kind or another. Not bulldozers or diesel engines. Maybe Thomas the Tank-Engine is an exception.<br /><br />Children have a much more magical relationship to the natural world. As such they have forms and kinds of consciousness which we dreadfully sane adults dismiss. And which via our "education" effectively stomp on. Reality thus becomes that of the hard edged "realism" as depicted in photographs. The world reduced to a collection of separate objects with no suggestion of any kind of collective felt or psychic relationship.<br /><br />Paul Shephard via The Tender Carnivore and the Sacred Game pointed out that children have a genetically programmed need to engage in down-and-dirty relationships with animals and the natural world. Lived relationships which are a necessary part of our intrinsic psycho-biological growth process, and thus of our sanity altogether.<br /><br />This down-and-dirty activity is also essential for the development of our immune systems re providing protection against germs and bacteria etc.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-64747065960721668942011-02-13T18:00:26.647-05:002011-02-13T18:00:26.647-05:00Hi Byron,
*removing tongue from cheek*
If you w...Hi Byron, <br /><br />*removing tongue from cheek*<br /><br />If you want to know any more about the travesty that is the industrial dairy farming complex, I'm your inside man. Until very recently managing these operations kept the wolf from our door. Even using best organic practice and so on it is a pretty soul destroying occupation.<br /><br /><i>Ergo</i>, I perhaps have more sympathy than you think for any person whose loyalties lie closest to our liquid-eyed and contemplative bovine brethren.<br /><br />I on the other hand tend to find myself most at home in the company of dogs (and their close relations, boys), and dare I say - goats. I'm not sure how well that reflects on my personality but there it is... <br /><br />Shalombesideourselveshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18434192984017773791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-13855225869583400432011-02-13T16:12:16.648-05:002011-02-13T16:12:16.648-05:00I guess it's a duh, Byron, that you know Richa...I guess it's a duh, Byron, that you know Richard Bauckham's latest book <i>Bible and Ecology</i> (2010) (maybe you even ghosted it for him?) My cat Betsy and I have been reading it together. She's really enjoying it. Mind, she was quite sceptical about the Isaianic image of the leopard lying down with the kid, and my attempt to explain to her what "eschatological" means was not entirely successful, but she immediately grasped Bauckham's point that Isaiah 11:6-9 is not so much about shalom between animals as "the reconciliation of the human world with wild nature". Betsy also agrees with Bauckham that Adam's naming the animals is not about control -"As if!" she mewed - but about recognition and relationship - "Tickle my tummy!" she purred. She is not a vegetarian, I'm afraid, but she does only eat animals that eat vegetables.kim fabriciusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-83164203178493971252011-02-13T15:23:21.631-05:002011-02-13T15:23:21.631-05:00Very interested about that Barth paper! If you don...Very interested about that Barth paper! If you don't mind, I'd love to read it. You can send it to popdeollie@aol.com<br /><br />Also, haven't heard of Clough's theology of animals. I'm now very interested in that, too. Thanks for the heads up.<br /><br />Thank you for a sincere response. I really appreciate. Sorry again if I came off rather harsh.byronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07890399834891467171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-36373042323504528392011-02-13T15:01:52.252-05:002011-02-13T15:01:52.252-05:00Hey Byron — sorry, jokes aside I pretty much agree...Hey Byron — sorry, jokes aside I pretty much agree with you, and these days I only eat meat probably a few times a year. (To call my wife a vegetarian would be a monumental understatement, so Kola should be safe from her molars as well.)<br /><br />If you're interested, I wrote a paper last year that explored this topic, using a passage in Karl Barth about the relation between humans and horses — happy to email you a copy if you're interested. <br /><br />And a while back I actually drafted a post on a "theology of animals" (which also discusses the point you've raised about eating animals), but I decided to hold off posting it until I've read David Clough's forthcoming <a href="http://www.continuumbooks.com/books/detail.aspx?BookId=157715&SntUrl=149926&SubjectId=1080&Subject2Id=1244" rel="nofollow">systematic theology of animals</a> (which looks like it will be terrific).Ben Myershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03800127501735910966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-36453391681094098012011-02-13T12:31:37.149-05:002011-02-13T12:31:37.149-05:00I think Jamie is a Pentecostal toddler. Kola was o...I think Jamie is a Pentecostal toddler. Kola was obviously speaking in tongues to Jamie.roger flyernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-44151671874483479602011-02-13T09:42:59.325-05:002011-02-13T09:42:59.325-05:00besideourselves - While I'm closest to my dog,...besideourselves - While I'm closest to my dog, too, some of my friends are bovine fanatics, and on behalf of them, I beg to differ.<br /><br />Ben - Facepalm... Part of the reason, albeit not a large part, I'm not a believer anymore is because of most Christians' insensitive and close-minded attitude toward animals. I encourage you to do some research on factory farming and the dairy industry, and to simply meditate on the fact that animals are sentient beings who experience both pains and pleasures. If love and kindness are such core and intimate virtues to all branches of Christian theology, what excuse is there to not manifest them in your relationships with animals? Furthermore, shouldn't you <i>want</i> to do so? Shouldn't you want love to pervade every aspect of your life?<br /><br />Not trying to be hostile, so I apologize if it seems that way. Just trying to stimulate your mind a bit.byronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07890399834891467171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-68881857209193028252011-02-13T05:12:17.499-05:002011-02-13T05:12:17.499-05:00We haven't decided yet whether we're going...We haven't decided yet whether we're going to eat Kola. I guess we'll wait and see how plump he gets.Ben Myershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03800127501735910966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-68961643145338648792011-02-13T05:01:19.573-05:002011-02-13T05:01:19.573-05:00As a functional vegetarian who has actually rescue...As a functional vegetarian who has actually rescued more cows than I can count, I feel somewhat qualified to make the bold claim that a cow will never come between a boy and his dog.<br /><br />Disclaimer: yes, me and my dog are <i>tight</i>.besideourselveshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18434192984017773791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-90138546494176980382011-02-12T21:47:54.076-05:002011-02-12T21:47:54.076-05:00Assuming you're carnivorous, how can you make ...Assuming you're carnivorous, how can you make such personal, sympathetic observations in a dog and be okay with eating a cow? I work at an animal sanctuary for rescued farm animals, and I can attest that the type of beautiful relationship you're witnessing between your child and his dog exists in exactly the same way between humans and goats, cows, pigs, sheep, etc. Of course, I have theological reasons why Christians should not exploit animals (and practical reasons why no one should), but when people acknowledge such mental capacity in animals, it really baffles me to learn that they still eat them. Hopefully you don't.byronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07890399834891467171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-43790925592620642612011-02-12T13:27:27.085-05:002011-02-12T13:27:27.085-05:00Anonymous is right. The world needs Jamie to have ...Anonymous is right. The world needs Jamie to have a full-time amanuensis.tortoisehttp://tortoiseofdissent.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-81281986022295309442011-02-12T13:11:31.429-05:002011-02-12T13:11:31.429-05:00Seek professional help for your son.
ImmediatelySeek professional help for your son.<br /><br />ImmediatelyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14261952.post-24857151572834717372011-02-12T07:47:41.533-05:002011-02-12T07:47:41.533-05:00If you haven't already, you should watch Dean ...If you haven't already, you should watch Dean Spanley immediately. Perhaps with Jamie.Sam Freneyhttp://freney.orgnoreply@blogger.com