One of the responses I get as a vegan is “you care more about animals than you do about people.” I find the comment interesting because it taps into a truth that I became acutely aware of when I gave birth to my children.
There is no limit to not only quantity of love we can feel but there is also no limit to its height weight depth and breadth. We have an unlimited, an infinite capacity for love. As more beings enter my life the more I realize that to be an absolute truth.
Which is good because then I don’t have to choose. I can care and love compassionately endlessly. But I’ll be honest, there is priority list. And although I had this list well before I became a Christian, it is a Christian doctrine to which I grasp. Adult people, with fully functioning mental, emotional, psychological and physical capabilities for the most part can take care of themselves. I believe a safety net should exist for the times we all fall and need a hand up. But my priority in this world is the dependents, those that cannot speak for themselves or have such a weak and powerless voice that they need a stronger voice for them. So it’s not a matter of caring more about animals, it’s a matter of who needs the voice and attention more? If a job entails the destruction of a species or a habitat, who is more able to acclimate? Who has the God given ability to adapt to different environments and change livelihoods? Can a spotted owl suddenly only eat coconut and live on a tropical island? Can an elephant adapt to the environment of the ocean when his habitat is gone? We humans have the capacity to change and adapt – to don protective clothing, stock supplies and brave new worlds. Dependents cannot do that.
The animal world, for all its wild, savage and seemingly cruel ways is absolutely dependent on man’s grasp of God’s doctrine to be good caregivers to this world. And that’s the other thing. Somehow, in the warped twisting of reality and sense, those of us who believe in protecting the environment – keeping our oceans, rivers, lakes and wetlands clean and natural, our air crisp and toxin free and our land untainted – are labeled with a “worship of Mother Earth” religion. Say what? I don’t worship my house, but I keep it clean (kinda). Why? Because I don’t want my children and pets getting sick. If I spill bleach or auto coolant on the floor, I will ensure that every living being is kept away and it is cleaned up immediately. Does this mean I pray to my house? That I somehow elevate my home to deity? If I clean out my car, is that car now some holy being? How ridiculous. And insulting. God gave us this habitable planet and out of respect for that gift, I care for it.
I believe the environment is a dependent entity that needs care.
I believe animals are dependent beings that need care.
I believe children are dependent beings that need care.
I believe that all of the people who for one reason or another need help are deserving of care. I cannot fathom not having a heart for a senior who has contributed to society all her life, being shut in her home due to illness or just age and not being a part of caring for that senior.
I don’t believe we should use animals for entertainment. We used to use them for things necessary to live like tilling the land, hauling stuff around that we couldn’t carry, getting us places, but we found alternatives. We don’t need animals to perform unnaturally for our entertainment, that’s what we have Adam Sandler and Johnny Knoxville for. We have such clever, clever people coming up with alternatives for every animal product out there – do we really need to be skinning, bludgeoning, electrocuting, sodomizing, stomping on, beating animals anymore? Do we really need to have these factory farms were the most heinous abuses of animals goes on every second of every day inside the ammonia filled, concrete and steel prisons?
I care about people. But the statement is correct. I do care about animals, children, the environment, the mentally ill, the physically impaired, the elderly and all the others that need more care than fully functioning adult human beings.
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