Pets in Heaven? (Especially on May 21st)

EWTN.com ^ | not given | Dr. Richard Geraghty, PhD

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

that is just so beautiful. thank you.

[geege]

I heard that your pets are the first to greet you at the pearly gates.....

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

thanks....a good view..it makes sense.

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

Good analysis.

[Churchillspirit]

LOL!

Did you by any chance attend St. Mary's Convent High School?

Your experiences seem remarkably like mine.

[norton]

thanks, sums it up nicely.

[Hodar]

“I am reminded of an old Twilight Zone episode.” It was called “The Hunt” and the dog’s name was Rip - one of Rod Serling’s best.

Thank YOU!!! I'm going to see if I can't look that up on Netflix tonight when I get home. I remembered the essense of that one, that program really touched my heart ... and I never had an idea what the title was. Thank you a thousand times ...

[Jason Kauppinen]

My understanding of Christianity is that the bible provides the instructions for humans, not animals, and additionally animals don’t have original sin to deal with so Christ’s sacrifice wasn’t for them & wasn’t needed by them.

[Salvation]

**Rev 4:7 And the first beast [was] like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast [was] like a flying eagle.
Rev 4:8 And the four beasts had each of them six wings about [him]; and [they were] full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.
Rev 4:9 And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever**

These are not actually beasts, but rather angels. I’ve even heard that they represented the evangelists:

lion
Calf
Like a man
Eagle

From my Bible with the footnotes which I have bolded in next post.

[Salvation]

 

5

From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals of thunder. ⁵ Seven flaming torches burned in front of the throne, which are the seven spirits of God.

6

In front of the throne was something that resembled a sea of glass like crystal. ⁶ In the center and around the throne, there were four living creatures covered with eyes in front and in back.

7

The first creature resembled a lion, the second was like a calf, the third had a face like that of a human being, and the fourth looked like an eagle ⁷ in flight.

8

The four living creatures, each of them with six wings, ⁸ were covered with eyes inside and out. Day and night they do not stop exclaiming: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God almighty, who was, and who is, and who is to come."

9

Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to the one who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever,

10

the twenty-four elders fall down before the one who sits on the throne and worship him, who lives forever and ever. They throw down their crowns before the throne, exclaiming:

11

"Worthy are you, Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things; because of your will they came to be and were created."

 

And the footnotes:

 

⁵ [5] Flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals of thunder: as in other descriptions of God's appearance or activity; cf Rev 8:5; 11:19; 16:18; Exodus 19:16; Ezekiel 1:4, 13. The seven spirits of God: the seven "angels of the presence" as in Rev 8:2 and Tobit 12:15.

⁶ [6] A sea of glass like crystal: an image adapted from Ezekiel 1:22-26. Four living creatures: these are symbols taken from Ezekiel 1:5-21; they are identified as cherubim in Ezekiel 10:20. Covered with eyes: these suggest God's knowledge and concern.

⁷ [7] Lion . . . calf . . . human being . . . eagle: these symbolize, respectively, what is noblest, strongest, wisest, and swiftest in creation. Calf: traditionally translated "ox," the Greek word refers to a heifer or young bull. Since the second century, these four creatures have been used as symbols of the evangelists Mark, Luke, Matthew, and John, respectively.

⁸ [8] Six wings: like the seraphim of Isaiah 6:2.

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

I am so glad you know exactly what heaven will be like and who will be there..whew!

You may have missed something of the spiritual connection some of us have with our pets..My dog Lola was a gift from God ( God gives all good things) and she taught me more about love, God and being a Christian than any “human”.

If God brought this furry being to me, he most certainly will not “kill’ that bond becasue she died. I have no idea how this will work out in heaven, but I believe in the love of God.

[tanknetter]

Our Lord promises that the joy of fellowship with Him will be so great that we won’t CARE that our old pets aren’t around with us.

I would submit that a God who's first act upon admitting a person to Heaven is to strip away that person's ability to still care for lesser but highly beloved creatures, isn't a God who created Man in His own image.

[St.Mark]

God created all things on earth including animals, therefore they are divine in their own right as they are created by God. That being said of course their soul goes to heaven it can’t be otherwise IMHO. My late Lab -german shepard mix was heaven sent to me during a terrible time in my life. If there are “divine beings” my K.C. was truely one.

[OrangeHoof]

You two are proving my point. You are loving the creation more than the creator.

[Salvation]

Excellent point — which, BTW, that quote from Revelation speaks to worshipping God.

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

thank you for your judgemental response.

Remind me to attend your next brilliant exposition at your next bible study. I would want to hear more about “loving”.

[passionfruit]

I don't know if I will see my dear old doggie in heaven. I just had her put to sleep on Monday. She had been in pain for a while. We waited on putting her down until her real master, our son, graduated from Marine boot camp. He couldn't bear to see her in pain either, and asked us to do the deed so she wouldn't suffer anymore. She was a Belgian Malinois. She had come to us 11 years ago, after flunking out of U. S. Customs drug dog school. She was the smartest dog I ever met, and was so grateful to us for giving her a real home. RIP Mandy! Here she was with out son after he graduated from Boot Camp. He got to say his good-byes then.

[patriot08]

No heaven will not ever heaven be
unless my cats are there
to welcome me.

Epitath on an old tombstone in England

[kevao]

Animals can't be "saved" so they will not be in heaven.

I certainly don't have the answers (no one does). But I would point out several issues that I never see addressed in these types of threads:

First, animals wouldn't *need* to be "saved" to go to heaven; they are not sinners.

Second, God never intended for any animals to die. The animals were created before Adam and Eve, and thus before sin and death entered the world.

Finally, people talk about heaven as though all the redeemed are going to spend eternity floating around as spirits. Heaven is only going to be a temporary stop. Man will spend eternity on the (new) earth, in a (resurrected) physical body.

The new earth will likely be much like the current earth, in that it will be populated by plants and animals, as in the Garden of Eden. Now, which animals will populate the new earth? New animals who never existed? Or will God bring back animals who lived and died on this earth? Seems to me that, since God never intended animals to die in the first place, He just might bring back animals who had to die on this earth through no fault of their own.

Food for thought....

[patriot08]

God has infinite love. Would he not love all that he created?
______________

Yes, and knowing how we love our pets, I would think He would want us to be happpy.