Literature
Short Extracts
The Church's Supreme Disgrace by Vera
Yorke
(New Horizon, 1980, pp132-133)
"It was early in the 1960's that I visited the then
Archbishop of York, Dr. Donald Coggan, to implore the help of the
Church. He received me with kindness and courtesy but obviously was not
in the least interested. He did, however, instantly acknowledge that if
we have souls the other animals have them too.
This official assumption of fundamental principle would
be important if only it were preached from the pulpit or on television,
but nothing has been done. Since then I have been steadily working and
writing for this tragically overdue recognition of the true status of
animals - creatures with similar feelings to our own and not as the
terrible old medieval dictum, "put into the world for our use".
They have the same right to life as ourselves. I
regularly implored the last Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Ramsey, to
condemn the hunting of deer, otters and coursing and this was twice
debated with the recognition for which I asked, but as none of these
things received the smallest publicity they might just as well not have
happened. It may be wondered what this "recognition" could lead to; one
could argue that it would achieve at least some good and at best an
immeasurable amount. The effect of the Church's "recognition" of animal
rights could be incalculable; it would definitely help on our whole
treatment of animals and one could only hope for a charter for their
welfare. Regular prayers on radio and via other media would stimulate
public concern and gradually a new attitude would develop which could
spread throughout the whole world."
