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By Craig - 31 Jan 2014

Good morning Pastor Frank,

As you know, I wrote two articles that were, for the most part, about the expanded application of the "Golden Rule;" "Rights, Wrongs, and the Golden Rule," and "What the World Needs Now."  Again, my thanks to you and Veda for posting them on all-creatures.org.

I am endeavoring to work with Steve Kaufman and the Christian Vegetarian Association on that organization's "pushing" the kind of message contained in the two articles.  In doing some additional research related to a conversation that I intend to have today with Steve, I have encountered some issues that I ask your comment on.

How can we reconcile the Genesis 9:3-4 passages, whereby "Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you.  I have given you all things, even as the green herbs.  But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood."  The matter of blood being present in the flesh aside (and there would always be SOME blood in that flesh, so this passage could literally NOT be totally "obeyed"), this passage appears to countermand those of Genesis 1:29-30.

Also, Deuteronomy 12:20 says "…Let me eat meat, because you long to eat meat, you may eat as much meat as your heart desires."  Again, God is giving Man license to kill and eat animals, simply because Man desires to do so.  

I also would like the CVA, and any of us animal issues activists, to be able to use the Sixth Commandment in our arguments against the killing of animals for their flesh.  In 6 of 8 different versions of the Bible, the word "murder" is used.  In 2 of the 8, the word "kill" is used (the King James and the American Standard versions).

People who want to be able to justify the killing of animals for their meat will typically try to use the word murder, because this particular word is generally applied to human beings, and not other beings.  However, one definition of murder is "to kill inhumanly or barbarously." This definition does not specifically state that it applies only to humans; indeed, it could apply to any living being.  Certainly the so-called "food animals" are killed inhumanly and barbarously, in most instances.

The word "kill" is more general, and applies to humans, animals, and even plants.  So we who are animal issues advocates would prefer to "stand on" the use of the word kill as opposed to use of the word murder.  The problem is that 6 out of 8, or three-fourths, of the  versions of the Bible use the word murder; the majority.  So religious people can say:  "majority rules -- murder is what God intended to say in this Commandment."

But the Sixth Commandment is part of the "fundamental MORAL (emphasis added) code of Israel, given to Moses by God on Mount Sinai."  In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught "Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgement" (Matthew 5:21).  So whether it is murder or kill, the fundamental issue is a moral one; one that religious people seem to willfully ignore, so that they can continue to eat the flesh of animals as they desire to.

But if Jesus himself uses the word "kill" rather than the word "murder," and given that Jesus is the Messenger of God, can we not argue that the use of the word "kill" is therefore the proper word, despite the use of the word "murder" in the majority of the 8 different versions of the Bible?

Lastly, I wonder if you could speak to the fact that since God is omniscient and omnipotent, He can do anything and everything that He chooses to do.  So why did he allow his creation, Man, to go astray, and begin to murder/kill His other creatures (animals)?  He should have told Man "Thou shalt go back to Genesis 1:29-30, and live on My earthly creation as I created it.  Thou shalt not re-create My earth as you see fit, but only as I see fit."

Could you please address these issues for me and the rest of the followers of all-creatures.org please?  If we are going to go to ask the religious practitioners around the U.S. and the rest of the world to change their lifestyles to live in accordance with the MORAL code set forth in the Sixth Commandment, as part of the Ten Commandments, and in accordance with the expanded application of the "Golden Rule," we will need to have a platform that is very difficult to logically argue against, don't you agree?

Thank you for your help and guidance on these points.  I/we appreciate all that you do.

Craig

Go on to comments: By Veda - 31 Jan 2014
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