All Donkeys Go To Heaven...says Pope Francis

[Catherine]

Quote:It was the Pope who was comforting a small boy, not the Pope quoting St.Paul doing that! You can see a photo in the article of the Pope comforting the boy. I have written to the Vatican Press Office asking for confirmation of the exact words used by the Pope.

Why didn't I think of that. What would we do without you LPC.

It does make sense that Pope Francis comforted the child. It doesn't mean St. Paul never said or did anything like that, but that kind of interaction was never recorded.

Nothing is said in scripture that excludes animals. Since the writings are addressed to humans the issue of animals did not come up.

There is also no mention of evolution(which Pope Francis has just declared valid) or hockey or cars or a great many things. It is a mistake to reject something because the Bible does not discuss it. I think it is a mistake to stretch some passage to cover a topic it was not meant to cover.

This is such a big subject, but Pope Francis has opened up a lot of big topics lately. The Pope was speaking personally so it is not an official declaration of the Church. Maybe some day it will be. Just having him say it has opened up the subject. It will be debated for years.

Tobi your ideas make a lot of sense. We do not have direct proof of what actually happens after death, but I don't accept that we cease to be or that our animal friends cease to be.

I think Heaven is more complex than most people picture it. It would definitely be a different state of being. Does all life end up there in that altered state? Ebola?
Would Ebola be so deadly a virus if we had not opened up the bush meat trade and started eating monkeys and gorillas. So perhaps Ebola is performing a good action by warning us of the ecological imbalance we are creating. The innocent often are the ones to die in these outbreaks, but there is no doubt that we encountered Ebola, it didn't chase us.

There are so many aspects of this issue. Animals live the lives they were created to live so they would be spiritually fulfilled if living authentically is the criteria.
Classical/traditional Theology views things from a certain mindset. All conclusions have to fit into that box. It already doesn't work because the world is more complex than they realized and science has expanded our knowledge in ways they didn't anticipate.

The earth was seen as the center of the universe. There was a real problem when they found out that the Earth revolves around the Sun.

We seem to have the right Pope for this age. He is going to open up our thinking. The animals going to heaven is just a piece of it. Theology that doesn't fit reality is not going to work. Theology has to be adjusted to fit what is really happening.

Even the Flat Earth Society gave up and disbanded.

I will be interested to see what the Pope actually said and I can't wait to see where this all ends up.

Is it really heaven if all the little creatures I have loved are not there?