How to talk to Presbyterians.

[rug]

[IrishAyes]

1. Where do people get off anyway, claiming dogs have no souls?

Not only do they possess self awareness (though possibly no consicousness of death in the future, but what does that matter?), they're a considerably better behaved species over humans if you assess by how well they live by the Creator's design. Dogs might make mistakes and they sometimes do things they know their humans don't want them to do, but that hardly equates to sin. So, since they do have souls and they don't sin, how in creation can anyone suppose God doesn't treasure them? How could they be turned away? NO way!

Send those Presbyterians to me. I'll straighten them out!

As for reading the Bible: when St. Peter was on the roof of the house and he had the vision of livestock being brought down FROM heaven, what does that say about even the lower animals? Will cattle, sheep and goats go to heaven but dogs be turned away? Ludicrous.

[lachrymosa]

2. I thought this was real

Until I realized the lighting and cars in background were identical. Still..it was very funny.

And it's something I've windered about many times. But then once I open that door the next questions are whether whether cats go to heaven. And what about that fox that killed my beloved cat? How about all the fish that have been chopped up and tuned into cat food? What about fleas? Worms? The turkeys we just ate. Etc. etc. where would we draw the line or is it possible every animal could have an eternal soul?

[rug]

3. Who knows?

The promise is of a new heaven and a new earth.

"The universe itself will be renewed." CCC 1042

The Catechism is necessarily vague. Don't forget, the end is not heaven. The end is both a new heaven and a new earth. Whatever that means.

[tjwmason]

4. Of course dogs have souls

They are dog souls, and thus different from human souls, but the standard position of Thomist philosophy (following from Aristotle) is that the soul is the form of the body.

As for heaven, our bodies are going to be in heaven (the concluding line of the Apostles' Creed is "I believe in the resurrection of the body and the life of the world to come&quot not merely our souls - given that, there is nothing to prevent animals being present even given the different nature of their souls. Also, what should we make of Isaiah 6:11?