Creatures of the Same God: Explorations in Animal Theology

by Andrew Linzey

Overview

I don't know why you're spending all your time on this. They’re only animals—for heaven's sake!” That was the reaction of one of Andrew Linzey's fellow students at King’s College, London, when he was studying theology in the 1970s. Since then, the now Rev. Dr. Andrew Linzey has been arguing that animals aren't only anything, but rather that they matter to God, and should do so to us. In this collection of essays, Linzey counters with his customary wit, erudition, and insight, some contemporary (and perhaps surprising) challenges to animal rights—from ecotheologians, the Church, and politicians. He contends that far from the sometimes shallow judgments of those who think animals unworthy of theological consideration, the Christian tradition has a wellspring of sources and resources available to taking animals seriously. Instead of being marginal to the Christian experience, Linzey concludes, animals can take their rightful place alongside human beings as creatures of the same God.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781590561423
Publisher:	Lantern Publishing & Media
Publication date:	06/01/2009
Pages:	160
Sales rank:	935,706
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

The Revd Professor Andrew Linzey, PhD, DD, HonDD, has been a member of the Faculty of Theology in the University of Oxford for 28 years. He previously held the world’s first academic post in Theology and Animal Welfare — at Mansfield College, Oxford, and at Blackfriars Hall, Oxford. He is currently Visiting Professor at the University of Winchester, and Special Professor at Saint Xavier University, Chicago. In addition, he is the first Professor of Animal Ethics at the Graduate Theological Foundation, USA.

Table of Contents

Introduction: "They're Only Animals-For Heaven's Sake!" ix

1 Religion and Sensitivity to Animal Suffering 1

2 Theology As If Animals Mattered 9

3 Animal Rights and Animal Theology 20

4 The Conflict between Ecotheology and Animal Theology 29

5 Responding to the Debate about Animal Theology 45

6 Jesus and Animals: A Different Perspective 59

7 Animals and Vegetarianism in Early Chinese Christianity 72

8 On Being an Animal Liturgist 82

9 Summing Up: Towards a Prophetic Church for Animals 98

Appendix:

An Open Letter to the Bishops on Hunting 107

Guide to Further Reading 113

Notes 121