God is everywhere, even when we hunt, even with the creatures we hunt, and it is good and holy. Explaining this to people can be very hard, but I think it is incredibly important. In the Book of Genesis, as part of the Covenant with Noah, God says: “fear and dread of you be upon all the beasts of the earth, and upon all the fowl of the air, and all that move upon the earth: all the fishes of the sea are delivered into your hand. And every thing that moveth and liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herbs I have delivered them all to you.” (Gen. 9:2-3) Given this, it would seem that hunting the creatures is more than just acceptable. It seems like almost a mandate.
Yet, several considerations temper this. In the garden hunting did not exist. God delivered the “green herbs” to us for our food before the fall, and God’s plan seems very different from what we find later in Chapter 9. “And God said: Behold I have given you every herb bearing seed upon the earth, and all trees that have in themselves seed of their own kind, to be your meat.” (Gen 1:29) In the next verse he gives the same food to the animals.
Therefore, before the fall, we can conclude that God had a different view about our relationship to the animals. Adam and Eve had all the food they needed, with no need to plant or hoe or hunt, and it was there for the taking whenever they needed it. What does it say about hunting that it is something that enters our life only after our fall from grace?
Should we seek to return to the more holy state of the garden, eschewing meat and hunting, now that the market makes such a lifestyle possible? Is hunting good and holy, or something to be undertaken only because of our fall from grace, and impure as a result? Can it be marred by greed? Is it destructive? It is self evident, after all, that God loves his creation, and his creatures. Deer are smart, but even if they weren't, they would still be loved by God. They are beautiful. Therefore respect for God's creation means having respect for the deer. Can we respect them and hunt them? Are the two goals mutually exclusive?
Furthermore, God wrote more than one book. Science is the study of God’s “other” book: observable creation. What does science tell us that might illuminate our discussion of hunting?
A priest who reads my blog wrote: “Question: the act of hunting not as a predatory activity but as a spiritual or religious or Christian act?” It is an excellent question, and given everything already said (just from Genesis) it is a question that demands a thorough answer. I will seek to answer it systematically over the course of the next few blog entries.
Yet, several considerations temper this. In the garden hunting did not exist. God delivered the “green herbs” to us for our food before the fall, and God’s plan seems very different from what we find later in Chapter 9. “And God said: Behold I have given you every herb bearing seed upon the earth, and all trees that have in themselves seed of their own kind, to be your meat.” (Gen 1:29) In the next verse he gives the same food to the animals.
Therefore, before the fall, we can conclude that God had a different view about our relationship to the animals. Adam and Eve had all the food they needed, with no need to plant or hoe or hunt, and it was there for the taking whenever they needed it. What does it say about hunting that it is something that enters our life only after our fall from grace?
Should we seek to return to the more holy state of the garden, eschewing meat and hunting, now that the market makes such a lifestyle possible? Is hunting good and holy, or something to be undertaken only because of our fall from grace, and impure as a result? Can it be marred by greed? Is it destructive? It is self evident, after all, that God loves his creation, and his creatures. Deer are smart, but even if they weren't, they would still be loved by God. They are beautiful. Therefore respect for God's creation means having respect for the deer. Can we respect them and hunt them? Are the two goals mutually exclusive?
Furthermore, God wrote more than one book. Science is the study of God’s “other” book: observable creation. What does science tell us that might illuminate our discussion of hunting?
A priest who reads my blog wrote: “Question: the act of hunting not as a predatory activity but as a spiritual or religious or Christian act?” It is an excellent question, and given everything already said (just from Genesis) it is a question that demands a thorough answer. I will seek to answer it systematically over the course of the next few blog entries.
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