Weekly Newsletter from Christian Vegetarian Association CVA - March 24, 2026
From Christian Vegetarian Association (CVA)

  1. CVA leafleter Rick Hershey writes:
  2. Why Are People Ethical?
  3. All-Creatures.Org Ministry
  4. 2026 Winter Jam Events

1. CVA leafleter Rick Hershey writes:

I handed out 2000 CVA booklets to a friendly crowd of mostly kids at Cadence Bank Arena in Tupelo, MS in beautiful 75 degree winter weather for Winter Jam. Then, I handed out 2800 CVA booklets at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City for Winter Jam, again mostly to kids in warm, windy weather.

2. Why Are People Ethical?

Philosophers often encourage ethical systems that embrace universal concern. This, I think, accords with Jesus' ministry, in which he advised his followers to welcome strangers and to help the vulnerable people, such as widows, people with disabilities, and children. He expressed admiration for the despised Samaritan and protected the woman accused of adultery. Why, then, do people have difficulty embracing a universal ethic?

From the perspective of evolutionary biology and evolutionary psychology, a genetic predisposition toward universal concern might appear maladaptive. If someone makes sacrifices or takes risks on behalf of unrelated strangers, that person might seem less likely to pass on their genes. Consequently, genes that encourage altruistic behavior might lead to fewer offspring and thus be less likely to persist in future generations. Not surprisingly, people tend to be tribal and to show greater concern for those they regard as members of their own group, whether defined by family ties, ethnicity, geography, ideology, or politics.

Nonetheless, people often make great sacrifices or take significant risks for strangers. Religion may partly explain this. The Hebrew Scriptures encourage care for strangers; Jesus' message was largely universalist; and similar sentiments appear in the writings and traditions of many other faiths. At the same time, Jews, Christians, and members of nearly every faith have also committed terrible acts that they justified on religious grounds.

It is also possible that concern for strangers reflects a kind of "bug" in our genetic inheritance, which might diminish over time. Before the agricultural era, which began about 10,000 years ago, humans lived in small tribes. In evolutionary terms, 10,000 years is a relatively short time, and species generally do not change dramatically over such a period. Because members of a tribe were often related, concern for all tribal members increased the likelihood that one's genes would be passed on. Perhaps our capacity for empathy toward strangers stems from a genetic predisposition that evolved in these small groups - typically about 125-150 people - where extending concern to nearly everyone in the group was adaptive.

Thus, there appears to be a tension between concern for one's tribe and concern for humanity at large. Most of us have the capacity to care about strangers, which makes universal ethics - including concern for nonhuman beings - possible. At the same time, we tend to be self-centered and to limit our concern primarily to members of our own group, which makes the adoption of universal ethics more difficult.

I plan to explore this further.

Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D.

3. All-Creatures.Org Ministry

Check out the March 18 Newsletter: All-Creatures.org Weekly Newsletter, March 18, 2026

Contents include:

The Joy of Veganism - Lenten Reflection Week 4 by Tams Nicholson
Good News for Animals: Washington State University Cancels Deadly Surgical Lab

Action Alerts:
Etsy: Ban Fur Now!
Protect Old-growth Forests in Oregon
"Humane" Certifications Deceive Consumers while Animals Endure Torment & Killing

The Peaceable Kingdom Hour
Sermon - Godly Language or Tongues of Pentecost
Popcorn Video Sermon - Godly Language, the Tongues of Pentecost
Stump the Pastor - How do we pray for other animals?
Stump the Pastor - Does scripture reveal how we should treat the earth?

Recipes:
Broccoli Collard Greens Angel Hair Pasta
Cabbage Soup Chickpea Elbows
Multi-Grain Spelt, Whole Wheat, Kamut, Barley Raisin Rolls

4. 2026 Winter Jam Events

For more details, contact Lorena at lorenavalenziveg@gmail.com. The CVA will donate $20 per hour to the animal protection charity of volunteers' choice.

3/26 IN Fort Wayne
3/27 OH Cleveland
3/28 PA State College
3/28 MI Ypsilanti

Please support the CVA! At www.christianveg.org/materials.htm, you can find literature, T-shirts, bumper stickers and more, and donations are always welcomed!

2026 Newsletters Archive