Isaiah 11:6-9
(RSV)
The
wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the
goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little
child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young
will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The
infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put
his hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy
on my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of
the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
God’s ideal world for us is not one where speciesism exists, but
instead a world of tolerance, respect, compassion, love and harmony.
As stewards of Earth, we have the responsibility and privilege to
actively participate in the reconciliation and healing of God’s
Creation. A crucial step toward this peaceable kingdom is to stop
considering God’s animals as commodities.
How uplifting and beautiful is this prophesy! However, Christians
should realize that we play a crucial role for this "Peaceable
Kingdom" to become a reality. As stewards of God's Creation we have
the sacred responsibility and privilege to actively participate in
the healing and reconciliation of Creation, which undeniable means
not to cause unnecessary suffering or death to any of God's
creatures. Therefore, the intake of animal products is not a trivial
or inconsequential matter. It is, instead, a moral and religious
matter of grave consequences for our health, God's animals and the
environment.