Is protest/activism a sin?

[slockmn]

My uncle and I have started up an animal activist group which is focusing on chickens and how they are cruelly treated in the fast food industry.

We are going to have a protest in about a month’s time but I've been thinking…

Is activism/protest a sin? Surely it isn't because we are protecting God's creation from being exploited? It's going to be a peaceful protest, not a rock throwing, cursing and arrest worthy protest.

Is this okay?

 

[BFine]

To make sure I'm on the "same page" with you...
please explain how chickens are being exploited in
the fast food industry?

 

[slockmn]

To make sure I'm on the "same page" with you...
please explain how chickens are being exploited in
the fast food industry?

Chickens are being beaten senceless, having their beaks cut off, scaled alive, stomped on, thown against walls, slammed on the ground and having their stomachs cut out. All of this while still alive.

 

[vespasia]

Go back to the OT ethics on stewardship of the earth; have a look at what is known as 'green theology' in which this issue is looked into at great depth. There are groups out there already.

Be ware of unintended consequences. For example care for Gods creation does not allow you to then hurl unspeakable abuse at another human being for not sharing a particular point of view.

Peaceful protest to highlight social injustice is best.

 

[SoldierOfSoul]

My uncle and I have started up an animal activist group which is focusing on chickens and how they are cruelly treated in the fast food industry.

We are going to have a protest in about a month’s time but I've been thinking…

Is it cruel when I cut them into pieces, role them flour and deep fry them in oil?

 

[SoldierOfSoul]

But they taste so good! I love me some chicken. But no they should not be stepped on. Leave the chickens alone! Don't mistreat the chicken, eat the chicken!

 

[SoldierOfSoul]

I'm going to call KFC about this, they better not be stepping on my chicken before they put it in the fryer! I want my chicken footprint free!

 

[Sketcher]

Just mind the teachings on loving one another, and don't project a point of view onto God just because you believe it passionately. People who protest often fall into the trap of casting these to the wayside.

 

[SoldierOfSoul]

That's a bad chicken right there, I wouldn't try and step on that one.

 

[SoldierOfSoul]

Or this one...

 

[Thusia Zao]

No reason to protest. Although it may be hard to watch when chickens are cruelly being beaten for our food, chickens are meant for food. God put all animals of the Earth under our authority; to be killed and to be eaten.

 

[Aeneas]

My uncle and I have started up an animal activist group which is focusing on chickens and how they are cruelly treated in the fast food industry.

We are going to have a protest in about a month’s time but I've been thinking…

Is activism/protest a sin? Surely it isn't because we are protecting God's creation from being exploited? It's going to be a peaceful protest, not a rock throwing, cursing and arrest worthy protest.

Is this okay?

I don't think protesting and activism are sins, but there are a lot of Christians who do. I actually wasn't aware of that point of view until OWS came about, and it surprised me.

 

[Aeneas]

No reason to protest. Although it may be hard to watch when chickens are cruelly being beaten for our food, chickens are meant for food. God put all animals of the Earth under our authority; to be killed and to be eaten.

 

[elenore]

As above. Cruelty is never acceptable.

Sin is only a sin when it's a sin. If something is wrong, it needs to be righted. It just needs the right people and timing.

One of the biggest mistakes we can make sometimes is approaching change the wrong way. The sin can come in the approach.

Jesus made a whip out of cords and drove the money changers out of the temple. He called the religious leaders of the day the most appalling (and funniest) names - he also said nothing at other times or tore strips off hypocrites with a few simple sentences.

Jesus spoke the truth but he did it in love. Sometimes love hurts. He could be very gentle and very, very tough. It all depended. But he got the message through. (It wasn't his time to rule the earth then, so he said nothing when he could have spoken out and saved himself but that's another story.)

Protesting against wrong is right. But when it's done in the wrong way, it hurts. Just think about your actions/words/message/attitude etc and try to be realistic about what you're actually up against. A lot of protesters can become bitter when they don't seem to get anywhere. That can just compound the problem. Greenies irritate most realistic people for a reason.

Chickens are cruelly treated under current western legislation (in large areas of the industry.) I've seen quite a bit of change where I live in this area over the past couple of years but there's a way to go yet. Cattle too. (I only found that out fairly recently.)

There's always things to protest about, but my advice is give it to God and see what he says. You can try to storm the barn or simply open the lock with a key. Sometimes he will give you a key.

Love your enemies does not mean turn a blind eye to their sin.

 

[elenore]

PS. The cows thing if you're interested in looking into that, because it doesn't seem to get as much public exposure as the chickens is about talking calves and stuffing them into lots or pens. It's kind of like battery farming but in the open. They arn't able to move around because there's so many together in the pen and they're left there to get fat enough for slaughtering. I think it's months or years that they're left that way but it's really, really bad. They arn't in filthy conditions but imagine being squashed into a bedroom with 30 other people and left there till whenever. I only read about it briefly but I understand that most beef in america goes through that system (the same as most chickens still go through the battery system.) I think when the cows are able to range around on open pasture it's called open range or something (you'd have to look it up.)

It's cheaper to do that to the cows. I read about it around a year or so ago but only briefly. To me, that's worth taking action about as well.

 

[Thusia Zao]

As above. Cruelty is never acceptable.

Sin is only a sin when it's a sin. If something is wrong, it needs to be righted. It just needs the right people and timing.

One of the biggest mistakes we can make sometimes is approaching change the wrong way. The sin can come in the approach.

Jesus made a whip out of cords and drove the money changers out of the temple. He called the religious leaders of the day the most appalling (and funniest) names - he also said nothing at other times or tore strips off hypocrites with a few simple sentences.

Jesus spoke the truth but he did it in love. Sometimes love hurts. He could be very gentle and very, very tough. It all depended. But he got the message through. (It wasn't his time to rule the earth then, so he said nothing when he could have spoken out and saved himself but that's another story.)

Protesting against wrong is right. But when it's done in the wrong way, it hurts. Just think about your actions/words/message/attitude etc and try to be realistic about what you're actually up against. A lot of protesters can become bitter when they don't seem to get anywhere. That can just compound the problem. Greenies irritate most realistic people for a reason.

Chickens are cruelly treated under current western legislation (in large areas of the industry.) I've seen quite a bit of change where I live in this area over the past couple of years but there's a way to go yet. Cattle too. (I only found that out fairly recently.)

There's always things to protest about, but my advice is give it to God and see what he says. You can try to storm the barn or simply open the lock with a key. Sometimes he will give you a key.

Love your enemies does not mean turn a blind eye to their sin.

I stand corrected and I apologize.

What I meant to say and should have pointed out is that - animal rights activism can go WAY too extreme in putting human necessity over animal protection and animal rights activism is good in that it protects animals from being abused (i.e. PETA, etc.).

I don't think it's right charging a man for murder for killing an animal is what I mean.

And I don't think it's right for a man to put any animal in danger for fun/entertainment (i.e. dog fighting, dog abuse, etc.)

But in the case of chickens, if the chickens are meant for humans to eat, should we really care about how they are killed so long as they're killed?

I just think some animal activist take it way to extreme sometimes. Although Christians are called to respect all of God's creations, we aren't supposed to be on Earth constantly debating/protesting the ways of properly killing food. We're supposed to be doing what God's called us to do: "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28).

And I think sometimes protesters miss the mark on this. Protest can sometimes cause people to hide even more in their sin and reject the Gospel even more.

 

[slockmn]

I stand corrected and I apologize.

What I meant to say and should have pointed out is that - animal rights activism can go WAY too extreme in putting human necessity over animal protection and animal rights activism is good in that it protects animals from being abused (i.e. PETA, etc.).

I don't think it's right charging a man for murder for killing an animal is what I mean.

And I don't think it's right for a man to put any animal in danger for fun/entertainment (i.e. dog fighting, dog abuse, etc.)

But in the case of chickens, if the chickens are meant for humans to eat, should we really care about how they are killed so long as they're killed?

I just think some animal activist take it way to extreme sometimes. Although Christians are called to respect all of God's creations, we aren't supposed to be on Earth constantly debating/protesting the ways of properly killing food. We're supposed to be doing what God's called us to do: "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28).

And I think sometimes protesters miss the mark on this. Protest can sometimes cause people to hide even more in their sin and reject the Gospel even more.

I see where you're coming from but I don't think the Lord would appreciate anal electrocution of his creatures.

 

[TheDag]

I think when the cows are able to range around on open pasture it's called open range or something (you'd have to look it up.)

It is called free range just so you know. Just mentioning it as it may make it easier if someone is looking for information about it.

 

[TheDag]

But in the case of chickens, if the chickens are meant for humans to eat, should we really care about how they are killed so long as they're killed?

I still think one should be humane in the way they are killed. Essentially to me that means making it quick so the animal is not in pain. Animals do feel pain after all. So I think we should care about how they are killed.

 

[Aeneas]

I stand corrected and I apologize.

What I meant to say and should have pointed out is that - animal rights activism can go WAY too extreme in putting human necessity over animal protection and animal rights activism is good in that it protects animals from being abused (i.e. PETA, etc.).

I don't think it's right charging a man for murder for killing an animal is what I mean.

And I don't think it's right for a man to put any animal in danger for fun/entertainment (i.e. dog fighting, dog abuse, etc.)

But in the case of chickens, if the chickens are meant for humans to eat, should we really care about how they are killed so long as they're killed?

*stares*

Um, yeah, we should. It's called "ethics".

I just think some animal activist take it way to extreme sometimes. Although Christians are called to respect all of God's creations, we aren't supposed to be on Earth constantly debating/protesting the ways of properly killing food. We're supposed to be doing what God's called us to do: "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28).

They are hardly mutually exclusive.

And I think sometimes protesters miss the mark on this. Protest can sometimes cause people to hide even more in their sin and reject the Gospel even more.

Because the logical reaction to protesting factory farms is to reject the gospel? Really?