Why did my cat die?

[TheTucker]

Hi everyone,

Yesterday I was thinking about my cat. She died almost 1 year ago at the age of 12. Her death tore me to pieces but it made me focus on my life and what I need to get out of it. However yesterday I was contemplating the scriptures at Romans 5:12 and Romans 6:23.

I think maybe these form a major hole in Christian theology.

My questions are: Why do animals die, despite the fact that they never partook of the fruits of the tree? What is their sin?

Tim x

 

[juvenissun]

Hi everyone,

Yesterday I was thinking about my cat. She died almost 1 year ago at the age of 12. Her death tore me to pieces but it made me focus on my life and what I need to get out of it. However yesterday I was contemplating the scriptures at Romans 5:12 and Romans 6:23.

I think maybe these form a major hole in Christian theology.

My questions are: Why do animals die, despite the fact that they never partook of the fruits of the tree? What is their sin?

Tim x

Animals have no sin. Romans verses are talking about human, not animal.

They die by the same reason as we die. We (and animals) are made of imperfect material and work through an imperfect process.

Only human (and angel) sins.

 

[Theofane]

@TheTucker

All living things die. I know this isn't much of a consolation, but death is something like a side-effect of life. Inevitable.

 

[SQLservant]

Death has been part of the plan all along. The death spoken of in those verses is that of the spirit, not the body. The same line of thought would lead one to wonder what the sin of the vegetables was, too, or how eating worked before the Fall. This was never an issue in the early Church; St. Paul even spoke of a seed dying to become a new stalk. Surely he couldn't have said that if the Fall meant all death, whether he meant it literally or not. There's no hole in Christian theology; there's only a hole in misunderstanding of the text.

 

[nationwide1]

Animals dont sin, Romans 5 says people and not animals.

People need to read the texts carefully without any preconceived ideas

 

[St_Worm2]

When Adam took a bite out of that apple, his transgression not only affected us, but all of creation as well (see Romans 8:18-25). The ground was cursed (Genesis 3:17–19) and all life now decays and dies because of what we did in Adam. God cursed the physical universe as part of His judgment against us (because of the authority and position He gave us over it). ​

So now, all of creation groans with us in hope of the "revealing of the sons of God" (Romans 8:19), when we, and the universe with us, will be set free from the corruption that has beset us.​

--David​

 

[nationwide1]

good point. i think i need to take that on board

 

[DamianWarS]

death is an irreversible product of sin. Until Christ raptures his church we will all succumb to the dominion of sin in this word and die. Today sin is a part of this world the products of sin are death, pain and suffering, sickness and the like. Little is discussed on how the world was before the fall but what we know is that man had dominion not sin so the products of sin would be absent. As Genesis continues it shows us more changes in animals as it states after the flood in Genesis 9:2 that the "fear of you and the terror of you will be on every beast of the earth..." and that same time God ordains that "every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you" in verse 3. So there is a marked changed in the behavior of animals in Genesis that it appears there are 3 stages, before the fall, after the fall to the flood, and after the flood.

When we read the fall of man you will noticed the first blood split is that of an animals. Genesis 3:21 says "The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them." God killed an animal, and fashioned new garments from its skin to cover Adam and Eve's shame which foreshadows the sacrificial system of the law and eventual blood of Christ which clothes us in righteousness.

Although not all details are clear what is clear is that today animals share in the curse of sin as sin has dominion over this world but before the fall there was no curse upon man so as animals share in the curse today I think it would be safe to assume they also shared in the blessings of a sinless world before the fall.

 

[Chany]

Animals are not on the same field as us. There souls are finite and tied to this world. The also lack a intellect beyond instinctual intelligence. Therefore, animals cannot sin because they cannot comprehend morals.

Animals are not on the same field as us. There souls are finite and tied to this world. From my understanding, animals were never intended to have infinite souls, as they were intended merely for us humans (Genesis 2:4-25).

 

[Stan Ley]

Who Knows? Perhaps the consequence of sin spread over the earth including animals. God did say to Adam "cursed is the ground for thy sake". Sometimes the gravity of one's sin can spread to the innocent.

 

[Ave Maria]

I don't know if I can answer this well or not but I will try to. I believe that when the original sin happened it caused a curse to be cast upon the entire world and everything in it. I am not certain of this though.

 

[PaladinValer]

Hi everyone,

Yesterday I was thinking about my cat. She died almost 1 year ago at the age of 12. Her death tore me to pieces but it made me focus on my life and what I need to get out of it. However yesterday I was contemplating the scriptures at Romans 5:12 and Romans 6:23.

I think maybe these form a major hole in Christian theology.

My questions are: Why do animals die, despite the fact that they never partook of the fruits of the tree? What is their sin?

Tim x

Because the wages of sin isn't biological death but spiritual death.

All creation suffered the ill results of Adam and Eve's transgression. Creation is intertwined; one thing influences another. Creation's absolute perfection was damaged by their bad decision.

When Christ comes again, all shall be made right again, for creation will be transfigured as well as humanity.

Other species die because that's a part of biological life. It is how God ordered things to be.

 

[WinBySurrender]

Hi everyone,

Yesterday I was thinking about my cat. She died almost 1 year ago at the age of 12. Her death tore me to pieces but it made me focus on my life and what I need to get out of it. However yesterday I was contemplating the scriptures at Romans 5:12 and Romans 6:23.

I think maybe these form a major hole in Christian theology.

My questions are: Why do animals die, despite the fact that they never partook of the fruits of the tree? What is their sin?

Tim x

Adam's sin caused not only his fall, but the fall of all creation. Sin came into residence in God's creation, removing its perfection and setting it in imperfection.

 

[Blessedj01]

It's correct, death didn't exist in Eden.

However...try not to think of this the same way you would if a human died. A cat is blameless, it has it's glory. It lives a life that is proud and happy doing what it does. One day it has to die, having fulfilled it's purpose. That's not something to be dwelling on. I know you miss your pet, but remember that your pet was not a sinner like we are and passes on having been satisfied with the love and affection you showed it and it's chance to have glory in life. I think animals are here to please God as well...a cat is very happy just being a cat. It's true that even the rocks of the earth shall praise God. We too, should live our lives, not worrying about death, but enjoying glorifying God by being what He made us to be.

 

[wannabeadesigirl]

I think animals will be in heaven, and I think that the animals we loved most in life will be there in heaven with us too. Your cat was a precious part of your life and I feel your pain. I would say that it was humanity's fall into sin that caused the upheaval amongst the creatures we share the planet with.