Road to Fifty Reflections: Day 11

Pets or Pests?

In one of Mom’s sermons on community cats, she spoke about how they can be both a challenge and a blessing. The other day, I found myself wondering the same thing: Are cats becoming pests now, since there seem to be so many of them around? On one hand, I see how their growing numbers create challenges... the noise when they are in heat, the mess of their waste in pots and on the ground, even the risks to health (such as toxoplasmosis) and to the balance of nature (as they hunt rodents, birds and lizards). And yet, in the light of faith, I cannot simply call them “pests.”

I once overheard one of Belle’s theology classes, where it was mentioned that animals have souls, specifically, a 'sensitive soul.' This was really an eye opener.

Scripture reminds us, “God saw all that He had made, and it was very good” (Genesis 1:31, NIV). From the very beginning, God entrusted humanity with the task “to work and take care of” the garden (Genesis 2:15 NIV). This shows that we are called to stewardship, not domination.

The Catechism teaches, “Animals are God’s creatures. He surrounds them with his providential care. By their mere existence they bless Him and give Him glory. Thus men owe them kindness” (CCC 2416).

Pope Francis, in Laudato Si’, reminds us that every creature has its own purpose and reflects the Creator’s love, “Each creature has its own purpose. None is superfluous. The entire material universe speaks of God’s love, His boundless affection for us” (Laudato Si’ 84). He warns against treating creation as 'disposable,' urging us instead to see animals and nature as part of the “common home” we share and must protect.

St. Francis of Assisi, the patron of ecology, lived this truth in a profound way. He recognized all creatures as brothers and sisters, calling even the smallest sparrow or worm a reminder of God’s tenderness. In his Canticle of the Creatures, he praised God through “Fratello Sole” and “Sorella Luna” --- and through all living things, great and small. He teaches us that to love animals is not sentimentality, but a way of honoring the Creator who fashioned them.

So perhaps the real problem is not the cats themselves, but our failure as stewards --- neglecting to spay and neuter, abandoning pets, forgetting that creation flourishes when we act responsibly. We build more buildings and occupy the spaces that were once their homes.

Instead of dismissing them as “pests,” I am invited to see them as part of the Lord’s call to stewardship... to respond with compassion, to bring balance with wisdom and to honor even these little creatures as signs of God’s providence and love.