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 a...