In the Bible it says not to kill.....?

Question

of course i know it is wrong to murder a human, and it also seems that abortion is wrong in the eyes of God, so i was wondering(stupid question probably but i was interested!), what about animals? Is putting an animal to sleep wrong. i know it may be suffering, but isnt taking life-taking life? I am not talking about killing animals for food either.

Hope my rambling question makes sense!

Answer 1

Senseless killing of anything is wrong regardless. Senseless is the keyword here and is a word that could be greatly debated in individual cases depending on a persons personal beliefs.

Answer 2

It is a good question, and one which if you take the bible litterally I guess the answer has to be 'no' - you shouldn't kill an animal either.

For the same reason that it's illegal in virtually every country in the world to kill someone for compasionate reasons, if you take things litterally then you shouldn't put an animal down.

It does mean that whatever you do, you are potentially doing the wrong thing though - if you don't put an animal that is suffering down, then you are allowing it to suffer - something which clearly isn't a Christian thing to do. If you do put an animal that is suffering down, then you are basically 'playing God'.

I guess at an extreme you could argue that if you believe in God then God will decide whether the animal should live or die, it's not our decision to make. Likewise, the same is true of a human life - but with the way in which medical knowledge is increasing we can sustain life 'artificially' for a vast range of conditions - so the question also needs to be asked if that is wrong as well?

Personally I would rather see an animal that is suffering not suffer - if that means the only option is to put it to sleep, then perhaps that is better for it? I don't know that I'd want someone to be in a position where they had to make that decision for a human life, but sometimes I do wonder whether it wouldn't be better to be able to just let some people die from natural causes, instead of prolonging their life just because it can be done.

Answer 3

Firstly, whynotask, that is a semantic argument and in some translations it IS thou shalt not kill.

Secondly, some people do believe that a life is a life whether it is human or not. A lot of growing evidence suggests that various animals can do the things that we always assumed were the domain of humans including using tools, farming,talking (including learning sign language) and complex emotions like grief. I don't really have an answer on what is morally right. I think everyone makes their own mind up on where to draw the line.

Answer 4

Sir,
Your ..... knowledge is incomplete. Know the reality here....

Lice in the hair, mosquitoes in the drain and the insects in the dark corners, where do they come from ? Have you ever asked the black ants on the age of wash basin, where they come from ? You wait till they (ants) escape from the basin area, so that you can wash you face and no ant should get washed away. But it doesn’t work, they (ants) don’t bother and get washed away with the flow of water. Other creatures like spider, rats, if you don’t kill them they will spoil your food and your sleep. The mosquitoes, if you don’t use mosquito “repeler”, they will suck up your blood. You have them starved to death, by using a mosquito net. How content you feel in that ? How do the ants know where the sugar is ? Those ants with wings, how you burn them to char?

Why do you destroy the honey combs and the wasp den ? The reason is, for existence of one species, an another is sacrificed. You connive for it, but your virtuous mind gets entangled with the ‘net o virtues’ seeing those insects dying. By slaying a lamb, 10 people fill there stomach, but with the killing of 50 mosquitoes a person gets proper sleep.

The driver of a ‘road roller’, if cares for the insects on the road can never construct a road. It is stated in the ‘holy Koran’ as NAHAK KHANAUDANA GUNAH MEN SAMIL HAIN (Every act is legal according to the requirements). And it is also mentioned in that, as ‘making huddles on the good deeds of even an enemy is a disobedience of the ‘order’ of ALLAH.(GOD)

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Answer 5

In the story Jesus told of the prodigal son, the father calls for the 'fatted calf to be killed'. I don't think it would have been included in the story if God thought it was wrong.
The word 'kill' is translated from the Aramaic "ratsach". Meaning murder or manslay. It specifically refers to the wrongful murder of anyone with a soul.., A human being.
An animal is not made in God's image and has no soul.

Answer 6

That is why, in slaughtering animal for food, it is done in the name of God, in Judaism and Islam. They term it as Kosher or Halal meat. It is a rambling answer to a rambling question.

Answer 7

Yes it does, sort of. Putting an animal out of its misery is not wrong, it is merciful. Although God does not want us to kill His animals just for the fun of it, He does allow us to kill them for food, clothing, etc.

Answer 8

An embryo is not a human being. It is tissue with the potentiality to become a human being.
It is merciful to put an end to a creature's suffering. God does not enjoy the suffering of any of his creatures.

Let me ask you one: If it's wrong to kill, why do men continually make war and yet call themselves Christians?

Answer 9

Yes,Jesus Christ says in Matthew 26:52 ....'Put your sword back in its place,...for all who draw the sword will die by the sword...'
Matthew 13:24-30 and 13:36-43......'Do you whant us to go and pull them up?' 'No,he answered,because while you are pulling the weeds,you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest.'....
and Mattew9:13..'go and leart what this means:"I desire mercy, not sacrifice."
Matthew 19:18 and Matthew 15:19

Answer 10

If you ask me, i would allow that for humans also. I think that it is not a sin if you put animal a sleep, in order to avoid suffering, but i am not a God. You have to ask your soul, and then decide what you feel is right to do.