Why do people believe that animals have no soul?

Question

The answers I got to one of my previous questions kind of worried me http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AorP8xWXiKAjASaEdvV_BJjsy6IX?qid=20061223232335AArpC6b

People ridicule and mock me when I say this, but I love my animals here and now, so I'm interested to know what will happen to them after the die.

Even if it is no mention of this in the Bible, I just find it hard to believe they can't feel. I mean what about those pets that get attached to you even though you abuse them? What about the loyalty of dogs? What about the way some animals protect even when they have no reason to? What about the way people look at their pets and say 'we love each other'? Is that all hypocrisy?

Lol, mmd. I'm not here to prove anything. I'm here to question and get help.

But let's see if you can prove that human soul's existence is not based on anything. I'd say I'd definitely win with the amount of proof that goes in my favor.

Answer 1

Don't ever let anyone convince you, that animals have no soul, they do.I have three cats and three dogs and every time I look in their eyes I know without a doubt they have a soul. They bring so much joy into our household, I call them my furry angels.

Answer 2

Humans--Just Higher Animals? :
- Humans--Who Are We?
- - - What Is the Purpose of Life?
- - - What We Believe Makes a DIfference!
- In the Image of God or Beast?
- Looking Up --Not Down-- for Answers
http://www.watchtower.org/e/19980622/article_01.htm

Pets---How Do You View Them? :
~ Animals--A Gift From God
~ Pets--Keeping a Balanced View of Them
~ Animals--A Pleasure Forever!
http://watchtower.org/library/g/2004/2/22a/article_01.htm

Is There Life After Death?
- Do You Have an Immortal Spirit?
- - What Is the Spirit?
- - "To Dust You Will Return"
- - The Spirit "Returns to the True God"
- - A Sure Hope!
http://watchtower.org/e/20010715/article_01.htm

The Hereafter--Where Will It Be?:
- Earth Just a Testing Ground?
- Eternal Happiness---In Heaven or on Earth?
http://watchtower.org/e/20001001/article_01.htm

Will the Dead Live Again?
- The Resurrection---A Glorious Prospect
- - - Confusion About the Teaching of the Resurrection
- - - "Women Received Their Dead by Resurrection"
- - - Resurrections During Jesus’ Ministry
- - - Reunion With Dead Loved Ones---A Glorious Prospect
http://watchtower.org/e/20050501/article_01.htm

While animals may have feelings of what they like & don't like, there is no indication that they have the ability to really feel love. Much of their bonding is based on scents &/or tastes --a chemical bonding, whereas humans are also capable of principled love, among other things. There is no denying that they can be powerful medicine for those who are depressed &/or lonely! ...

Another thing worth noting, is that ...
Out of all the resurrections that God saw fit to inspire His penmen to write down in the Bible, not once was an animal resurrected ...

I have had many pets that I Dearly Loved over the years. Perhaps too much. I now think that
--ideally-- we are meant to focus our feelings on fellow humans, instead of so much on animals. But, due to the state that much of humanity has sunk to, it has been much easier to trust the animals in our lives, than many of the humans):! I'm so relieved to know that this is 'scheduled' to change! ...

When the Whole Earth Will Be a Sanctuary
- Why Are Efforts Failing?
- The Only Realistic Hope for an Earthly Sanctuary
http://www.watchtower.org/library/g/1997/7/8/article_03.htm

Answer 3

First, describe what is a soul.

Philosophy teaches another thing than the bible. The soul, according to many religious and philosophical traditions, is a self-aware ethereal substance particular to a unique living being. In these traditions the soul is thought to incorporate the inner essence of each living being, and to be the true basis for sentience. This treaching brought about the belief of the immortality of the soul, also reincarnation.

However, in the very first book of the Bible, Genesis, we learn the accurate meaning of "soul." Regarding the creation of the first man, Adam, the Bible says: "Jehovah God proceeded to form the man out of dust from the ground and to blow into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man came to be a living soul." (Genesis 2:7) Clearly, the soul is not what a man has but what he IS. The Hebrew word used here for soul is ne'phesh. It occurs some 700 times in the Bible, and it never refers to a separate and ethereal part of a human but always to something tangible and physical.—Job 6:7; Psalm 35:13; 107:9; 119:28.

What happens to the soul at death? Consider what happened to Adam at his death. When he sinned, God told him: "You [will] return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For dust you are and to dust you will return." (Genesis 3:19) Think of what that means. Before God created him from the dust, Adam did not exist. After his death, Adam returned to the same state of nonexistence.

The Bible clearly shows that at death the soul does not move on to another body, but it dies. "The soul that is sinning—it itself will die," the Bible emphatically states. (Ezekiel 18:4, 20; Acts 3:23; Revelation 16:3)

There is a bible verse saying that animal is also a soul, not that it has a soul but it itself is a soul (Cant find it right now...add later)

Please consider the following verse regarding their end as man's.

"For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity. All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again." (Ecclesiastes 3:18-20 )

Answer 4

People want to believe they don't have souls because we like to think human beings are special in some way.

Fact of the matter is we are on top of the food chain so we eat animals, we keep them as pets, we make them work for us, but we don't want to feel bad about any of it. So it is easier to just think that we have something called a soul and animals don't. This means we are superior to them and thus can do what we want with them. If animals don't have a soul then killing, eating, and using them to benefit us isn't a bad thing.

Answer 5

I am sorry you received indecent answers to your previous question. Islam believes that every creature is a living soul that has to be treated kindly. We are as rewarded for treating animals with mercy as we are when treating people so.

The Quran states that on Doomsday, all creatures (people, animals, birds, etc) will be there and everyone will be asked about what they did and will receive their due reward or punishment.

Now, definitely some will mock me and say that animals do not understand, have no minds, etc. The justice of the lord demands being fair and giving everyone their right. There are rules that govern the lives of every species; animals know them, though we could be ignorant of them. They will be asked why they did not or did abide by the rules.

Allah knows best
Peace

Answer 6

Not having a soul doesn't mean you can't have emotion. I believe that there are two different things, a Soul and a Spirit. If you look Spirit up in a dictionary it is your attitude. You can have a Humble spirit or whatever. I believe all animals have a spirit, I just believe a soul is that part of God that he gave to us to enable us into heaven.

Answer 7

Well, there are plenty of animal sacrifices in The Good Book, so I wouldn't draw too much from it.

The reason this is complex is, it's easy to imagine dolphins or dogs having souls, but what about a wasp or a mosquito? or a fruit fly?

It's a sliding scale if you ask me. Hard to define. But religion only gets in the way.

Answer 8

the simple answer to that is yes, they do have souls and therefore, are a part of god, as surely as we are.
there are some who deny that, but what they are denying is that they are simple animals just like the other creatures but have less of a reason to be accepted into heaven than any other creature.
they want to be able to see themselves as 'above' the other animals. if anything, the human being is beneath the other animals, they don't hate, they don't kill indescriminantly as we do, and they don't kill millions every 20 or so years.
now that, to me would be the more primitive species.

Answer 9

Men and Woman see in animals part of God’s generous provision for human welfare. Animals have served man as burden bearers, as sources of food and clothing, as sanitation agents, and as helpers in the vital activities of plowing and harvesting. Their variety of form and color has delighted his eye; their habits and instincts have been and still are an extensive field for inquiry into the marvels of God’s creative work. Though animals die in the same manner as man, they do not share his hope of a resurrection.

Animals were created with a limited life span, humans had the prospect of living on earth forever. ( Psalm 37:29) Jesus Christ said that to enjoy “everlasting life,” we must exercise faith and take in knowledge of God, things that animals are incapable of doing. (John 17:3)

God created animals for the sake of humans. Animals can help them do their work and can serve as their companions or pets. They also serve to magnify God’s love and wisdom.

The Creator gave life to both humans and animals. But for how long were they to continue to live? Scientists report that humans seem to have the potential of endless life, so that investigators are perplexed as to why man dies. The Bible gives the reason. It says that the Creator gave the first humans the opportunity of living forever. Death came only because they rebelled. (Gen. 2:17; 3:17-19) What, though, of animals? They are not capable of conscious rebellion against God; yet they live only for a length of time and then die. Hence, it is clear that the Creator never purposed that individual animals live forever. For them death was natural..

Answer 10

Okay, let me explain something. Men wrote the bible, not God. These men were convinced of their superiority over animals just as they were convinced of their superiority over women and other religions. Its all BULL. We are made of the same carbon-based matter as animals are, and all we have is a higher intelligence. There is no special SOUL we have that they don't. MAN, religion sure does mix people up...