Eden's Other Residents: The Bible and Animals

The Bible teems with nonhuman life, from its opening pages with God's creation of animals on the same day and out of the same earth as humans to its closing apocalyptic scenes of horses riding out of the sky. Animals are Adam's companions, Noah's shipmates, and Elijah's saviors. They are at the center of ancient Israel's religious life as sacrifices and yet, as Job discovers, beyond human dominion. It is an animal that saves Balaam from certain death by an angel's hand, and an animal that carries Jesus into Jerusalem. The Creator declares all of them good at the beginning, and since the Apostle Paul writes of God's eternal purposes for all things on earth, they are somehow part of a hoped-for eschatological restoration. So why are animals so often ignored in Christian moral discourse? In its theological thinking and faith-motivated praxis, human-centeredness typically results in the complete erasure of the nonhuman. This book argues that this exclusion of animals is problematic for those who see the Bible as authoritative for the religious life. Instead, biblical literature bears witness to a more inclusive understanding of moral duty and faith-motivated largesse that extends also to Eden's other residents. Beautifully written and carefully balanced in its analysis of biblical texts and theological options, this book advances the conversation on animal ethics in lovely ways. Rarely can you say about a single book that it is both pleasurable to read and brimming with life-changing possibilities. It goes to the top of my list of teachable and readable books on a theology of compassion for animals. --Stephen H. Webb, author of Good Eating If it is an uphill climb to teach Christians to be more generous and compassionate toward nonhuman animals, then Gilmour has climbed to the top and has marked a trail of biblical reflections on nonhuman animals to help us summit the mountain as well. This book is another great example of the changes coming in Christianity with regard to our nonhuman animal kindred. --Andy Alexis-Baker, coeditor of A Faith Embracing All Creatures In this sorely needed book, Michael Gilmour has reminded us of a very simple yet often neglected theological truth: the end of creation is God, not humanity. By reflecting on the goodness of all animal life, Gilmour reminds us that animals are not just our biological kin, they are our covenantal kin. Our ongoing journey of communion with God includes all creation--and this book will tell you why that matters. --Tripp York, coeditor of The Peaceable Kingdom Series Michael J. Gilmour is Associate Professor of New Testament and English Literature at Providence University College (Manitoba, Canada). He is the author of Gods and Guitars (2009) and The Gospel according to Bob Dylan (2011).Read less