So the lion fell in love with the lamb…

Jo Bryant

Unless you live on another plane you will have heard of Twilight.

Stop trying to deny it.

I am not ashamed to say it.

I like the movies.

I like the books.

They are not Tolstoy – personally I think he is over-rated. I can’t get past page 2 of War and Peace.

But this post is not about Twilight.

Then why the reference?

There is a quote in the book.

“and so the lion fell in love with the lamb”

Bella and Edward

The phrase of “the lion shall lie down with the lamb” is likely where Stephanie Meyer got the inspiration from.

It is one of the most popular quotes from the Bible. And yet it is actually a  misquote. In the King James version, it’s the wolf that dwells with the lamb, and it’s a leopard that lies down with a kid, and “the calf and the young lion and the fatling together.” (Isaiah 11:6)

A lion named Larsens actually did fall for a calf.

At the Samburu National Park in Kenya in 2001 Larsens began looking after an oryx calf it stole from its antelope mother. Unfortunately another lion killed the calf, but Larsens went back for more. She allowed the calves to feed from their mothers.

So she obviously had intelligence.

But did she have a soul?

I think so.

Many religions say that an animal has no soul.

I have problems with that statement. Apart from Larsens I have seen too many instances of animals behaving in a manner that makes that statement illogical to me.

While we are supposed to have a soul – humans commit atrocities that leave me sick with grief.

On sheer grandeur of scale nothing can compete with the devastation humans cause to the planet, to animals, to our own kind.

Do animals kill?

Of course they do.

But never in the pursuit of religion or wealth.

Some say it is because they can’t reason.

Larsens certainly was able to reason the the calves still needed sustenance from their mothers.

I see the animals that live with me reason every day.

And I believe they have as much if not more soul than many people I know.

They also have the capacity for love with no boundaries.

Which is where I was going with this post. When I come across videos like this one I want to sing with sheer joy.

That’s what animals do for me. I hope that I do something like that for those who dwell in my home.

And you know – if Heaven has no place for animals because they supposedly have no soul – then I’m not sure I want to go there.

Published by Jo Bryant

I was born in the land of Banjo Paterson, gum trees, and weather extremes. I am a freelance photographer. I love to make images that make people happy. To capture forever a precious moment. I am also a freelance writer/editor. I live in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand, but still like to claim my Australian heritage. I graduated with a Bachelor of Communications in 2008. I am writing my first novel. I love to write poetry, short stories, and also write for the web. And there is nothing that is on a par with a sunny summer's day spent at Waihi Beach.

20 Comments

  1. I think animals have souls. I know our pets have intuition and love for us. They know when we need them the most. I think God has a special place in Heaven for our pets.

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  2. I love your Lion and Lamb, Jo. I think that very soon, you are going to have look at publishing a wee book of small stones. Set these words on paper, if not in concrete.

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  4. Hi Jo, I just had to reply to this:

    Dogs and cats dont need to have a soul. A soul is needed by man to allow him to believe in God or not.
    An animal doesnt have to believe in God. God can recreate our pets in heaven if he wants to and if we ask Him. Why not? He created the whole universe by just speaking it out.

    I have emailed my longer ramblings to you………:)
    Wendy

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    1. I still believe they possess all and sometimes more than us. You are so funny – you sent it to both e-mail addresses… LOL 🙂 I was almost scared to open them. Hahahaha – you scary Christian you. LOL. Have to have another night (debate) when you get back from the holiday…so jealous.

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  7. I too, have always believed that if animals know the natural instinct of protecting their young, they nurture them and they nourish them, they have souls, too. We humans are still animals ourselves. We just happen to know how to use our brains and call ourselves ‘civillised’ That, I have trouble with at times!
    Lovely!
    Yes, animals have souls, just like us and… how mankins ill treats them!

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  8. I’ve never watched Twilight and have no inclination to do so, (I like my vampires a bit more on the mean side!) but the quote is a wonderful one! The video is heartwarming and I know I’m seeing my ginger furry one (cat)up there one day, too! My neighbour’s rottweiler is shit scared of my present cat and it’s hilarious to watch it seeing it off if it pops in the garden for a pet!

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  9. i really love Twilight too. it was the FIRST love story i ever read and it really really touched my heart(i may be fawning like any other other girl but whatever). and i simply LOVED the meadow part you know… where Edward says this. i never liked the movies much but i LOVE the saga.
    and i LOVE this post!! it really touched my heart… just like Twilight. you rock!!

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  10. I never bought that mularky either. But if it were true that animals dont have soul, I might go so far as to say that this is only because animals ‘are’ soul and exist so close to god they are like his essence. In which case, no soul be needed. But thats just rambling what ifs, I sometimes think.

    Dove tooting right in his ear too… I loved the face swat!

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