BEAST, an animal destitute of reason, appointed for the service of Man, and the ornament of the Universe. God in the beginning created the fishes of the Sea, and the fowls of the Air on the fifth day of the Gen. i. 20, 21, 23. — i. 24, 26, 31. — xi. 19.world : he afterwards created the Beasts of the Earth and Man upon the sixth day : lastly, he brought the fowls of the Air, and the animals of the Earth to Adam, that he might call them by their particular names, and thereby begin the exercise of that Dominion which God had granted — i. 28.him over all Creatures. The Lord blessed man, the fowls, fishes, and beasts of the Earth ; commanded them to multiply, and gave them all the fruits and herbs of — i. 29. — ix. 3.the Earth for their food. It was not till after the deluge that he granted the use of flesh-meat to mankind ; and even then he forbad the eating blood, threatning to punish the effusion of it with a penalty answerable, and to chastise even Beasts — ix. 5. Exod. xxi. 28, 29. Lev. xx. 15, 16. Deut. xiii. 15.which should shed human blood.
Accordingly in the Law of Moses, every Beast which should have killed a man, or have been made use of in a certain abominable crime, is punished with death. Cities guilty of apostacy are devoted to the fire, with their inhabitants and cattle. When Noah went out of the Ark, together with his children and the animals which he had preserved there with him, God said that he had made a covenant with Noah, with his family, and descendants, and with all the several creatures which came out thence with him, and that he engaged himself never to send such a deluge again upon the Gen. ix. 9. Isa. xx. 10.earth. God enjoining rest upon the Sabbath, declares it to be his pleasure, that cattle as well as slaves should enjoy the benefit of this repose. God smote in Egypt the first-born of men and beasts; and as a memorial of his having spared the Hebrews, he commands the first-born of men and beasts to be consecrated to him.
Eve conversed with the Serpent without being Gen. iii. 1.at all surprized to hear him speak and reason. Balaam in like manner discourses with his Ass, and replies to her as he would have answered a reasonable man. After the fall of Adam and Eve, Numb. xxii. 28.God spoke to the Serpent, cursed, punished him, and foretold his misery, with as much form and Gen. iii. 14.circumstance as he did the same to Adam and Eve. Moses observes, that the Serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field, and our Saviour enjoins us to have the prudence of the Serpent, and the simplicity of the Dove; the wise man refers the idle to the Ant, and describes these creatures as composing a little commonwealth, in Matth. x. 16. Prov. vi. 6.which abundance of activity and providence was visible. In the Prophets God threatens to extirpate utterly both the people and the cattle of such countries as incurr’d his indignation. Jonah Prov. xxx. 25.having preached at Nineveh, that God was ready to display his wrath against the City; the Ninevites were converted, covered themselves Jerem. l. 51. Ezek. xiv. Zeph. i. 1. Jonah iii. 5, 6.with sackcloth from the greatest to the meanest, the King himself descended from his Throne, and forbad both man and beast to eat or drink. Why are beasts thus required to fast, if they are not capable of reason, of merit or demerit? And when God moved with the humiliation of the Ninevites had forgiven their sin, and Jonah complained of his indulgence, he was told, Why should I not pardon this City wherein there are so many who do not know how to distinguish their right hand from their left, and so great a number of beasts! As if this multitude of animals Jonah iv. 11.was a motive to the forgiving Nineveh.
The Egyptians, among whom the Hebrews dwelt for so long a time, adored Beasts, and consequently believed them not only to be reasonable, but likewise to be superior to man. These also were probably the principles of the Israelites, since they paid their worship to the golden Calf in the wilderness, and after Jeroboam’s Schism, continued to adore the like Deities.
The Doctrine of Transmigration so common throughout all the East, and even among the Hebrews, a Doctrine the remains whereof were visible among the Israelites of our Saviour’s time1, and even in the Apostles before they had received the Holy Ghost; this opinion supposes manifestly, that Beasts are reasonable, because the same souls which animated the wisest and most understanding men, pass successively into the bodies of Beasts.
2 Omnia mutantur: nihil interit: errat & illinc Huc venit, hinc, illuc, & quoslibet occupat artus, Spiritus, éque feris humana in corpora transit, Inque feras noster, nec tempore deperit ullo.
These opinions are neither new nor uncommon among the Jews: they are however to be observed with some variety in Philo3 and in the most celebrated Rabbins4.
Many affirm that Birds have a sort of language intelligible to themselves. Porphyry relates, that Tiresias and Apollonius Tianæus understood this language, and there are still at this day people in Arabia5, who value themselves upon this knowledge. They tell us, that they have been acquainted with it ever since the time of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, who had a Bird called Huddud, which is the Hoop, made use of by them in sending amorous messages to one another. Some Arabian Authors6 have believed, that there were Elephants of the Mahometan Religion, and which adored God. Pliny7 and others after him have asserted in their writings, that Elephants were capable of Religion, that they worshipped the Sun and Moon.
The Philosophers of Antiquity, such as Empedocles, Pythagoras, Galen, Cleanthes, Eudoxus, Porphyry, Ælian, Pliny, and many more, did generally believe that Beasts reasoned. Diogenes Laertius8 tells us, that Eudoxus a Pythagoræan Philosopher translated out of Egyptian into Greek a Dialogue between Dogs. Lastly, all the world almost, Philosophers and others, in Europe particularly believed Beasts to be rational, before Descartes invented his System of Machines. It is true indeed, that before him a Spanish Physician, whose name was Gosnesius Pereira, had advanced, that Beasts were mere Machines: he was thirty years in composing his Book, and published it in 1554; but so little notice was taken of it, that no one condescended to confute it. Father Pardies a Jesuite wrote a book concerning the knowledge of Beasts, to shew that they are not destitute of thought or understanding.
Thomas Thomas Willis has likewise written a treatise concerning the Souls of Beasts: there is another on the same subject by M. Le Grand, and a Book intitled, Of the Souls of Beasts, printed at Lions in 1676, composed by Antony D’Illy Priest of Ambrun.
Solomon in the book of Ecclesiastes, whether he proposes his own thoughts or those of the Philosophers and Free-thinkers of his time, expresses himself in a manner to persuade people that Beasts have understanding Eccles. iii. 18, 19, 21.and a reasonable soul: I said in my heart concerning the estate of the Sons of Men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are Beasts; for as the one dieth, so dieth the other, yea they have all one breath, so that a man hath no pre-eminence above a Beast. --- Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth? The Scripture speaks of the death of Animals and Ps. civ. 29. Job xxxiv. 14.Men much in the same manner: Thou takest away their breath and they die, and return to their dust. And Job, If he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath, all flesh shall perish together.
But we are not to carry the consequences of these passages too far, nor should we infer from them that Beasts are in every respect equal to Man, that they reason like him, that they are capable of Religion, of knowing God, of attaining to a state of Beatitude, and of acting by supernatural views. The knowledge, reasoning, desires and designs of Beasts are limited to the knowledge and discernment of what may contribute to their temporal happiness, the preservation of their bodies, and the multiplication of their species. Their Souls may indeed judge and distinguish between hot and cold, what is advantageous and dangerous to their health; but will never enable them to discern between moral good and evil, between what is just and unjust, lawful and unlawful; they will be, if any one will have it so, immortal and eternal, because if they think, they must necessarily be spiritual; but this is a privilege which is common to them with bodies, and matter, the essence whereof is indefectible, nor can their nature perish. Matter may change in figure or situation, be at rest or in motion; but it cannot be annihilated, nor cease to be, unless God ceases to preserve it; and in this sense the Angels themselves, and the Souls of Men have no more privilege than Matter.
But what becomes of the Souls of Beasts when separated from Matter? To this we can make no reply, because we have no principle which can discover it to us; neither revelation, nor experience, nor reasoning by effects and causes can furnish us with the least light in this particular. We know that God created all things for his Glory, that the Souls of Beasts are incapable of being elevated to such a degree, as to have a knowledge and love of their Creator; he therefore must be glorified by them some other way which is not known to us. Why then should we desire to fathom the secrets of his Wisdom, and judge of things which lye beyond our reach?
We know the great objection which is borrowed from S. Austin9 against the Souls of Beasts; under a just God, no one can be unhappy that does not deserve it: Neque enim sub Deo justo miser esse quisquam, nisi mereatur, potest. Now if Beasts have sense and reason they are unhappy, they therefore have deserv’d to be so; nor can they by any thing have merited to be so but by sin. Now supposing they have sinn’d, they are therefore capable of Religion, of the Love and Knowledge of God; which is contrary to all that has been said above. Let it be granted that they are miserable, for this cannot be denied, since men kill and eat them, subject them to the hardest and most extream labours, beat, use them ill, and persecute them, without any other reason than their will, their good pleasure, or diversion. If Beasts had a Soul capable of sense and reason, would God have given sinful Man so intire and absolute a dominion over them?
To this we may reply, that God being absolute Lord over his creature, may dispose of it as he pleases without being obliged to give an account to any one of his conduct. Has not the potter full power to do every thing which he thinks proper with his clay, to make either a vessel of honour, Rom. ix. 21. Wisd. xv. 7, 8.or one designed for ignominious uses? God created Beasts for Man, to Man he has given an absolute empire over them; these are truths very well known: he has permitted Man to eat, and consequently to kill them: Man uses this power, this liberty; so far things are right. What then can Beasts, whom we suppose reasonable, complain of? Will they tell God, that they are innocent, and he subjects them to wicked, brutal, and foolish Men, who manifestly abuse the power and dominion which he hath given them over them? Shall the sinful and unhappy Child, the Son of wrath and indignation, born for misery and labour, shall he say unto his Father, What begettest thou? or to the Woman, What hast thou brought forth? Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands?
Do we not see in the instance of Job, that God sometimes punishes the just, tho’ innocent, Job ix. 17.He multipheth my wounds without a cause; a cause; and in another place God says to the Devil; Thou movedst me against him to destroy him without a cause. And in the John ix.Gospel, the Disciples seeing one born blind, asked our Saviour, Whether he had merited this misfortune by his own sins, or by those of his parents? He answered, By neither one nor the other; but God had so ordained, that his works might be manifested in him. We know that the Blessed Virgin and S. John the Baptist lived in a state of innocency, and brought none of the blemishes of original sin with them into the world; yet the Holy Spirit informs us, that the sword of grief pierced the very soul of Mary: and that S. John after having suffered much in prison, died Matth.by the sword of the wicked. The innocent and just therefore are not always exempt from pain and suffering; and to return to Beasts, God exercises his sovereign power over them, he makes use of that right which he possesses as a Father and Creator, and does injustice to no one. It was in his choice either to create Beasts or leave them in the state of non-entity. In the midst of their unhappiness they are infinitely obliged to him, since after all they derive from him being, life, action, and all the good that they enjoy.
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