Vegetarianism and the Christian Faith

Do we have the right to kill and eat animals?


Yes.  The Bible makes it clear that human beings have this right given to them by God.  Christian vegetarians cannot, therefore, accept the common belief that killing animals for food purposes is morally wrong. 

What about  mistreatment of food animals? 


Animals, as far as we are aware, are amoral, meaning they have no moral sense and can therefore not act out of malice.  Nor are they capable of organizing to protest thier living conditions or of defending themselves against humans armed with modern technologies.   God has given humans the job of caring for His creation and the Old Testament laws, even though no longer in effect,  show that He cares about animal suffering.  However, the Bible is also clear that God's highest concearn is the good of humans, not animals.  Human beings should therefore attempt to avoid causing animal suffering in all cases where there is not a choice to be made between animal and human suffering.  In such cases, human beings come first. 

This means that Christians who eat meat should, within the bounds of personal calling and the guidence of the Holy Spirit, consider how the animals they eat are raised and killed, and choose to buy meat from companies whose practices are as humane as possible.  The Biblical value of human life means vegetarians are not only to avoid violent acts such as bombing meat packing plants, but also avoid inflicting emotional suffering on humans in the name of animal rights.  When we share our views, we are to do so respectfully and in full acknowledgement of each person's Biblical and God-given right to choose how he or she conducts his or her own life.

What about world hunger?


The Bible is clear that the first duty of human beings, after worship of God, is to love and care for other human beings.  The Bible tells us repeatedly to care for the poor.  That we in developed countries allow others to die of starvation while we become obese can therefore be seen as gross disobedience to God's principles.  Each person, within the bounds of his or her individual calling and the guidence of the Holy Spirit, should avoid consuming than he or she requires and use his or her surplus to aid the less fortunate.  This principle includes food but of course extends to other areas of life, such as proper stewardship of time, talents, material possessions, and spiritual gifts. 

The cost of meat production is one key factor in the problem of world hunger (the other is the greed of  those who consume the world's resources at the expense of human lives).   The average meat eater uses up 2000 pounds of grain every year via that grain being fed to livestock.  The average person in India uses 400 pounds of grain every year by eating it directly.   This means that for every person who eats meat every year, 5 people in the world go hungry.  Becoming a vegetarian will not get food to those who need it, but will enable a person to avoid contributing to the problem.  The person can then use the money he or she would have spent on expensive meat to help ministers and missionaries provide food where it is needed. 

What about personal health?


As it relates to personal health, the Bible is clear that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.  Though this particular verse is concearned with sexuality, all mistreatment of one's own body hurts the cause of Christ by endangering the lives and health of His ambassador on earth (the Christian).  The more healthy we are, the more energy we will be able to give to serving Him and others.  A well-balanced diet based primarily on plant materials, with small amounts of meats, eggs or dairy products to supply vitamin B12, is one of the most healthy diets.  It, combined with regular exercise, lowers the risk of all lifestyle-related illnesses, such as heart disease, obesity, and cancer.  Provided we are combining our foods in the right way in order to get all the nutrients we need, vegetarianism is a form of good stewardship.