As Franciscans of a knightly order we are fond of animals. But all this carfuffle about what Pope Francis supposedly said on the subject of animals, souls, and heaven requires a clarification, or rather, a rebuttal. Dawn Eden provides both…
This citation and quotation, as well as the conclusions drawn from it, are acutely problematic. The words are at best a very rough translation and they convey a sense which is in tension with Church Tradition concerning the uniquely spiritual (non-physical) human soul. …
“Translating from the official Italian version on the Vatican website we see that the Pope actually stated: “Other texts, however, admit that animals too have a breath or vital spirit received from God. In this regard, man, coming from God’s hands, appears in solidarity with all living beings” (n. 4). He was speaking of Psalm 104, which focuses upon the shared dignity of all living creatures. The Pope also affirms that “when Genesis chapter two speaks of the creation of the animals (Gen 2:19), it doesn’t mention such a close relation with the breath of God” (n. 3).
“Furthermore, the sentence about animals being “as near to God as men are” simply does not appear in the Pope’s text at all. (This phrase, and the above rough translations, are in fact in an online translation of a Roman priest’s apparent paraphrasing of the audience, just after it took place, as quoted by Genre magazine.)
St. Thomas Aquinas who has done so much to help us understand the nature of the soul and the distinction between material soul and immaterial soul — pray for us!
