Blessed are the Meek who Refuse to Profit from Pain. By Dr. Chapman Chen

In his influential work The Dominion of Love, U.S. animal rights advocate and autodidactic theologian Norm Phelps (1939–2014) offers the following interpretation of Jesus’ teaching, “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:5), which I have paraphrased below.

Meekness means we never gain anything at the expense of another’s suffering. The opposing trait is arrogance. Arrogance stems from haughtiness, self-importance, and selfish desire, whereas meekness is born from a heart of compassion, empathy, and love. Because of this, it is the trait that most powerfully reflects God's likeness within us. When we take and use the earth's riches only to suit ourselves, we are being arrogant, not meek. I often refer to this as the Environmental Beatitude, since it teaches that if we live with meekness, the Earth will sustain and care for us for many generations. But if we act out of arrogance, our descendants will receive a barren wasteland left behind by our greedy overuse. Sometimes, as the old saying goes, it is not that we are punished for our wrongdoing, but that we are punished by it.

Yet “Blessed are the meek” is not only about the environment. To say that our desires, enjoyment, or comfort are more valuable than the lives of animals is a form of arrogance—not meekness. Life is God’s greatest blessing; it matters deeply to every being who has received it. Taking this gift away from creatures entrusted to us, just because we enjoy their flesh or believe we can gain health through their pain and death, makes a mockery of the good news Jesus proclaimed.

Note: Norm Phelps (1939-2014) was particularly known for his work bridging spirituality and animal advocacy. Apart from The Dominion of Love: Animal Rights According to the Bible, he also authored The Great Compassion: Buddhism and Animal Rights, and The Longest Struggle: Animal Advocacy from Pythagoras to PETA. He was a longtime member of The Fund for Animals and later a founding member of the Society of Ethical and Religious Vegetarians (SERV). #VeganChrist #VeganGod #VeganChurch  #VeganTheology

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