The author makes the case that the early church fathers abandoned the teachings of Jesus and adopted in their place Aristotle's hierarchical theory of nature which relegated animals to insignificant, expendable items put on earth only for humans to use in whatever manner they chose. In the process they mistakenly and wrongly attributed this teaching to God and to Jesus. Aristotle's theory has become the norm for thinking about animals ever since playing a significant role in creating an animal dependent world. It accounts for the attitudes of indifference with which not only Christians but the general public regards animals. Though it may be uncomfortable to ask, the question which hardly can be avoided is whether it is following in the footsteps of Jesus to be cruel to animals or is this not the path which was paved with the theories of Aristotle? For Christians who insist they are not cruel people, can it be considered anything other than cruel to participate in using animals for food, clothing, cosmetics, and household items, including hand soap, which have been tortured, treated horribly, and inhumanely killed in producing those products? For Christians, the correct question to ask must surely be, "What would Jesus do," not "What would Aristotle do."
About the Author: David Irving is a writer and a classical musician. He has written poetry, fairy tales, plays, short stories, essays, newspaper articles, magazine articles, and books. His articles have appeared on Cyrano's Journal, Thomas Paine's Corner, All-Creatures.org, Press Action, Radical Noesis, Dandelion Salad, The Animals Voice, Vegan Views, New Dawn Magazine, and other blogs and journals. In 2011 O-Books, an imprint of John Hunt Publishing, published David's book The Protein Myth: Significantly Reducing the Risk of Cancer, Heart Disease, Stroke, and Diabetes While Saving the Animals and Building a Better World. The book has been endorsed by several of the top experts in the world in their respective fields. David is also the author of Is It Christian to Hunt; Trappersville, USA; The Princess and the Maple Syrup Collector: An Old Fashioned Animal Rights Tale; and The Voice in the Stone, an historical, biographical novel about the great and controversial German Christian mystic priest, Meister Eckhart, who lived from 1260 to 1328. In addition David has completed a new book titled The Cruel Science: Animal Research from Aristotle to the 21st Century and a musical spoof called: So You Vant to Conduct der Orchester. An accomplished musician and composer, David has played French horn with ensembles like the San Francisco Ballet, the San Francisco Opera, and the Marlboro and Cabrillo music festivals. He was a member of the 7th Army Symphony Orchestra, the Graz Opera and Graz Philharmonic (Austria), and the Oakland Symphony. David studied the French horn at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston and at the Vienna Academy of Music, and graduated from Columbia University where he earned his Bachelor's in music and a Master's in music composition. His compositions have been performed around the United States and in Europe. David has lived in Boston, Vienna and Graz (Austria), San Francisco, and New York City. He presently makes his home in the Catskill Mountain region of New York where he attends to and is attended by his three cats. He has a twin brother, Darrel, who is a classical guitarist and composer and an editor and author.