The Souls of Animals

by Kowalski, Gary; Regan, Tom; Robbins, John

• ISBN13: 9781577315902
• ISBN10: 1577315901
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-06-01
• Publisher: New World Library

Summary

In a revised edition of this celebrated book, Unitarian Universalist minister Gary Kowalski grapples with the big spiritual questions around our relationship with animals: Do animals have souls? Are they aware of death and are they conscious of themselves? Do animals have an inherent capacity to recognize beauty and can they create art? Do animals experience love? Do they know right from wrong? Why do birds sing? And ultimately what do we lose in a world without animals and what does that mean for our ongoing relationship with the creatures with which we share the world? Kowalski offers beautifully written vignettes that shed light on these questions and much more. He explores how animals play, their sense of altruism and their capacity for love. By de-sacralizing animals, Kowalski argues, we make ourselves less human. If we are to keep our family homestead - Earth - safe for coming generations," he writes, "we must awaken to a new respect for the family of life.

Author Biography

Gary Kowalski currently serves as minister to the First Unitarian Universalist Society of Burlington, Vermont

Table of Contents

List of Photographs	p. 7
Preface	p. 8
Acknowledgements	p. 10
Foreword	p. 13
Do Animals Have Souls?: What is the Question?	p. 17
Mortals All: Are Animals Aware of Death?	p. 29
Ghosties, Goblins, and Four-Legged Beasties: Do Animals Have a Sense of the Mysterious?	p. 43
Hearts of Song: Why Do Birds Sing?	p. 55
Art for Art's Sake: Why Do Animals Draw?	p. 67
Evolutionary Ethics: Do Animals Know Right from Wrong?	p. 81
Partners for Life: Do Animals Experience Love?	p. 95
The Play's the Thing: Why Do Whooping Cranes Dance?	p. 105
The Eyes of Hope: Are Animals Conscious of Themselves?	p. 115
The Reflecting Self: Would We Lose Our Own Souls in a World without Animals?	p. 125
Do Animals Have Souls?: What Is the Answer?	p. 137
One Earth, One Spirit: Where Do We Go from Here?	p. 147
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