A heresy which has plagued the church from the earliest centuries has raised its head again recently in a sermon so heinous we will not reference it. The preacher dared to state that there will be no dogs in heaven, basing his argument on the text of Revelation 8:1.
When (the Lamb) opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
If that was not bad enough, the preacher went on to suggest that his point with regard to dogs does not extend to other quieter animals. So in a sentence, he said, according to Revelation 8:1, there will be cats in heaven, but not dogs. These outrageous statements will now be robustly refuted from a range of perspectives gleaned from the collective wisdom of members of Dogs in Ministry.
OLD TESTAMENT STUDIES
Isaiah 11:6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them.
All dogs are descended from wolves – indeed they are “the wolf in the living room”. This verse makes clear not only that dogs will be in heaven but, since the wolf is mentioned first, all the animals will be looking to dogs as their example. The point is reinforced by its repetition in Isaiah 65:24-25.
Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear. The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, and dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,’ says the Lord.
In 1 Samuel 16:7 we read ‘But the Lord said to Samuel, ”Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”’
Some humans look at dogs and can only see fur and ears and noses. But it is clear that in all spiritual matters outward appearance is not a consideration.
Psalm 23:6 promises, “Surely Goodness and Mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
It is clear that Goodness and Mercy are both sheepdogs who will follow the under-shepherd faithfully (of course they will – they are dogs). Theologians are divided as to whether Shirley (another dictation error has corrupted the text here) is a third dog or a linguistic construct.
NEW TESTAMENT STUDIES
Addressing Revelation 8:1: If seals are allowed then surely dogs will be too!
The indisputable and decisive NT evidence has been fully laid out. “For anybody concerned with faithful Biblical interpretation the words of Jesus himself should be sufficient. Recorded by Matthew, Mark and John, Jesus said, “The Paw you will always have with you.” (Matthew 26:11) “Always” is unconditional and unlimited. And “with you” unambiguously indicates that wherever the disciples find themselves, their companions with paws will be with them. Which obviously includes in heaven.[1]
Poppy and Sophie are frankly disappointed that no commentaries have addressed this issue adequately (or at all). There must be a PhD in this for somebody.
HISTORICAL THEOLOGY
When Luther was writing his Commentary on Romans ‘The whole creation groaneth’ etc. and the renewal, he looked down at his dog and cried “And thou shalt have a little golden tail!“
According to the Vatican, Pope Paul V1 once said to a distraught child, “One day, we will see our animals again in the eternity of Christ. Paradise is open to all of God’s creatures.” [2]
In 1990 Pope John Paul II asserted that animals do have souls and are “as near to God as men are.” [3]
SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY
In 2014 Pope Francis said of paradise: “It’s lovely to think of this, to think we will find ourselves up there. All of us in heaven. It’s good, it gives strength to our soul. … “At the same time, the Holy Scripture teaches us that the fulfillment of this wonderful design also affects everything around us, and that came out of the thought and the heart of God.”[4]
Expanding on this point, since all of creation is seen by God as good then dogs, cats, budgies etc will be in heaven because they are part of God’s wonderful creation! Most of us can’t picture a paradise of unspeakable beauty without flowers, trees, and animals. Would it be heaven for an avid birdwatcher if there are no birds? Would a fisherman want to spend eternity with no fish? And would it be heaven for a cowboy without horses?
Since heaven is the best place that can ever be, that can only be true if dogs are there. This is a direct extension of Aquinas’s Five ways, in particular from Way 3 (Argument from Possibility and Necessity) and Way 4 (Argument from Gradation of Being).
Any one of these arguments demonstrate conclusively that there will be dogs in heaven. Together they constitute irrefutable proof. One day judgment will come and there will a great divide, dogs on the one hand and those who spread heresies about dogs on the other.
[1] See the groundbreaking article “Theology of the Paw” FURRED WAY Issue 1 page 5
[2] https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/12/world/europe/dogs-in-heaven-pope-leaves-pearly-gate-open-.html
[3] Ibid. (If you don’t know what that means in footnotes, should you really be reading FURRED WAY?)
[4] Ibid again.
