In this episode of Against the Mountains of Madness, Jason and John take on a surprisingly deep and often humorous theological question: do our pets have a place in the afterlife? Starting with Catholic teaching—Aquinas’ denial of animal immortality and the idea of limbo—they explore everything from St. Francis’ love of creatures to Dante’s poetic vision of unbaptized babies and noble pagans.
Along the way, they wrestle with:
• The Nature of Souls: Rational vs. animal vs. vegetative souls, and whether animals can truly make moral choices.
• Catholic Teaching vs. Speculation: Why the Church officially denies animals the beatific vision, but why God’s mercy might still allow beloved pets to be present in heaven.
• Near-Death Experiences: Testimonies of people seeing their pets in the afterlife, and how such accounts might support the hope of reunion.
• C.S. Lewis & Storytelling: Speculations on how animals become “more than themselves” through their bond with humans, similar to how humans grow through divine friendship.
• Cultural & Religious Views: From Islamic traditions of heavenly animals to Buddhist reincarnation, different faiths offer fascinating parallels.
• Humor & Warmth: Beagles, border collies, cats as would-be saviors of civilization, and even wartime animal heroes like Sergeant Stubby and Wojtek the bear.
The episode balances careful theology with wit and empathy, ultimately leaving listeners with the hope that heaven, being the fulfillment of all good, might not exclude the creatures we’ve loved.
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