Animals in Heaven?

[Rachel]

hi,
   I have a question about animals. Will there be any in Heaven? It says in the Bible that the lion will lie down with the lamb and in Revelation it talks about horses. But then there is the fact that animals don't have souls therefore they cant go to Heaven. Any enlightening information? =)  

[bethany]

i think there will be animals on the new earth, yes. whether or not they will be specific animals e.g. your first dog poochy, i kind of tend to doubt that.

but...this is just my conjecture.  =)  

[oneafroboy]

I dunno, I kind of think: why wouldn't God bring back our pets?

Even if they're not the same animals as in this world, there will definitely be animals on the New Earth.

Oh, I get so excited about eternity, sometimes.    

[Josh]

Well, animals don't have souls, and physical bodies are finite, so I think Bethany is right about our dear Poochy. And the lion/lamb and horses references in Revelation are meant to be symbolic, I think. Having said that, I don't see any reason why there wouldn't be some animals in heaven, though I don't think the Bible really says one way or the other.

[RokrantheGreat]

My own thought is that animals definitely don't have souls, so they don't go to heaven when they die. But I think that there will be animals in heaven.

[Vlad!]

Why must there necessarily be animals in heaven? I mean, can you even present specific evidence that we will have physical bodies in heaven? So how will animals exist if they don't have an eternal soul?

I don't believe there will be animals in heaven.  

[oneafroboy]

Yes, there is specific evidence that we will have bodies after Jesus returns. Part of the gift that we receive because of Jesus' own resurrection is the resurrection of our own bodies.

1 Corinthians 15:42-44a
So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raiased imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.

In another words, our bodies will be resurrected and will be glorified/spiritualized like Jesus' body was when He rose from the dead.

Re: Animals in Heaven
Well, I think it's more than just symbolic though. The lion lying with the lamb. Why wouldn't there be animals? I mean, there's going to be a new Earth. A NEW Earth. Like this one all over again. I can only assume that there will also be plants, animals and other organisms there as well as they are here.

[enemy anemone]

I believe there will be animals in heaven. since we don't know a whole lot about heaven, I kind of have the idea that it is the best place in the whole universe, the best that my human mind can conceive and then some. rather than thinking of it as a place without bodies, without animals, without food,  and where we are all ghosty and misty and play ethereal music on harps or some such, I imagine it to be something like the earth, only perfect. and if I am wrong about that, who cares, because it will be way better than I can imagine anyway. so I don't think it is wrong for me to hope to see some favorite pets again or to actually play with lions and tigers and bears (oh my), even though I don't necessarily believe animals have souls or go to heaven when they die.

(off-on-a-tangent questions: we kind of take it for granted that only beings 'with souls' can go to heaven; why is that? what is a 'soul' anyway? and how is it different from a 'spirit'?)

[Harenil]

Re: Animals in Heaven
Well, I think it's more than just symbolic though. The lion lying with the lamb. Why wouldn't there be animals? I mean, there's going to be a new Earth. A NEW Earth. Like this one all over again. I can only assume that there will also be plants, animals and other organisms there as well as they are here.

 

I think not. New earth will not be this world all over again. I certainly hope not! It should be much different. There  may or may not be animals in heaven, we aren't told.

[Vlad!]

There is a difference between the milennial kingdom and heaven. I seem to recall verses describing heaven as a cube of gold, and we live on the interior. This was a while ago, so I don't remember the verses, but I'll keep an eye out and tell you if I see them. But I agree with Harenil; I think heaven will be more than just earth revisited, and surely our bodies will be different...