C2: Animal Rights

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In the Beginning...

- Write out Genesis 1:28 and/or 2:19 on the board or on a big piece of cardboard. Ask the group to give their interpretation of the verses. Ask them to clearly define subdue, rule over and name as used in the text.

- According to Torah, Mankind was only given permission to be consumers of flesh after the flood (compare Genesis 1:29 with 9:4) Explain this point and ask the group what difference it made to the way Man ruled the animal kingdom. It is harder to be superior to animals if you are part of the food chain! Alternatively, you could use these verses to analyse how "natural" it is for people to be vegetarians.

- There are no Jews in the first chapters of Genesis. The messages contained there are universal. How much of these messages have been absorbed into modern culture? Ask a few members of the group to briefly describe how today's society treats animals and compare it to what Genesis has to say. Then ask the challenging questions: Is Mankind more or less primitive than it was thousands of years ago? Have we really progressed?

Protection of animals

- Read out one or two of the sources.

- Explain Judaism's strict prohibition against animal cruelty.

- How important is animal life?

- Do animals have feelings? Do they have a soul?

Hunting

- Read out the quote of Rabbi Landau and ask if your audience feel the same way.

- Ask why people go hunting if it is so cruel?

- Maybe find out about the hunt saboteurs and discuss whether they have a right to break the law to stop hunting going on.

Experiments

The issues that are raised by this topic are ripe for discussion and all hinge on the level of responsibility that humans have to animals:

- Which medical experiments are justified and which are not?

- How necessary are these experiments?

- Do people have the right to take the law into their own hands to stop these experiments?

- Phone one of the organisations mentioned overleaf and get more information about animal experiments. Use it to tell your audience what really goes on. Is it appalling or is it in any way justified?

Zoos

- Debate: This house believes that if you want to see tigers in the flesh then you have to go to Africa.

- Do zoos educate? Ask your audience if they remember going to the zoo and if they learnt anything there? Did it make them care more for animals?

- Is there a real difference between a zoo and a safari park? The beasts are still imprisoned even if their living space is much larger.

Pets and Strays

- If you or a friend are pet owners then you could talk about the amount of time, responsibility and money that is required to look after an animal.

- Discuss why you need a license to own a dog but not if you own a cat.

Shechitah

- Have you ever seen it done? Read up about the process and give a graphic blow-by-blow description.

- Would you or the audience eat meat if they had to kill it themselves?

- You could write off to the societies mentioned overleaf to find out more about how animals for non-kosher consumption are slaughtered. In principle the "stunning" method is very humane, but the reality, as told by abattoir workers, is a very different story.

Current affairs

How you handle this depends on what the situation and atmosphere is at the time.

- Give an outline of the history of the crisis to date.

- Ask whether anyone has considered the morality of killing so many animals.

- If it is still in the newspapers, ask people to tell everyone what they know about it.

- Do they believe what the Government is saying? You could do a (only half serious) play about the Government trying to explain its way out of the situation.

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