The Cat’s Meow
Question
My daughter desires a cat. However, I read that Egypt had a religion centering around the worship numerous animals, of which the cat was one. Therefore, would it be biblical to have a cat as a pet?
Answer
It is true that in early Egyptian culture the cat played a role in some forms of religious worship – as did several other animals. The cat goddess Bast (a desert sand-cat) became a deity representing protection, fertility, and motherhood in early Egyptian culture. However, the cult of Bast was also banned by imperial decree in 390AD. (Bast and Sekhmet: Eyes of Ra by Storm Constantine, Eloise Coquio). The Bast has also been popularized in several T.V. shows of late: West Wing; Stargate, Dark Angel; and the movie Tomb Raider, etc.
While the above has historical value in understanding the culture of ancient Egypt, just owning a cat as a household pet is completely fine – we own two of them. Just because a cult may use a particular animal or other item does not make that animal or item necessarily “evil.” Some forms of Satanism and witchcraft use the elements of fire, water, earth, and air in their worship. If all these were declared “evil” because of their use by a particular cult, Christians would have a very short existence upon this earth. Therefore, we need to recognize there are good and evil uses of things upon the earth.
In actually, the Christian is to take what God has made – which includes cats – and use it for His glory. One of man’s purposes is to rule over the animal kingdom responsibly (Gen. 2:19-20 – by man naming the animals he expressed his authority over them). Of course, the Christian should not worship cats or treasure them more than they do human relationships and/or their relationship with God. Moreover, one must be careful not to cause his brother or sister in Christ to fall; for instance by giving a cat as a gift – if a person has “spiritual” problems with owning such (Rom. 14:13-18). Moreover, with pet ownership comes responsibility as well (feeding, the vet, etc.).
I thank God for our cats. They give us hours of pleasure and conversation – as they are both unique to say the least. So, I think anyone may own a cat, a dog, a hamster or … as long as the purpose for ownership is “for good.”
Meow.
Answer by: Joseph R. Nally, Theological Editor, on behalf of the staff at IIIM. The opinions expressed by the author are not necessarily the “official position” of Third Millennium Ministries.