Animals Pray

Do animals pray? I absolutely believe they do. First why is this important, then Biblical evidence, then a couple other ideas. This is a Camino de Santiago thought.

Let’s begin with why it is important. I have watched many animals throughout my life. Certain animals appear to certain people and seem to have certain meanings.

I constantly see Hawks. Driving around America I have seen many. I have seen them riding my bike. We have a couple who visit us regularly at Hope House. I think they eat the squirrels. I have seen several Hawks over here in Spain.

I have also seen a lot of owls in my lifetime. People say that means something. My brother used to call them to the house. He taught me how but I have forgotten.

Water birds are also a big theme in my life. I paint loads of them, not necessarily the physical aspect but the Spirit/Soul aspect. I paint a lot of animals. Turtles and fish have been a requested -I’ve done a few. Still, I mainly paint birds.

On the Camino de Santiago we have seen a lot of animals. Horses, mules, sheep, goats, cats, lama, pigs, ostrich, chickens, cats and dogs. Loads of dogs. Seems many, many people have dogs here in Spain. I try to pet a lot of dogs.

I think we communicate very well. I say, “Holla Perro.” They look at me and grin. Sometimes I get a bark. Sometimes they initiate the communication with a bark. The dogs here are super well behaved. Most of them are “off leash” a lot of the time. They are well behaved and never aggressive to humans. This is a big deal because as of now, we have logged several hundred kilometers of walking and I have seen hundreds of dogs.

But why is it important? The answer is simple. Because God Created the animals and God cares about the animals.

Scripture:

God knows when every sparrow falls…

Ants in Proverbs, Owls and Bats in Leviticus, Bees in Judges, Leviathan in Job, Dragons in Daniel, Lion in Isaiah…

On and on and on… loads of animals are mentioned in Scripture. There arre over 100 species of animals mentioned. People are never referred to as animals.

Animals also talk: The serpent and the ass -look it up. Both are great stories. God talks to both animals. Both animals talk to people.

I don’t hear any animals speaking English or Spanish or any other of the human languages. Some folks have claimed to teach animals to talk. I think I’ve heard a few parrots say some words. Regardless of language they all communicate.

The methodology of communication among animals has been widely studied. Animals also communicate to people and we know that they talk to God. So, I don’t think it is a stretch of the imagination to believe that animals pray.

Prayer is communication. Prayer is NOT some certain formula of words to invoke power. Praying is communication with God. Praise, worship, requesting, talking through ideas, checking in -all of this is prayer. At a minimum I believe that animals are worshiping God. I also believe that they are praying for us.

I don’t think they are confused at all about life. I think they know who they are, what they are, where they are and who created them. They know their role and purpose. And I believe they pray for us that we too may lose our unbelief.

Just like the man who came to Jesus in the Gospel of Mark, “I believe, help my unbelief.”

Buen Caminó