Christians And Hunting: A Controversial Topic

NATURE Christians & Hunting

A Controversial Topic

—by Hermien van den Bergh

Hunting is a Biblically‐justi ed practice, and in South-Africa hunting is a booming business. My son and I are living on a hunting farm in Botswana while we are building a Mission Base adjacent to the Tuli Block. I grew up here where hunting is the norm, but my dad was not a recreational hunter. It annoyed him when people were exploitative and ego‐driven when they hunted. He encouraged his neighbour, an avid hunter, to protect wildlife. Today’s wildlife management Wildlife management in today’s rapidly changing world is di cult and complex. There are land‐use challenges, critical farmer needs, rural poverty, population explosion, and con ict between animals and humans. In northern Botswana locals welcome an elephant hunt because they fear elephants stomping their villages and crops, and the

meat provides necessary food for poor families. Many nd hunting unsavoury Many people nd hunting unsavoury and are o ended when trophy hunting pictures are posted on Facebook. They lack understanding of the challenges wildlife management faces and practice double standards. Hunting is Hunters need to heed criticised but many forget how they enjoy a Sunday roast. Such meat comes neatly Proverbs 12:10, which is clearly against packaged and people are blissfully unaware of the terrible price that farm animals pay to satisfy their carnivore needs. No wonder many cruelty to animals. people long for the day when humans won’t kill animals for survival or entertainment, but society at large is not there yet. Is there such thing as ‘ethical hunting’?

Hunting is considered a sport, but any sport has rules and an umpire. In the hunting eld the hunter’s conscience is the umpire. A friend once said that if you feel sorry for animals, don’t hunt. That concerned me because if you lack compassion and respect for animals, you will likely not abide by ethical hunting. It is inhumane to carelessly shoot, or recklessly hunt from the back of a bakkie, or to be drunk when you hunt, or not hunt a wounded animal until it is found. It is not okay to aim for the eye of an animal to show o your hunting skills. When the bullet hits the jaw and not the eye, an escaped animal will starve to death slowly and painfully. Hunters, game farmers, and professional hunters need to heed Proverbs 12:10, which is clearly against cruelty to animals.

A deeply‐ingrained culture

With a hunting culture deeply‐ingrain HAVE YOUR SAY Should Christians hunt? What are your thoughts? Email info@joymag.co.za millennia, it is time to heed the call of Ro 8:19-22, it is time for the revealed of God to actively end the groa and su ering of creation instea perpetuating it. 