My Sunday Thought for 072218: An Animal Sense of God

“Religion is a formal attempt to establish optimality and balance in life. People need such a formalized program, because we have free will and therefore the choice to be balanced or imbalanced. 

Animals, as far as we know, simply follow a path of instinctual obedience to their "fitrah," their nature. As a result, one could say that they don't need religion. Or, as I would prefer to phrase it as a theist who believes in design (albeit, unfolded through a gradual evolutionary process), their "religion" is hardwired into them. 

They are instinctively in a state of balance and obedience, following an optimized, least action type trajectory through life. Humanity "fell" / diverged or rather gained the ability to choose to fall/diverge from this Edenic state of balance when a spirit with awareness and free will was first breathed into a hominid body by God.”

-- Cyril Anderson, General seeker of truth

I don't know the qualifications of Cyril Anderson to intelligently address an animal's sense of God.  Hell, I question my qualifications for most of my own opinions.  I use his quote as the opener to this post, "An Animal Sense of God," simply because he gave me an "Aha!" moment by describing his answer to someone else's question concerning this same subject.  I have had ridiculous difficulty in putting an explanation of what I thought was simple in my head, into an equally simple description on paper.  His explanation religion, instinct, choice, and especially simple conclusion of "hardwired" was what I was looking for.  It was this simple idea of "hardwired" which kept eluding me.  I have no problems giving credit where credit is due, and I must thank Cyril for kick starting my brain.

There are those who would argue that animals are just animals, and animals do not reason through to a God figure, or a lack of one for that matter.  I mean, you would logically have to consider God before you could deny God, right?  But, scripture has many references to God's influence over the creatures of the earth, and of an animal's sense of "angels" which man does not immediately sense until the angelic being wishes it; scripture indicates an animal's ability to see the angel regardless of the angel's approval.  Perhaps this sight was an ability taken from mankind for their offense in Eden or, perhaps, an ability lost due to selfish preoccupation with less spiritual matters, or a general loss of faith.

Nine animals, other than humans, have any measurable degree of self-awareness:  Orangutans, chimpanzees, gorillas, bottlenose dolphins, elephants, orcas, bonobos, rhesus macaques, and European magpies.  As far as we know, these are the only species which have demonstrated self-awareness, as far as we know.  Pet owners would declare cats and dogs to be on the list, as well.  But, then, when you consider the list at hand, where does it really end?

The "mirror experiment" has been one of the tests for proving self-awareness.  For a good laugh, I invite you to view the attached video of a small child putting itself through the "mirror test" in a department store (re: Loopsy Laughs).  And if you've availed yourself of an opportunity to view the "mirror test" performed with an elephant, the similarity of their responses is telling.  The fact it seems to take the child longer to catch a clue, might be due to how long it takes the human brain to mature and why we stay in the nest so long before striking out on our own.

I found a fairly basic description of self-awareness on Wikipedia called, aptly, Self-awareness.  I especially found the five "potential prospects," listed by Philippe Rochat, to be of interest:

Individuals become conscious of themselves through the development of self-awareness. This particular type of self-development pertains to becoming conscious of one's own body and mental state of mind including thoughts, actions, ideas, feelings and interactions with others. "Self-awareness does not occur suddenly through one particular behavior: it develops gradually through a succession of different behaviors all of which relate to the self." The monitoring of one's mental states is called metacognition and it is considered to be an indicator that there is some concept of the self. It is developed through an early sense of non-self components using sensory and memory sources. In developing self–awareness through self-exploration and social experiences one can broaden his social world and become more familiar with the self. 

According to Emory University's Philippe Rochat, there are five levels of self-awareness which unfold in early development and six potential prospects ranging from "Level 0" (having no self-awareness) advancing complexity to "Level 5" (explicit self-awareness). 

Level 0: Confusion. At this level the individual has a degree of zero self-awareness. This person is unaware of any mirror reflection or the mirror itself. They perceive the mirror as an extension of their environment. Level 0 can also be displayed when an adult frightens himself in a mirror mistaking his own reflection as another person just for a second. 

Level 1: Differentiation. The individual realizes the mirror is able to reflect things. They see that what is in the mirror is different from what is surrounding them. At this level they can differentiate between their own movement in the mirror and the movement of the surrounding environment. 

Level 2: Situation. At this point an individual can link the movements on the mirror to what is perceived within their own body. This is the first hint of self-exploration on a projected surface where what is visualized on the mirror is special to the self.  

Level 3: Identification. This stage is characterized by the new ability to identify self: an individual can now see that what's in the mirror is not another person but actually him/herself. It is seen when a child, instead of referring to the mirror while referring to him/herself, refers to him/herself while looking in the mirror. 

Level 4: Permanence. Once an individual reaches this level they can identify the self beyond the present mirror imagery. They are able to identify the self in previous pictures looking different or younger. A "permanent self" is now experienced. 

Level 5: Self-consciousness or "meta" self-awareness. At this level not only is the self seen from a first person view but its realized that it's also seen from a third person's view. They begin to understand they can be in the mind of others. For instance, how they are seen from a public standpoint.

You can almost see the elephant progress through levels 1 through 3, and even into 4. I would like to know if a test was conducted to see if the elephant could pick out a younger photo of itself after looking in the mirror, which would nail down level 4.

Level 5, for me, is a little more difficult to consider. First of all we have to start from the premise that the elephant has no "self-consciousness." The mirror test only shows an awareness of self in a mirror, a "that is me" moment. The fact that the elephant recognizes itself in the mirror should evidence a first-person consciousness of self. I can't say "that's me" unless I'm already aware of me; I have simply never seen me in a mirror. The story of old elephant's recognizing each other from their circus days, many years after being separated, should also evidence recognition in the third-person, as they remain in the mind of others. This memory has also been witnessed in their homage to fallen comrades as they gather to remember while passing the place where those members died.

We constantly study animals which have structured societies.  They evidence hierarchies of who eats first, who leads, who finds food or raises the young, who protects the group, and so on.   Members are loved, cared for, taught, challenged, admonished, shunned, banished, and forgiven.  They have self-awareness, the "capacity for introspection and the ability to recognize oneself as an individual separate from the environment and other individuals."  It would seem, some animals also have a consciousness of self, "being aware of one's environment and body and lifestyle, self-awareness is the recognition of that awareness."

If we can agree to define "self-awareness" as "how an individual consciously knows and understands his/her own character, feelings, motives, and desires," then shouldn't we also be able to agree they have some capacity to consider the existence of a deity, a God, something more than themselves?  Then, consider these same animals as food and ask if it is any wonder they fear man.  If an animal can fear what they consider as dangerous or evil, why can't we assume they also have a concept of friendly and good?  Besides, we were told to eat the trees, not the critters:

And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

-- Genesis 1:29

It might be that the critters are closer to God's heart than we, and they know it.

Editor's Note

(Re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card)

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider an alternate viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion, in an arena of mutual respect, concerning those opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with the premier, world renowned, Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects involved in pharmaceutical research. Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, and wages his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as lead Chaplain and Chaplain Program Liaison, at the regional medical center.