In Proverbs 12:10, Scripture reminds us, “A righteous man has kind regard for the life of his animal, but even the compassion of the wicked is cruel.” Few practices better illustrate that warning than vivisection—the cutting, poisoning, shocking, and tormenting of animals in laboratories.
This year, millions of the animals who share our world—dogs, monkeys, rabbits, mice—will be locked in cages and subjected to unimaginable suffering, Decades of such experiments have failed to yield cures for human diseases such as Alzheimer’s, cancer, and muscular dystrophy. The U.S. government alone pours tens of billions of taxpayer dollars into this cruelty, despite overwhelming evidence that tests on animals don’t translate to human medicine. It’s a waste—of money, of minds, and of mercy.
All living beings are created with dignity by God and have the right to exist free from torment. Rabbits feel joy and fear, mice form close social bonds, and monkeys are highly intelligent and require creative stimulation, and when we reduce animals like them to mere test subjects, we fall tragically short of our calling to be good stewards of God’s creation. We draw closer to Christ when we follow His example of living lives of compassion, not callousness.
Pope Francis wrote, “Every act of cruelty towards any creature is contrary to human dignity.” Centuries earlier, St. Francis of Assisi taught that our duty is “not to hurt our humble brethren … but to be of service to them wherever they require it.” Vivisection is the opposite of service. It is the systematic betrayal of our shared responsibilities. Our duty is to guide the planet toward dignity and kindness and to challenge government indifference that wastes taxpayer money.
Faith calls us to rise above the moral blindness of the age. True progress will come not from pain, suffering, and bloodied labs, but from innovative, humane research methods that honor both animals and human integrity—and make better use of the resources we already invest.
The era of vivisection will one day be judged by history just as we now judge our past moral failings, from slavery to child labor. For how we treat others has always revealed the true measure of our faith (John 13:34-35).
