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Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?

Yes, indeed. Why did the chicken cross the road?


This question has vexed, confused and been debated by scholars and philosophers since Pythagoras first postulated and calculated his fundamental Pythagorean theorem regarding the possible angles of a chicken crossing the road.


More recently, the question first appeared in an 1847 edition of The Knickerbocker, a New York City monthly magazine: why indeed did that chicken cross the road? Yet, there seemed to be no answer to this question.


Yet, today the animal rights world offers some answers, as described in the following articles:


· Highways are dangerous barriers for all sorts of wildlife. Around the world, bridges and tunnels just for animals make it easier for them to migrate, mate, eat, and survive.



· It's hard to say how many animals are killed by vehicles around the world every year, but it's estimated that up to one million are killed every day on the roads of the US alone.



· Because the bridges are so effective, the United States and Canada have upped the construction of these crossings in the last 30 years

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· $350 million of Biden’s infrastructure package isn’t for people. It’s for wildlife that needs help crossing the road.



Our own Rev. Sarah Bowen has been very much involved in these efforts to save animals from their innocent effort to simply “cross the road” safely. So, yes, there in fact is a reason why humans in fact build bridges so that our animal friends can cross the road.


Yet, alas, there is no recorded history whether the original chicken that attempted to cross the road in 1847 actually made it across the road. So, we will never know the answer to this question.


Rev. William

 
 
 

In Memoriam: Lolita Has Passed

Her miserable existence at the Miami Seaquarium—for interminable days, years, and decades—is finally over. Earlier this year, during a news conference held in Miami on March 30, the Miami Seaquarium announced plans to release the long-suffering Lolita (aka “Tokitae,” “Toki,” and “Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut”) to a seaside sanctuary in Washington state. This announcement followed a massive campaign by PETA—which pursued several lawsuits on her behalf—and local residents and celebrities who raised awareness of her plight through dozens of protests as well as The Dolphin Company’s partnership with Friends of Toki. This plan, though it never came to fruition, had been made possible through the generosity of philanthropist Jim Irsay, owner and CEO of the Indianapolis Colts.



Elaine will include a Memoriam of her story in our next Compassion Consortium Newsletter. Suzanne McCallister and Anne Piotrowski from the Post-Animal-Use World (www.pauwproject.com) have worked with years together with Friends of Toki to save her life.


In hoping to include more positive information regarding animals who have had more positive outcomes and inspiring efforts to save them, please read this article:


“5 Times Animals Escaped Slaughter, and How to Support Those Who Saved Them: Very Few Animals Make It Out of the Food System Alive: We Take a Moment to Celebrate Some of those Who Have”



Rev. William

 
 
 

Update re: Compassion Consortium Events and Activities

· Rev. Sarah Bowen is delivering a paper at the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics Summer School this week in England. The Centre is the world's first academy dedicated to the ethical enhancement of the status of animals, formed by Andrew Linzey (Christian animal rights champion and author of Animal Theology and other books) and Clair Linzey (deputy director of the Centre). Each year, the Centre brings together scholars and policy influencers from around the world to facilitate collaborative research on a specific topic. This year's focus is the impact of media on animals. The title of Rev. Sarah's presentation is "Animal Consent and Dissent in Response to Being Imaged: A Framework for Interspecies Photography." Within her paper, she considers human obligations to other animals in the process and distribution of photography, critiquing what she calls "photographic dominion" in the ways the humans with cameras inherently exert power over other animals in ways that can be beneficial and harmful. If you'd like to know more about the Centre, please see www.oxfordanimalethics.com. Also note, Rev. Sarah will share highlights of her paper later this year with the Consortium after the publication cycle is complete. And exciting news: Clair Linzey will join us for our December Sunday Service to share more about the important work this think tank is doing, influencing thinking and policy in relation to our animal neighbors and exploited animals around the world.


· The Compassion Consortium is very proud to announce that the CC Cofounders have been selected to present at the Parliament of the World’s Religions, August 14-18, 2023, in Chicago. The Parliament of the World’s Religions was created to cultivate harmony among the world’s religious and spiritual communities and foster their engagement with the world and its guiding institutions in order to achieve a just, peaceful and sustainable world. ​Its origins are rooted in the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, where the historic first convening of the World Parliament of Religions created a global platform for engagement of religions of the east and west. For more information about this event, its programs and registration details, see Parliament of the World's Religions.


· Compassion Consortium Cofounder Victoria Moran's Main Street Vegan Academy. A lot of the work we do to create a more compassionate world starts with faith. It was like that back in 2011 when Compassion Consortium cofounder Victoria Moran came up with the idea for Main Street Vegan Academy, to train and certify vegan lifestyle coaches and educators. She didn't know if the world was ready, but faith said go ahead and MSVA now has some 650 graduates on six continents— coaching, counseling, and running Vegan businesses. The course starting in September—seven full weekend days via Zoom—kicks off the Academy's 12th year. In numerology, the number 12 is about discovery, self-expression, and collaboration. MSVA celebrates all these. To mark this anniversary, Victoria is offering Compassion Consortium members and friends a 15% discount on tuition for those using the code Kindness15. For more information or to register, go to www.mainstreetvegan.com. If you have questions, sign up on the site for an exploratory call, or be in touch with Victoria directly, victoria@mainstreetvegan.com.


"Peace Begins with Me” presented by Rev. Carol Saunders. The third annual Whole Planet Spirituality Forum & Retreat will take place October 19 through October 22 against the beautiful and spiritual backdrop of Unity Village, Missouri, near Kansas City. You can also attend virtually. Renee King Sonnen of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary is the featured speaker, and our own Victoria Moran and Rev. Sarah Bowen are presenting. Learn more at www.compassionconsortium.org/events and register at www.thespiritualforum.org/retreat.


· Animal Chaplaincy Training Program: Animal chaplains provide support for both animals and humans by using ritual, ceremony, and the tools of spiritual companionship. Our training program helps you fulfill your heart’s call to honor and celebrate the lives of all species, including how to companion them through joys and challenges. Our program is non-denominational and does not require students to have a specific religious or spiritual outlook. It will, though, prepare you to work with a diverse set of belief systems, so that you can support. It will, though, prepare you to work with a diverse set of belief systems, so that you can support people regardless of their own outlook. Program is offered annually. Contact us with any questions or schedule a consult with our program director by clicking below. www.compassionconsortium.org/training. Program is offered annually. Contact us with any questions or schedule a consult with our program director by clicking www.compassionconsortium.org/training.














 
 
 
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