So. That was one Carter Christmas. Whether or not you went, it’s likely that you’ve heard at least something about it, and my guess is that you know about the king crab.
Now, I’m not here to attack Second South for their choice of “décor” in Carter Christmas. Although I must say that I am disappointed for how it all went down, I’m writing this more because it sparked some thoughts in my mind, as well as became a conversation starter among myself and friends when we later discussed the ethical treatment of animals.
In general, I find that there is often (what I would call) an issue in the way that many people address animal treatment. Many of the times that I have talked about it with others, the discussion invariably ends up debating whether animals can suffer. Some people believe that animals can feel pain but cannot suffer because the idea of suffering requires a conscience that is aware of life outside of pain and knows that there is a world that is based on wrong and right, not instinct. Animals, they might say, do not understand what wrong and right are, they simply survive because their instincts tell them what is best in a situation. When approaching the topic of animal treatment, many people will use this as a defense of things like the meat or dairy industry. Often, the industry at large uses cruel-seeming methods to treat their cows, and by justifying this through the idea that animals cannot “suffer,” people can sweep the issue under the rug and go on about their day.
However, I am of another opinion. For one, I believe that regardless of whether animals “suffer” in the way that humans have defined it, they should still be treated with respect, kindness, and love, which should (I would think) lead to positive animal livelihood and existence as much as possible. For another, I have to wonder why it actually matters if animals can “suffer.” It shouldn’t matter about the science behind it, because the focus should be on treating them well — it is the right thing to do.
And last, as some of my friends have pointed out, we have the resources and ability to care for animals and those outside of us. In the past, when most people were simply surviving, their focus was first on themselves and their family, and they didn’t have the ability to put animal livelihood first. But as we have slowly evolved as a society, we have grown to the ability to look past ourselves and care for our community and animals. This is not to presume that no one still struggles to survive and lives paycheck to paycheck or without a proper home. Instead, this is simply pointing out that many people and the overall society live much more comfortably than those in the past, and they live comfortably enough that their focus can turn to others.
So how does this situation and discussion apply to us as Christians? The bottom line is, we, as image-bearers of God, should reflect the love that He has for even the smallest creature in the way that we interact with each other and the world around us. When we fail in our mandate to care for the earth, we fail to reflect God. His love for His creation in evident in the Bible in many places, like Proverbs 12:10: “Whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast, but the mercy of the wicked is cruel” (ESV) or Luke 12: 6-7: “Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God” (ESV). God is familiar with every creature on earth, and He cares for them just as He cares for us. If we are Christians, this love should be extended to everything under God’s care. And that includes king crabs.
I would like to end by speaking directly to Second South. I hope that it is evident that I am not writing this to rebuke, scold, chastise, or anything else. I have full faith and I truly believe that no one was thinking, “oh, let's buy a crab and mistreat it!” or anything remotely alluding to that. I’m sure the only thought was that it would be funny to have a crab for Carter Christmas. And, quite frankly, the idea of it is funny! What I am focusing on is the fact that there seemed to be very little (if not any) thought past the humor of it.
If the original hope was to keep it as a pet, then there should have been research done prior to getting the crab. For example, do they need to be kept in water? If so, how much? Does it need to be salt water? Simple and quick research could have been done to ensure the preservation of its life as much as possible. Plus, the fact that it died so soon after raising money and driving to Atlanta to purchase it honestly seems like a waste of time, effort, and your (and other people’s) money.
King crabs are clearly worth quite a lot of money, and they’re such a delicacy that it is rather a waste that there wasn’t even much of an attempt to take care of it to eat later. Even that would justify the contributions of people to the cause. And from an outsider’s perspective, many of the people I was around still believed the crab was alive when we saw it being shaken up and down and used to pop balloons, and it made us feel incredibly sad for what it was going through. Even though I know you didn’t have any ill-intent, it still made us wonder what exactly the point of the crab was.
Anyway, I just hope that anyone who reads this article will consider what I’m saying and keep it in mind for any future activities or discussion: remember to think through plans before executing them. And maybe don’t get crab water all over Carter.