"We can use Bigfoot however we want because we built the world. We own the world, so we own all the Bigfoots, and we should make them extinct!" -Rick Dyer
It would seem that more and more people these days are interested in finding Sasquatch. There are reality TV shows dedicated to it, there are paid excursions available for it, and for some there are weapons loaded and ready for the kill. It may sound ironic at first to kill Sasquatch in order to find Sasquatch, but sadly this is not an uncommon approach. Consider other species that have been brought to the brink of extinction at the hands of humankind. But what’s wrong with killing something in the first place, one may ask, I mean, doesn’t the God of the Bible clearly give human dominion over all the earth and its inhabitants?
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. And God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Genesis 1:26-28
I don't care if you go to church or synagogue, consider yourself religious, or if asked you say you're Jewish or Christian if for no other reason than that your parents were. Haven’t we all heard the idea that our tradition doesn't include caring for the environment or its creatures because we have dominion over the planet and we are mandated to subdue creation with impunity? In a sense we do have dominion and we are free to do what we choose; however, what are the best choices to make with that freedom? How should we regard and relate to God's creation? Do we have any responsibilities? In the next few paragraphs I will share my personal journey as I have come to understand the answers to these questions especially as they pertain to Sasquatch.
I grew up loving animals. I would watch “Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom” and cry every time an animal was chased down and killed. My dad took me fishing once and I witnessed one of his friends killing a “sucker fish” by repeatedly smashing its head on a rock. I cried like a baby. I always wondered just how embarrassing that might have been for my father. But then I grew up and somewhere along the way I began to experiment with my own sense of bravery and place in the world. I went from the sensitive little kid to the “hunter”, or at least as much as I could muster as a city boy. I had a BB gun and I shot birds and lizards and anything else I found in my sights. Yet at the same time I still had a menagerie at home: parakeets, cockatiels, finches, hamsters, fish, cats, dogs, and anything else my parents would allow me to bring home. One day I shot a pigeon out my window and the BB only broke its wing. That bird became a beloved pet for many years and I wept bitterly the day she drew her last breaths as I held her. I lived with a somewhat contradictory philosophy during those teenage and early college years.
Throughout my childhood and young adult years I intuitively knew that Sasquatch existed but I also feared him. I discovered my Native American ancestry in my late twenties. Looking back, I now believe my connection with Sasquatch was passed to me through my Ojibwa heritage. I would take occasional trips hiking and rock climbing and kept Sasquatch out of my thoughts because I was so afraid. I recall one time that my climbing buddy started joking about Sasquatch around the campfire one evening and I made it very clear to him that I would hike out and drive home that night if he didn’t shut it. For me this fear was evidence of his existence because I have always faced profound truths in my life with initial fear. Yet as I would come to learn and understand those truths, my fears would be replaced with a confidence of purpose for I knew my path.
My role and connection with the truth of Sasquatch is now clear to me. I haven’t had any personal sightings or experiences with Sasquatch; I know people who have and I am constantly learning from them. It’s only a matter of time before I will have my own personal stories to share. Why do I write about Sasquatch without first-hand experience? Because at the core of my being I am a child of the Creator and I’m compelled to call for protection for one his noblest of creatures and our closest relative. All creatures deserve respect and the freedom to live and prosper. There is a hierarchy in the created order and the higher you find yourself in that hierarchy the greater your responsibility becomes to respect, honor, and protect Creation.
But what about those who beckon us back to the dominion mandate as they interpret from Genesis 1:26-28? What about their calls for the capture and killing of Sasquatch in the name of science, progress, or medical advancements not to mention blatant plans for profiteering and sideshow tours? Are there answers from those of us who revere the God of Abraham and His Creation? Was it not God himself who makes the case to Job that man does not rule over Creation?
Can you draw out Leviathan with a hook, Or snare his tongue with a line which you lower? Can you put a reed through his nose, Or pierce his jaw with a hook? Will he make many supplications to you? Will he speak softly to you? Will he make a covenant with you? Will you take him as a servant forever?
Job 41:1–4
Lay your hand on him; Remember the battle— Never do it again!
Job 41:8
We humans are not the rulers of this world as some would have us believe. Perhaps the divine mandate to dominate the planet and its creatures isn’t what we thought. Perhaps there is another understanding that is more in line with our sacred texts. Indeed, we forfeited our dominion over the earth the moment we chose death and destruction over God’s perfect order in the Garden of Eden. We yearn for the day when all will be made right once again and some of us wish to begin now.
In my twenties I began to reflect more on my earliest feelings of right and wrong as they related to our world and its inhabitants. I started looking into reasons why someone who believed in the God of the Bible might want to respect, honor, and protect his creation through conservation and non-violence whenever possible. It was during this time that I realized I had always been a vegetarian at heart and it was time to live out that conviction. But it wasn’t the sort of thing I could do without having a clear reasoning and justification behind it. I needed support for what I felt so strongly in my spirit and conscience. Here are some of the passages that I found profoundly helpful to me:
God’s original ideal shows we were created to be vegetarians in the Garden of Eden.
And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.
Genesis 1:29
The prophet Isaiah tells us that one day we will all be vegetarians once again when the world is restored.
The wolf and the lamb shall graze together;
the lion shall eat straw like the ox,
and dust shall be the serpent's food.
They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain,” says the Lord.
Isaiah 65:25
God cares about all creatures no matter their size.
Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
Matthew 6:26
Many early church fathers were vegetarian, including St. Basil, St. John Chrysostom, and St. Francis of Assisi. Gandhi noted in 1931 that the most active and committed vegetarians are also those who are motivated out of concern for the animals, not just their own health.
I recall first learning about John Chapman, an American nurseryman who introduced apple trees to several states and was affectionately known as Johnny Appleseed. He earned legendary status with his kind and generous ways and his leadership in conservation. At a very early age I was greatly influenced by his story and was struck by how he put his love of God and Creation into action, even extending that respect to insects. Henry Howe collected many stories from the 1830s while Johnny Appleseed was still alive. He writes:
One cool autumnal night, while lying by his camp-fire in the woods, he observed that the mosquitoes flew in the blaze and were burned. Johnny, who wore on his head a tin utensil which answered both as a cap and a mush pot, filled it with water and quenched the fire, and afterwards remarked, “God forbid that I should build a fire for my comfort, that should be the means of destroying any of his creatures.” Another time he made a camp-fire in a snowstorm at the end of a hollow log in which he intended to pass the night, but finding it occupied by a bear and cubs, he removed his fire to the other end, and slept on the snow in the open air, rather than disturb the bear.
Wow!!! I discovered there was a better way, an honorable way, desired by the very God that some say doesn’t care. In the New Testament, Matthew says that not even a sparrow falls without God knowing…if he thinks this much of birds how much more does he think of you? What about Sasquatch? We are clearly told that we are valued more than birds yet they are greatly loved. The God who loves birds and humans alike must surely hold a special place for Sasquatch.
There is a rich history of people of faith having respected, honored, and protected Creation. And at the risk of being seen as a syncretist, one thing has become abundantly clear to me: Wisdom is Wisdom regardless of source. It is not restricted to one people, group, ethnicity, tradition, or faith.
As I mentioned earlier part of my heritage is Ojibwa, which is one of the largest groups of Native Americans, belonging to the Anishinabe people of what is today Canada and the Northern United States. I wasn't made aware of this heritage until my late twenties. Since then I have learned much from The Mishomis Book: The Voice of the Ojibway and other sources. When the Jesuit Order of the Catholic Church first encountered the Ojibwa, they admired their desire to live in harmony with all parts of Creation but mostly their generosity and the honor associated with one’s word.
Sasquatch holds a revered and sacred place in the teachings of the Ojibwa people. They knew Sasquatch because they encountered him in life just as they did the muskrat, bear, and buffalo. The Ojibwa tell us that Sasquatch is our oldest brother and has always been near. Many will not believe in him for he is the Wildman and remains just out of sight. The Creator sent him to guide and care for those who become lost in the forest. He grants access to the natural remedies and foods of the forests to those whose thoughts are good and loving to others. He helps those who seek meditation, prayer and fasting in the wild and natural places. He is the caretaker, he is natural man.
What wisdom might Sasquatch have for us? He speaks to us through the Ojibwa teachings:
You have a twin brother whom you have wondered about and whom you would seek. This I tell you: he is your other side in all things and in all ways. He is with you…do not seek him. Do not wish to know him, but understand him.
You will walk the path of peace…he would not.
You are kind…he is not.
You are humble…he is not.
You are generous...he is not.
You seek the good in things…he does not.
You shall respect others…he will not.
You will seek the goodness in others…he will not.
You are the light…he is the darkness.
Know that he is with you, understand him,
But do not seek him!
And just as suddenly as he appears, Sasquatch leaves us like a shadow into the woods.
In conclusion, we humans have strength in our numbers and technology, yet whether we find ourselves face to face with Leviathan, as God reminded Job, or Sasquatch, we quickly understand that our dominance is not quite what we envisioned. We are all entitled to life and prosperity. The notion that we can use, exploit, and abuse our eldest brethren is profoundly flawed and we must oppose it with great fervor. By spreading awareness and standing united for what’s right we can make this clear to everyone. We can do such great and wonderful things and yet when we seek to know our twin as Sasquatch warned we see how inhuman we can become. Let us seek wisdom and strength, not to be superior to our brothers, but to be able to fight our greatest enemy, ourselves.
