No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
John 15:13 NRSV
Over the summer the reports about the discoveries of dead North Atlantic Right whales -- at least a dozen -- have been disturbing. There are only about 500 Right whales left, making them a far more endangered species than elephants and other large mammals. These whales are struck by passing ships or become entangled in fishing gear and drown.
Efforts to disentangle these rather inelegant yet magnificent creatures were halted when an experienced responder was killed inadvertently by a tail strike from a whale he had just freed. Canadian lobster fisherman Joe Howlett had worked closely with Department of Fisheries and Oceans in freeing entangled whales. He had just cut the second deadly line when the whale flipped it's tail to dive, killing him instantly. As a result, both the Canadian and American governments decided to ban rescues as too dangerous, which means that there may be more whale deaths.
Howlett would likely have been dismayed to learn that his death would have a negative outcome for the cetaceans he worked to free. I certainly consider him a hero who died doing what he was passionate about, saving whales from the effects of human activity.
When Jesus told his disciples that there is no greater love than giving up one's life for a friend he was aware of his own impending death on the cross but he was also speaking of the sacrificial love we demonstrate for others. Jesus doesn't define friendship and we can ask who are friends might be. While he was in conversation with followers who had spent the past three years with him, we appreciate that friendship isn't so narrowly defined. Individuals step forward give blood or to donate a kidney to save the life of a total stranger. Soldiers are injured or die in conflicts for the sake of others they don't know, as is the case with first responders.
Can we have interspecies "friends?" Is it appropriate to consider Jesus' words in terms of creatures other than humans? What about the notion of sacrificial love for critters?
This is a very sad situation - of course, sad because of the death pf the rescuer, but also sad because the rescues have been banned without investigating what might have caused the accidental death, and what could have been done differently to avoid such a tragedy in the future.
ReplyDelete