By Adam Rabiner
For over a decade, the Plow-to-Plate film series has strived to educate Coop members on a range of food and other related issues and encourage healthful eating. But we are not dogmatic. Earlier month we screened Steak (R)evolution, a paean to steak in all its greasy glory, a film that has been described as “a must-see for any steak enthusiast.” In October, we will be screening A Prayer for Compassion, a film that advocates a vegan diet. Past Plow-to-Plate films like H.O.P.E. What You Eat Matters and Vegucated have addressed this issue as well. But earlier films made their case using visceral and hard to watch footage of suffering animals, environmental degradation, and human testimony about the health benefits of a plant-based diet. While A Prayer for Compassion nods to those other arguments, the film asserts that a deep and honest reading of every religion requires that humankind stop eating meat.
In the course of this film you hear from various strands of Christianity: evangelical, Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Friends (Quakers), Seventh Day Adventism, Unity, and more; Judaism; Islam; Hinduism; Buddhism; Jainism; the Native American tradition; Unitarian Universalism; Zoroastrianism; and the “spiritual but not religious” point of view. A representative of each of the above belief systems states with deep conviction that the heart and soul of both Eastern and Western religions— the teaching that is front and center—is a philosophy of non-violence, of “live and let live,” kindness, caring, mercy, compassion, and the alleviation of suffering.These attitudes, they maintain, should be directed toward animals and humans alike, not to mention our collective home, the planet Earth. With this basic premise, they argue, it is not hard to conclude that compassion for all life, practiced through a vegan diet, should be the true reading of God’s highest command to salvation and spirituality. That many religious leaders preach this value, but do not practice it (at least toward non-humans) is viewed by the filmmaker and others he interviews, as the height of hypocrisy and complicity.
The faith practitioners in the film talk about the universalism of Matthew 7:12, the Golden Rule, namely to do to others as you would want others to do to you. Several of them also refute a frequent religious argument used against veganism, namely the dominion clause in Genesis that calls on man and womankind to “have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” The filmmaker accepts their argument that, taken in context, namely God’s dominion over man, this passage should be read as a loving and respectful relationship, not an adversarial or dominating one based on death and destruction.
One might cynically conclude that it is too late to change the world and our species’ relationship to food. As various life forms and our planet die, largely due to our unsustainable systems of agriculture and farming, a movie like A Prayer for Compassion, might seem like a Hail Mary pass, pie-in-the sky wishful thinking. But there is evidence that at least some people are getting the message. Filmmaker and narrator Thomas Wade Jackson has assembled a global assortment of activists and change-makers who use every platform, opportunity, and medium to get their message heard. Those referred to in the film include blogging, animal sanctuaries, books, movies, conferences, and associations of every type. The film suggests that perhaps the best and most effective action is setting a personal example for the next generation. Jackson became “woke” through his involvement in the Unity church, as well as through movies like Cowspiracy. It is clear in scenes he shot with his seven-year-old daughter Melody that he has passed these lessons on. Melody clearly does not have any FOMO regarding meat. Her love for fruits and vegetables is every parent’s dream. A Prayer for Compassion suggests that the future generation of kids like her may make a big difference.
Many a religious leader has been divinely inspired. Constantine, the first Roman Emperor to convert to Christianity, reputedly did so after witnessing a cross of light in the sky before an important battle. A Prayer for Compassion is a film that wants to ignite virtue and create another great awakening. In being the voice of the animals, the documentary wants to impart dharma, a universal truth and reality. According to the filmmaker, the lessons it teaches about compassion are easy to hear, but for some difficult to live by. However, Jackson believes that if we bear witness, listen with open ears, and act accordingly, instant karma’s gonna get us and knock us right on the head. And we will all shine on.
For over a decade, the Plow-to-Plate film series has strived to educate Coop members on a range of food and other related issues and encourage healthful eating. But we are not dogmatic. Earlier month we screened Steak (R)evolution, a paean to steak in all its greasy glory, a film that has been described as “a must-see for any steak enthusiast.” In October, we will be screening A Prayer for Compassion, a film that advocates a vegan diet. Past Plow-to-Plate films like H.O.P.E. What You Eat Matters and Vegucated have addressed this issue as well. But earlier films made their case using visceral and hard to watch footage of suffering animals, environmental degradation, and human testimony about the health benefits of a plant-based diet. While A Prayer for Compassion nods to those other arguments, the film asserts that a deep and honest reading of every religion requires that humankind stop eating meat.
In the course of this film you hear from various strands of Christianity: evangelical, Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Friends (Quakers), Seventh Day Adventism, Unity, and more; Judaism; Islam; Hinduism; Buddhism; Jainism; the Native American tradition; Unitarian Universalism; Zoroastrianism; and the “spiritual but not religious” point of view. A representative of each of the above belief systems states with deep conviction that the heart and soul of both Eastern and Western religions— the teaching that is front and center—is a philosophy of non-violence, of “live and let live,” kindness, caring, mercy, compassion, and the alleviation of suffering.These attitudes, they maintain, should be directed toward animals and humans alike, not to mention our collective home, the planet Earth. With this basic premise, they argue, it is not hard to conclude that compassion for all life, practiced through a vegan diet, should be the true reading of God’s highest command to salvation and spirituality. That many religious leaders preach this value, but do not practice it (at least toward non-humans) is viewed by the filmmaker and others he interviews, as the height of hypocrisy and complicity.
The faith practitioners in the film talk about the universalism of Matthew 7:12, the Golden Rule, namely to do to others as you would want others to do to you. Several of them also refute a frequent religious argument used against veganism, namely the dominion clause in Genesis that calls on man and womankind to “have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” The filmmaker accepts their argument that, taken in context, namely God’s dominion over man, this passage should be read as a loving and respectful relationship, not an adversarial or dominating one based on death and destruction.
One might cynically conclude that it is too late to change the world and our species’ relationship to food. As various life forms and our planet die, largely due to our unsustainable systems of agriculture and farming, a movie like A Prayer for Compassion, might seem like a Hail Mary pass, pie-in-the sky wishful thinking. But there is evidence that at least some people are getting the message. Filmmaker and narrator Thomas Wade Jackson has assembled a global assortment of activists and change-makers who use every platform, opportunity, and medium to get their message heard. Those referred to in the film include blogging, animal sanctuaries, books, movies, conferences, and associations of every type. The film suggests that perhaps the best and most effective action is setting a personal example for the next generation. Jackson became “woke” through his involvement in the Unity church, as well as through movies like Cowspiracy. It is clear in scenes he shot with his seven-year-old daughter Melody that he has passed these lessons on. Melody clearly does not have any FOMO regarding meat. Her love for fruits and vegetables is every parent’s dream. A Prayer for Compassion suggests that the future generation of kids like her may make a big difference.
Many a religious leader has been divinely inspired. Constantine, the first Roman Emperor to convert to Christianity, reputedly did so after witnessing a cross of light in the sky before an important battle. A Prayer for Compassion is a film that wants to ignite virtue and create another great awakening. In being the voice of the animals, the documentary wants to impart dharma, a universal truth and reality. According to the filmmaker, the lessons it teaches about compassion are easy to hear, but for some difficult to live by. However, Jackson believes that if we bear witness, listen with open ears, and act accordingly, instant karma’s gonna get us and knock us right on the head. And we will all shine on.