Free Jennie by Douglas Preston

Jennie—relieved me of my hat. Much confusion, hilarity, and high jinks. The monkey, as I understood it, is to stay indefinitely. I returned hatless. R. was much put out. I pray God bring her peace.
    I must confess a peculiar thought. I had never had occasion to observe a monkey closely before. It is an extraordinary animal. As I was watching it romping about, I was struck by how
human
it was, how so like a child in its actions and understanding. I wondered if the animal might possess a kind of soul. It is a curious fact that the Bible, despite the asseverations of some, is more or less silent on the question. This Jennie, as they call it, was so absolutely like a human child in every way except speech that it was quite perplexing. I have turned to the Bible—as one seeking guidance—and perused various passages, without enlightenment. I do not know why the idea had not occurred to me before. Man, to be sure, occupies the paramount position in Creation and was given dominion over the beasts of the field. But what position do the beasts occupy? Were they created solely to serve Mankind? Or do they serve God in some other capacity independent of man? Does the animal consciousness, like the human, survive the death of the body? Are there animals in Heaven? And at this juncture I realized that animals surely
would
be in Heaven, otherwise Heaven would not be Heaven. What happens, for example, to the faithful dog whose master loves him? Does the animal rejoin him in Heaven? The idea had never entered my mind before, but the answer appearedobvious; would God deny a kindly aged pensioner the beloved companion of his last years? Of course not.
    Naturally, the next line of logic is the question of whether animals are judged, to be saved or damned. I should think not; a creature which is incapable of understanding the grace of Jesus Christ cannot be damned for it. It would be a cruel God indeed to judge a beast who had not the ability to know the love of Christ. Therefore, the logic seems impeccable: at least the higher animals have souls, and they are inevitably saved. Only man, who has the capacity for good and evil, can be damned. A peculiar line of reasoning, and somewhat unsettling. And yet inescapable.
    I do not, as the Baptists and even some of my fellow Episcopalians do, subscribe to the idea of literal creation. It is (to me) as miraculous that God created the Universe and Mankind in five billion years through the process of evolution as it is to believe that He created the world in seven days by divine fiat. Indeed, it is far more miraculous to contemplate the infinite patience, wisdom, and vision of God over such an immensity of time, and to comprehend with rigorous scientific equations the beautiful starry vastness of His mighty works. Was the chimpanzee, thus, a way station on the road to Mankind? Of course. At what point in evolution did man acquire the knowledge of good and evil, and thus the capacity to be damned? In this light, the story of Adam and Eve takes on deeper significance. It is a parable of evolution.
    But, as I write, another thought occurs to me. Is Jennie capable of knowing the Lamb of Christ, in a simple way, through feeling rather than intellect, as I have often seen a child do? She appears capable of understanding a great deal.
    These are profound questions indeed. Prayer and meditation will bring the answers in due course. And then there is the situation vis à vis R. and the chimp. She has been talking about the leash laws and getting the neighborhood together to “nip this thing in the bud,” etc., etc. To put that dear Jennie on a leash would be criminal. I pray for R. I shall have to talk to the professor.
    As I write this, I feel that God, in His unknowable wisdom, has opened a door into a darkened corridor. I do not know why, nor where this corridor will lead. I shall watch, and learn, and pray, and sooner or later this crooked winding hall will lead to a room with light and