animals and the love of God

The other day I came across the article "Animals and the Love of God" by William Greenway of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and the Christian Vegetarian Association.  What struck me about the article was that it was posted on the Christian online directory Surf-in-the-Spirit (note: the site may be down, but the current article link points to Religion-Online.org).  It's noteworthy, and commendably so, whenever any serious attention to animal welfare shows up in the evangelical community, let alone its more conservative end.  Here's just one challenging thought from Greenway's article, which I strongly recommend reading if you get the chance:

If God exercises (his) dominion over creation through love, can we reflect God’s image in our dominion?  If God graciously reaches out to us, how should we treat animals - even insects? 

And an additionally poignant excerpt which includes a quote from Albert Schweitzer:  

For the person who loves and shows concern for all creatures, life will "become harder. . . in every respect than it would be if [one] lived for [oneself], but at the same time it will be richer, more beautiful and happier.  It will become, instead of mere living, a real experience of life."

("Animals and the Love of God" was originally published in the Christian Century, June 21-28, 2000)