Plymouth Brethren church reportedly urges members to give up pets after dog attack on child

The Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, formerly known as the Exclusive Brethren, has urged members to give up their pets after a dog attack on a child in Australia, according to two news reports. Both reports say the attack involved a dog owned by a church member. One report says it occurred in early May. The other describes it as having taken place “last month,” in a later article, and identifies the child as a 4-year-old boy. The child is believed to be a relative of the church’s leader, Bruce Hales. The first report says the child suffered severe facial injuries that required surgery, while the second says the child survived but needed medical attention.

The church circulated a letter during Brethren meetings in May. According to both reports, the letter said that keeping pets, particularly at a member’s home, is “clearly wrong.” One report says the letter was distributed to the church’s global membership.

The church has denied instructing members to euthanise their animals. One report says it suggested that unwanted animals be rehomed with neighbours or at local shelters. The church also said it does not condone animal cruelty and that any instances of animal cruelty would be reported to the appropriate authorities. A church spokesman described the message as “simply a reminder of a principle established some time ago,” according to the second report, and the church denied claims of a widespread pet cull.

An investigation by the Australian publication The Age, as reported by the second outlet, found that some members have already complied with the directive. It included a New Zealand member who lost her kitten. Multiple church members told the publication that the New Zealand member had to euthanise the animal to follow the order. The reports do not say whether The Age’s findings have been independently confirmed, and the church’s denial of a widespread cull stands alongside these accounts.

The reports also differ on the church’s history with pets. One report says the church banned pets in the 1960s, an action that led to the disposal of some animals. The other says the church dismissed accounts of a documented pet purge in that decade as “completely untrue.” Former member Braden Simmons, who was excommunicated, told one outlet that the church teaches that animals are unclean. The reports attribute this view to Simmons and do not present it as a church statement.

The church has approximately 54,000 members worldwide, according to the second report, and about 9,000 of them live in New Zealand. The first report gives the global figure as approximately 50,000.