Romans 8:19-21There is also the vision of the "Peaceable Kingdom" where the lion and he lamb live in peace, and all creation is renewed in the eschatological order (sourced from texts such as the Book of Isaiah (Isaiah 2: 2-4 and Isaiah 11:6-9), the Book of Hosea (Hosea 2:18-19), and the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:43-48).
For the creation waits in eager expectation
for the children of God to be revealed.
For the creation was subjected to frustration,
not by its own choice,
but by the will of the one who subjected it,
in hope
that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.
This is quite different from saying that human nature and animal nature are the same. Humans are divine image-bearers, and are to live in benevolent dominion over the rest of creation.
There is, by the way, nothing in Laudato Si which contradicts this.
AMEN!
I also like to point out that God did indeed make a few covenants with the animals.
1. “Then God said to Noah...I now establish My covenant with you and your descendants after you and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you— with every living creature on earth.” (Genesis 9:8-10 )
2. “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between Me and you and every living creature...a covenant for all generations to come.” (Genesis 9:11-13)
3. “Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds I will see it and I will remember My covenant between Me and you and all living creatures of every kind.”(Genesis 9:14,15)
4. “Whenever the rainbow appears I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”(Genesis 9:16)
5. “So God said to Noah, this is the sign of the covenant I have established between Me and all life on earth.” (Genesis 9:17)
Hosea 2:20 the reiterates the covenant: “I will make a covenant for them on that day, with the beasts of the field, with the birds of the air, and with the things that crawl on the ground
Even Revelations has animals surrounding the throne of God. All the earth is God’s creation and as many references there are in the Bible to animals, little doubt should exist that they won’t be with us in the New Earth.
As far as there being cockroaches....
Isaiah 7:18
In that day the LORD will whistle for the fly that is in the remotest part of the rivers of Egypt and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.