Michael S. Ariens is a professor of church and state for the school of law at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas. He wrote the essay “Religion in the Courtroom” for the book Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices (ABC-Clio, 2002).

Jacquie Calnan is president of Americans for Medical Progress, a nonprofit group that views the use of animals in medical research as vital and opposes what it calls “animal rights extremism.”

Richard D. Stratton is the editor of Kindness to Animals and Caring for the Earth: Selections From the Sermons and Writings of Latter-day Saint Church Leaders.

Kim Sheridan is the author of the Animals and the Afterlife: True Stories of Our Best Friends’ Journey Beyond Death. She says that as more people have brought animals into their homes, they have increasingly come to see them as spiritual teachers and guides.

Niki Behrikis Shanahan is the author of several books on animals and Christian spirituality, including There Is Eternal Life for Animals. She lives in Tyngsborough, Mass.

Matthew Scully is the author of Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals and the Call to Mercy, which argues for decent treatment of animals from various points of view, including religious. He is a Los Angeles-based journalist and a  former speechwriter for Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin.

Rita Reynolds is the founder of Animals’ Peace Garden in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia and the author of Ask the Cow: A Gentle Guide to Finding Peace (2008). She frequently writes and speaks about the spiritual lessons taught by animals.

Susan Chernak McElroy is the author of All My Relations: Living With Animals as Teachers and Healers and Why Buffalo Dance: Animal and Wilderness Meditations Through the Seasons (2006).

Gregory Baylor is director of the Christian Legal Society and said outlawing sacramental tea would be the equivalent of banning the wine served at a Roman Catholic Mass.