Humanity should respect animals.

[Tenet Nosce]

I'd say the function of life is to express itself in physical form, but that isn't its purpose. Its purpose is to evolve spiritually.

I said Life likely has multiple purposes. Expressing itself in physical form is an act of will. Life doesn't have to do that; It chooses to.

I found a book about people succeeding in farming without animals. They claim to be successful. Their project has spanned 10 years so far, if I remember correctly. I haven't read it yet though. It was kinda over my head, since I'm just a backyard gardener.

Really? Without any animals? What about worms or bees? Or did you just mean without farm animals?

It is the function of STS to create catalyst.

Where did you get that from?

By that logic, then why ever try to save anyone's life? Why not just look the other way if we witness an impending murder?

Because when human-human interactions are involved, ethical principles come into play. Swatting a mosquito is not murder.

You seem to be saying, on the one hand, that one species shouldn't be elevated over another, but on the other, saying that humans should have stewardship over all other lifeforms.

What I meant is that if the argument is made that humans shouldn't elevate themselves over farm animals, then it follows that we shouldn't elevate farm animals over other animals, or for than matter animals over the other kingdoms of lifeforms. I wasn't making that argument myself.

The point is to show why ethical principles are problematic when extended outside of human-human relationships.

I am not totally discrediting your approach! Farm animals are a special case because they have been domesticated by humans, and in that domestication process we have reduced their ability to survive in nature without our assistance. Thus we bear some special responsibility to them, and I think it is fair to extend ethical principles to domesticated animals. It is fair, but problematic.

Or did you mean that it's ok for humans to elevate themselves over other lifeforms, but shouldn't ever elevate any animals over other animals or plants?

Should some humans elevate themselves over other humans?

Maybe I'm totally misunderstanding you, but your logic doesn't seem consistent to me.

Yes, I think you are misunderstanding me. For example, we are not in agreement over the difference between a purpose and a function. So therefore anything downstream from that will be confusing.

I don't have any ideas for a philosophy that works in all instances,

The Law of One is a philosophy that works in all instances.

other than the general philosophy of compassion, since that is, after all, what we're supposed to be learning here in 3D, and, in my understanding, the actual purpose of 3D to begin with.

Oh gosh, no! Compassion is a function of 4D. If humanity were here to teach/learn compassion, this whole experience would have been a miserable failure, don't you think? The spiritual functions of humanity in 3D are faith and love.

To my estimation (which could be entirely wrong!) you are a 4D wanderer. Which is why you display an abundance of compassion relative to the population. But as with all wanderers, there is a propensity to project the functions of one's home density into the current situation. Unfortunately- and I have been teach/learning this the hard way- this is not the purpose of wanderers.