Animal Sacrifices are an ideal

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I support the rabbinic viewpoint that animal sacrifices are an ideal.
Hevel (Abel) offered animal sacrifices to G-d before there was a cultural norm to offer sacrifices and
G-d was pleased with his sacrifice.
No'ach (Noah) offered animal sacrifices when he and his family were all alone without societal influences and G-d was pleased by his sacrifices.
Avraham (Abraham) offered sacrifices and G-d was pleased by his sacrifices.

The Torah usually tries to go out of its way to do things differently than the Gentiles [see Vayikra (Leviticus 18:3) and see Rashi on Devarim (Deut. 16:22)]. So I don't view sacrifices as a concession to weak human nature or societal norms.

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See also:
Sacrifices As Part of a Course of Redemption Even Though They Don’t Do Teshuva [ Repent ]
at http://www.vilnagaon.org/book/messiah.htm for additional reasons for why animal sacrifices are an ideal.