LOS ANGELES — When the Rev. Tom Eggebeen took over as interim pastor at Covenant Presbyterian Church three years ago, he looked around and knew it needed a jump start.
Most of his worshippers, though devoted, were in their 60s, attendance had bottomed out and the once-vibrant church was fading as a community touchstone in its bustling neighborhood.
So Eggebeen came up with a hair-raising idea: He would turn God's house into a doghouse by offering a 30-minute service complete with individual doggie beds, canine prayers and an offering of dog treats. He hopes it will reinvigorate the church's connection with the community, provide solace to elderly members and, possibly, attract new worshippers who are as crazy about God as they are about their four-legged friends.
Before the first Canines at Covenant service last Sunday, Eggebeen said many Christians love their pets as much as human family members and grieve just as deeply when they suffer — but churches have been slow to recognize that love as the work of God.
"The Bible says of God only two things in terms of an 'is': That God is light and God is love. And wherever there's love, there's God in some fashion," said Eggebeen, himself a dog lover. "And when we love a dog and a dog loves us, that's a part of God and God is a part of that. So we honor that."
The weekly dog service at Covenant Presbyterian is part of a growing trend among churches nationwide to address the spirituality of pets and the deeply felt bonds that owners form with their animals.
Traditionally, conventional Christians believe that only humans have redeemable souls, said Laura Hobgood-Oster, a religion professor at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas.
But a growing number of congregations from Massachusetts to Texas to California are challenging that assertion with regular pet blessings and, increasingly, pet-centric services, said Hobgood-Oster, who studies the role of animals in Christian tradition."
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Blessings,
Gypsy
)O(
"What is life? It is the flash of a firefly in the night.
It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime.
It is the little shadow which runs across the grass
and loses itself in the sunset.
- Crowfoot, Blackfoot warrior and orator
Mika Dog
"All things share the same breath;
the beast, the tree, the man.
The Air shares its spirit with
all the life it supports."
--Chief Seattle
"If there are no dogs in Heaven,
then when I die I want to go where they went."
~Will Rogers
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress
can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
~~Mahatma Gandhi
Mika wouldn't be able to handle all those other dogs. So, wouldn't work for me. LOL! :P
Blessings,
Gypsy
)O(
"What is life? It is the flash of a firefly in the night.
It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime.
It is the little shadow which runs across the grass
and loses itself in the sunset.
- Crowfoot, Blackfoot warrior and orator
Mika Dog
"All things share the same breath;
the beast, the tree, the man.
The Air shares its spirit with
all the life it supports."
--Chief Seattle
"If there are no dogs in Heaven,
then when I die I want to go where they went."
~Will Rogers
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress
can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
~~Mahatma Gandhi
Katie is kind of an odd duck when it comes to other dogs. She's hades on wheels when we're out on walks...just goes ballistic. But in an indoor environment, like Petsmart or the vet clinic, she's usually cautious but polite. So, she might do ok. It would really be more for me than for her. After all, in my belief system, humans are the only creatures who can sin, and therefore Katie is closer to living in God's will than I am! However, anywhere that's pet friendly is automatically more attractive to me!
Mika does well at the pet store, and she takes it as a "work" exercise, walking sedately on my left, while I push the grocery cart to get her food & treats. :P She does pretty well on walks, as we have worked a LOT on that. But even in small obedience classes (she can't handle more than 3 or 4 other dogs in a class) to just expose her periodically to other dogs in proximity, it's a tough go. Even when we go to classes led by our private trainer, who taught Mika her hand signs before we adopted her. So, sitting in a roomful of other dogs would *not* work with Mika. Either she would escalate on her own with too much excitement (she is an "only dog" at home, and does not go to dog parks, etc., as that turned into a disastrous attempt as well), or she would escalate because another dog did. So, after 7 years, working with trainers and going to classes, and walking and practicing, I know what her limitations are, so a church service wouldn't work for us. I also feel, honestly, that going to a church, temple or ritual would be really for *me* and I would prefer being left alone to fully participate in the spiritual event/exercise. So, I would not want to have a dog with me to be "supervised" so that my attention had to be split. Perhaps with dogs who can handle it, or if I attended such a service on a regular basis, I would work with the private trainer on site and maybe get more intensive training in for Mika, and see if she could adapt or not. (We did on site training at the groomer's for Mika to help her not escalate so much because of all the other dogs, and that was helpful, and she does pretty well these days). So I guess it would be possible to train her for this specific environment, with some $$$ for the trainer and a lot of work. But my spiritual path involves attending ritual at private homes, as we alternate locations, so I don't take Mika with me, as they all have pets, too. So we leave our pets home. :P
I agree dogs are spiritual beings and closer to Spirit than we are. They are very "Zen," knowing how to live in the moment. ;) My pets and other animals have taught me so much wisdom about being more fully human and fully spirit, than most people or books have. ;))
Blessings,
Gypsy
)O(
"What is life? It is the flash of a firefly in the night.
It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime.
It is the little shadow which runs across the grass
and loses itself in the sunset.
- Crowfoot, Blackfoot warrior and orator
Mika Dog
"All things share the same breath;
the beast, the tree, the man.
The Air shares its spirit with
all the life it supports."
--Chief Seattle
"If there are no dogs in Heaven,
then when I die I want to go where they went."
~Will Rogers
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress
can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
~~Mahatma Gandhi
