letter to my sister at the death of her beloved dog, roxy

[2eclipse]

cam,

i totally know what you mean. i still miss luther every day. there were times when i felt like he was the only creature on earth that loved me exactly the way i was(as long as i fed him). when andy left me, luther learned the sound of my car engine and greeted me at the door every day. he was most content when squarely on top of me, licking my nose. he was funny and sweet and almost always interested in a cuddle.

yes, wesley really did believe animals go to heaven.
http://www.epm.org/articles/wesleysermon.html

and i do too. God created His creation and called it good. He created it for the purpose of community and consumation. God is eternally steadfast in His love and supremely faithful to His original purpose for us. how should animals not share in that. God so loved the world that He gave his only son....the world. not just christians, not just religious people, not just humans. Christ died for all of us, and all of creation shares in the miracle of the resurrection on easter. i believe in my deepest heart that stewardship of the earth and loving our brother as ourselves are inseparable. that we are also stewards of one another, and that our care for the earth and its creatures are part of loving as we were commanded. God is love. and we were created for relationship. that includes relationships with animals. there is no doubt in me that animals can love and participate fully in relationships - the kind of community for which we were created. how then should they not be welcome in the kingdom of heaven?

much love,
hja 

Comments

[eltanin.livejournal.com]

Beautiful letter!

I know my pack o' pups will be in heaven to greet me should I be lucky enough to join them there.

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

thanks!
the roman catholic church's position is that animals don't have souls and so cannot go to heaven. i think that idea is very prevelant in society and i wanted to post this to let people know there IS a different view within christianity.

[sooper.livejournal.com]

My father infamously told my then 7 or 8 year old cousin that there's no doggie heaven because animals don't have souls. Pretty sure he still believes this, even though he does like dogs and has had several.

[mirage897.livejournal.com]

very nice letter

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

thanks.:)

[illusionmajik.livejournal.com]

Eloquent, peaceful, and spiritual.

It had me sniffling and smiling. Thank you for sharing this with everyone.

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

you're totally welcome. i feel like xianity makes itself look terrible on so many fronts. part of my job is to show the angles of it that DON'T suck.