Posted on 05/03/2005 3:30:40 PM PDT by sionnsar
In a development that should surprise absolutely no one, Piskie PETA rolls out:
When trappers killed Franz, a beloved tiger cat, the Rev. Rebecca Deinsen looked for help.
That’s when she discovered that there was little recourse against the trappers, and frankly, that few people were interested in the issue.
"I started contacting animal rights’ organizations, and they were the only ones who cared," said Deinsen, associate priest at St. John’s, Worthington.
"In the midst of all that, I discovered that there was a need here. There was no spiritual outlet for grieving the loss of pets even though all of creation is a spiritual issue."
Deinsen began researching the issue of animal rights in the church and became involved with the Anglican Society for the Welfare of Animals, based in England. Through online chats and blogs, she found other people in the United States interested in the issue.
Together, they decided to launch a network of people in the U.S. concerned about animal rights and welfare.
"We prayed about it," Deinsen said. "And we e-mailed it."
Since the launch of The Episcopal Network for Animal Welfare in the fall, "it’s really caught on. We thought we’d be lucky to get 12 members, but we’re up to more than 50 now," she said.
These people aren't going to have KFC cater their lunches.
Striving to live out the beatitude of our Lord, “Blessed are the merciful,” ENAW believes that ending animal cruelty in all its forms and striving for mercy for all creatures is an essential task of the Church. We are concerned by the lack of attention by the Church to the cruelties committed against animals in laboratories, factory farms, puppy mills, fur farms, slaughterhouses, and wherever animal exploitation occurs. We believe that our treatment of animals, “the least of these,” is of major importance to all Christians and has implications for our health, environment, and world hunger, all of which demand our attention. ENAW believes in non-violence for all of God’s creatures and is dedicated to the ongoing pursuit of God’s Peaceable Kingdom on earth.
I'm not exactly sure how cutting oneself off from a particular foodstuff is going to help world hunger any. After all, if you believe in "non-violence for all God's creatures," you certainly don't believe in wringing their necks, cutting them into pieces, marinating boneless parts of them in barbecue sauce for a few hours, baking them at 450 degrees for 50 minutes to an hour and serving them with rice or a nice pasta and a really good Pinot Noir. Wouldn't make any sense.
And you folks do know that the phrase immediately after "the least of these" is "my brethren," don't you? And that Jesus directed Peter and his partners to cast their nets in a particular place to haul a full netload of least of these away from their watery homes to suffocation and death? And that He fed at least 12,000 people with a few loaves and least of these? And that after His Resurrection, He cooked up a meal of least of these for the eleven when they finished fishing?
Oh, that's right. These are Episcopalians, who never ever let the Bible get in the way of their causes. Never mind. Anyway, ENAW's got big plans. They're interested in:
Providing a presence and witness in the Episcopal Church for animal welfare concerns and issues
Praying for the welfare of animals and the end of animal exploitation
Developing a consistent, coherent theological position for animal welfare in the church and necessary resources and educational materials
Providing a community for those concerned about animal welfare in the Episcopal Church to find support and encouragement
Encouraging and providing liturgies, services, and prayers that include all God’s creatures and acknowledge animals in our liturgical calendar
Encouraging creative dialogue among clergy and laity about animal abuse and welfare in local parishes and Dioceses
Serving as a resource for those who are grieving the loss of animal companions
Serving as a resource for clergy and lay ministers for animal friendly sermons and educational programs
Developing a program by which parishes can gain designation as “animal friendly congregations”
Advocating for animal welfare in the church at the national and local level through legislation and resolutions and aiding in the implementation of such resolutions
Participating and initiating activism locally, nationally, and within the Church itself to combat animal cruelty and protect animals
Partnering with like-minded individuals, organizations, and denominational groups to develop a network of animal welfare groups
Let's see. These folks want to develop "a consistent, coherent theological position for animal welfare in the church." Best of luck to 'em; if they succeed, it'll be the first time in a very long time that the Episcopal Church has had "a consistent coherent theological position" about anything at all.
ENAW also wants to encourage and provide "liturgies, services, and prayers that include all God’s creatures and acknowledge animals in our liturgical calendar." They want to serve "as a resource for those who are grieving the loss of animal companions." They want to help clergy to develop "animal friendly sermons," whatever those are.
Given the nature and controversies of the Current Unpleasantness, I know the jokes that are running through your heads right now. They're running through mine too. But one of the things you learn about running one of these things(which many of you should be doing, frankly) is that there are times when, even though your environment is as target-rich as you will ever see, you just have to let things go. Because you can get into all kinds of really weird areas if you don't.
If your parish is down with all this, you can apply to become Animal Friendly. You'll have to agree to do this.
Support and uphold members engaged in animal welfare ministries
Hold an "Animal Blessing" service annually
Provide pastoral care and prayer for members grieving the loss or illness of a pet
Serve vegetarian fare during Lent and provide vegetarian options at community meals
Agree not to hold fundraisers that center upon the killing of animals(pig roasts, sport hunting, lobster boils, etc.)
One of the things I miss the most about my old parish takes place every year on the weekend after Labor Day. They call it Homecoming and it is marked by a pig roast. After Gene Robinson's confirmation by GenCon 2003, the roast was the last parish event I ever attended(went to the roast, didn't go in for church).
The parish softball teams generally run the thing. The roast begins on Saturday afternoon when a pit is dug. Saturday evening, the fire is started, the pig is put on and turned every half hour. The thing literally goes all night and into the next day and a great deal of beer is consumed. Back in the day, I once stayed awake 29 hours straight at one of these.
And there are all the attendant legends and traditions. The time when we set off the smoke alarms at Webster University next door and every fire engine in Webster Groves dropped by. The interesting young ladies who happened by at 2:30 AM. Walking into Communion with that smoke smell that every single person in church could smell wherever he or she was sitting. And you have not eaten White Castles unless you've eaten them at 4:00 in the morning.
I may not know my old parish as well as I'd like to but I do know this. Liberal or indifferent though it might be, if it is ever proposed and passed that the Homecoming pig roast be replaced by a Homecoming tofurkey roast, the church of my youth will shatter into a million pieces.
Traditional Anglican ping, continued in memory of its founder Arlin Adams. LOL! What is this world coming to...(well, I know that answer).
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