Things We Can Learn From a Franciscan Dog

Pause at the open door, embrace the day, and then go forth with zest and supreme happiness.
Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Stop often to contemplate Sister Bug and to inhale the smells of God's earth.
Greet Brother Squirrel and falling leaves with gusto.
Allow the experience of fresh air, Brother Sun, and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
Take naps and stretch before rising.
Run, romp and play daily.
Eat with zeal and enthusiasm.
Be loyal.
Lift up your face to the heavens and make joyful noises.
Never pretend to be something you're not.
When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle them gently.
Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
On hot days, drink lots of water and lay under a shady tree.
No matter how often you're scolded, run right back and make friends.
Be liberal in bestowing kisses and affection; let people touch you.
When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.

Lux in Tenebris Lucet

In the beginning was the Word

and the Word was with God,

and the Word was God.

He was in the beginning with God;

all things were made through him,

and without him

was not anything made that was made.

In him was life,

and the life was the light of men.

The light shines in the darkness,

and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:1-5.

Our Joy is Now Our Sorrow

Sammy; David & Sammy; Teddy at bottom.

Gift of Thistle (click for music)

I hope to publish another blog soon for our family pets but today Our Lady's Little Scribe is the place we will remember and grieve for two precious ones, Sammy and Teddy, lost this month. Sammy was hit by a speeding car yesterday, December 30th, in front of his home. For some reason, he left his yard (during his potty break), crossed the street and wandered off for a few minutes. He was on his way home again when he was hit and gone in an instant. He was a bedlington terrier, very, very smart, funny and full of life. I groomed Sammy once. He was so good, very still and seemed to enjoy the whole process. He had a regal air about himself. I felt as if I were the attendant to a prince tho he occasionally bared his teeth in an ungentlemanly fashion. This happened if anyone became too bossy with him, not to threaten us but only because his nose itched when he became aggravated. He leaves behind his human family of mom, dad, and three brothers along with his special companion Lucy the dog and other furry ones. Sammy was my granddog. We are heartbroken.

Teddy came to live with us in the spring along with his lifetime companion Rosie, who is almost blind. They were rescued from the local shelter. Teddy was a Maltese mix, a very sweet and loving companion who followed my every step. I think he was happy living with us, maybe the happiest he had been in a long time. He seemed to be as he ran around the yard, barked at squirrels, and chased a cat or two, but he had a severe collapsed trachea, the worst our vet had ever seen. Breathing was very difficult. The medicine became less effective, and x-rays showed that the collapse was progressing with the possibility of a smothering death coming soon. On December 18th, my husband and I and Rosie accompanied Teddy to rainbow bridge where he waits for us. I held him in my arms as he crossed over. Our joy is now our sorrow.

How can we explain our tears to those who do not understand and have never experienced the deep devotion and bond between a dog and his humans? I know an elderly couple whose little dog was killed by a car (driven by a negligent friend). The husband told me that all they could do was cry. Day after day, they cried.

To bond with a dog is to know joy, laughter, affection unlimited, touch, love, the end of loneliness and always forgiveness. Always forgiveness. To share life on this level with one of God's creatures is, for some, the beginning of understanding of God himself.

Hail, holy Queen, Mother of Mercy!

Our life, our sweetness, and our hope!
To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve,

to thee do we send up our sighs,

mourning and weeping in this valley, of tears.

Turn, then, most gracious advocate,

thine eyes of mercy toward us;

and after this our exile show unto us the

blessed fruit of thy womb Jesus;

O clement, O loving, O sweet virgin Mary.

Pray for us, O holy Mother of God
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Saint Francis, Lover of All Creation

"When he considered the primordial sources of all things, he was filled with even more abundant piety, calling creatures, no matter how small, by the name of brother or sister, because he knew they had the same source as himself." (S. Bonaventure, The Life of Saint Francis.)

There are many stories about St. Francis and his encounters with animals, bird, fish and even insects. He rejoiced in the sounds of running water or blowing wind and walked reverently on stones. Nature became holy for him. He called all creatures and elements of creation, brother and sister. St. Francis saw everything created by God the Father and touched by the presence of the Word made flesh. He saw all creation as part of a divine family, deserving of our brotherly and sisterly love and respect. He saw great beauty in all that was around him and was enthralled by God’s presence in the created order.

"From all this, one can gather that
from the creation of the world
the invisible attributes of God are clearly seen,
being understood,
through the things that are made.
And so those who do not wish to heed these things,
and to know, bless and love God in all of them
are without excuse;
for they are unwilling to be transported
out of darkness
into the marvelous light of God."
(S. Bonaventure, The Soul’s Journey Into God)

I am a Secular Franciscan, and mom to my little family of Maltese dogs. I have a very deep affection for them and those I foster. Dogs have a spirit which allows them to form relationships, to bond with us, to love, to be grateful, to trust, to want to be with us, and other wonderful attributes which make them worthy of our greatest devotion and care. They have the imprint of God upon them which is what St. Francis realized about all creation. They are for us the source of some of our greatest joys and sorrows – sorrow when they are sick or in pain or leave us to breathe their breath back to God.

All my dogs have been a ladder for me to God. They have taught me much about God and myself in relation to him. As a Christian and a Franciscan, I cannot be indifferent to God's creatures. Any Franciscan who is indifferent has missed understanding an important part of St. Francis' spirituality. His love of all created things was an extension of his deep love of the Creator. Thomas of Celano, biographer of St. Francis for his canonization, says:

"In every work of the artist he praised the Artist; whatever he found in the things made he referred to the Maker. He rejoiced in all the works of the hands of the Lord and saw behind things pleasant to behold their life-giving reason and cause. In beautiful things he saw Beauty itself; all things were to him good. 'He who made us is the best,' they cried out to him. Through his footprints impressed upon things he followed the Beloved everywhere; he made for himself from all things a ladder by which to come even to his [God’s] throne."

He embraced all things with a rapture of unheard of devotion, speaking to them of the Lord and admonishing them to praise him. He spared lights, lamps and candles, not wishing to extinguish their brightness with his hand, for he regarded them as a symbol of Eternal Light. He walked reverently upon stones, because of him who was called the Rock…

He forbade the brothers to cut down the whole tree when they cut wood, so that it might have hope of sprouting again. He commanded the gardener to leave the border around the garden undug, so that in proper times the greenness of the grass and the beauty of flowers might announce the Father of all things … he ordered that honey and the best wines be set out for the bees, lest they perish from want in the cold of winter." (Thomas of Celano, Second Life, cxxiv, 165\\)

In this time of Advent, let us remember that all of creation has the imprint of the Creator. In this time of Advent, let us remember how St. Francis prepared the Christmas crèche at Greccio and honored the animals by including them. Let us prepare our hearts for the coming of the Child of Bethlehem, making of it his crib. Let us honor God’s presence in all creatures and in all creation.

"Most High, all-powerful, good Lord,
Yours are the praises, the glory and the honor and all blessing,
To you alone, Most High, do they belong, and no human is worthy to mention Your name.
Praised be You, my Lord, with all your creatures . . . ."
(The Canticle of the Creatures by St. Francis)