An Anglican cathedral held a memorial service for a cat during the pandemic. What do you think?

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Tis_Bearself said:
But at the same time I would welcome some kind of a Mass of Thanksgiving for ā€œall creatures great and smallā€ (animals of course, or their remains, would not be actually brought to the church but brought in our hearts) as this seems to me to be an evangelization opportunity as well as emphasizing Christian stewardship and giving animal people a chance to pray in a setting where they wonā€™t have to suffer painful remarks like some of the ones discussed on this thread.
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This thread is a good example of why I believe God is watching over the Church:

God: sends us the most wildly popular saint since the Blessed Mother (Francis) who is beloved worldwide by Catholics and non-Catholics alike for his grateful, humble approach to animals and creation, modeling a Catholic way to approach the primal emotional connection most of us feel towards animals and nature.

Church: Letā€™s ignore that as much as possible for hundreds of years and instead nitpick at people for loving their pets too much while the environment is destroyed!

The fact that morons such as ourselves are still limping around is a sure sign of Godā€™s mercy and forebearance.
 
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As I said in a previous post, this isnā€™t so - at least it isnā€™t so in my diocese of Liverpool. There are two or three funerals a week in my parish. Limited numbers and distancing, but still funerals even when for a time we were the only region in Tier Three.

I agree with you over the scandal and upset caused by big Traveller funerals.
 
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Personally I donā€™t see the problem.

Funeral services are not primarily celebrations of the life of the deceased. Indeed, eulogies traditionally form.no part of a funeral Mass.

Instead they are peayers offered for the soul of the departed and the consolation of those mourning them.

Not sure exactly what prayers were prayed here, but unless they included prayers for the soul of the cat, I dobt see a.theological.issue.

And from a pastoral perspective, some people may have been upset, for many it seems either not to have been an issue or indeed was a source of consolation.and joy.
 
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LilyM said:
I donā€™t see the problem.
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The issue is the opening of a closed door by making a beloved pet the object of an Ecclesial Service of Worship - In this case a Service of Thanksgiving to God for the catā€¦
The beginning of much sin is that it seems so innocent at firstā€¦
The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil ā€œwas good for food, and ā€¦ was pleasant to the eyes, and ā€¦ to be desired to make one wiseā€¦ā€
From a human perspective, there was no reason to not eat thereofā€¦

So we live Christed lives, and a part of that living is that we gather together to do the common work of the Church, which is the Body of our Lord of Which we are membersā€¦ And the Services for these gatherings are prescribed from the beginnings - The ā€œOfficesā€, as it were, of the Services of the Ekklesiaā€¦ Matins, First Hour, Third Hour, Sixth Hour, and on and on through the day and the night, every day beginning each day with the Service of Vespers at the setting of the sunā€¦

And in the doing of these Services, we partake in the Medicines of Immortality, for that is their purpose, and as well, we act in them as the Royal Priesthood, interceding in Prayers to God for the benefit of all mankind, and indeed of all creation, for we are verily Members of the very Body of the Creator of All Creationā€¦ Who came to earth because God so loved the WORLD (kosmos) that He incarnated to save fallen man from his fallā€¦

And now someone wants to insert into these prescribed Services of our Lord the Prayers of Thanksgiving for their Beloved Petā€¦ And this insertion is justified on the grounds that its fruit is pleasant to the eyes, good for food, and desirable to make one wiseā€¦"

Indeedā€¦
LilyM said:
From a pastoral perspective, some people may have been upsetā€¦
For many it seems either not to have been an issue
or
Indeed was a source of consolation.and joy.
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Theologically, such an insertion into the Divine Services of its consecration unto thanksgiving for a cat becomes problematic when it is not a prescribed feature of that Serviceā€¦

Pandoraā€™s box opens, you seeā€¦ Why not my horse? Why not my salamander? What about my parakeet and my box turtle? What about our tropical fish? How about my three year oldā€™s new puppy that got hit by a car?

Speaking of which, there is a sign in a gift store posted on the wall:

NO UNATTENDED CHILDREN!

Below it is another sign:

UNATTENDED CHILDREN
WILL BE GIVEN
A CUP OF SWEET COFFEE
AND A PUPPY

Well, enough!

I mean, how do you think I got MY first puppy??

OK - That exhausts my talent for humorā€¦

Maybeā€¦

geo
 
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