Can a priest bring his dog to mass?

[Brian123]

Obviously a priest can!

Our one priest brings his little dog into the church but so far doggy has not attended mass.

I’d rather have a well behaved dog “attending” mass than many of the children at my parish. Running around during mass, EATING, and being very disruptive. Like it’s some kind of a festival.

And the parents simply don’t see it. The priest simply doesn’t see it but it’s getting so bad lately people are complaining to the priest in writing.

I would enjoy a well behaved dog at mass every once in a while! Reminds me of our beloved St. Francis of Assisi.

I would say to ask the priest why the dog was at mass. I’m sure if you ask with an upbeat tone you will be provided with an answer.

 

[allhers]

There was this parish I went to in my old college. The church was a circular building with the altar right at the center. Surrounding it in likewise fashion were the pews. The multiple church doors were open all around it inviting everyone and everything.

And I do mean everything.

During the hot humid noon hours (this isn’t in the States but in the Philippines and it’s very hot here), beggars would come in and lie on the pews. Stray cats could also be found nestling somewhere with regularity. And there was this old dog that wandered perpetually all over the church.

And of course, sparrows can be seen flying in the rafters. I don’t know how it is in the States but this one is something common to every parish here except for some expensive air-conditioned ones but the latter is quite rare. Most have open air windows or doors.

Inspite of which, people would drop in at all hours. Some would go to the portrait of the Divine Mercy and pray. Others would go to the statue of Our Lady, hold her hand and look up at her lovingly. And of course, there’s Eucharistic Adoration 24 hours.

Heh, I remember when this old diseased beggar woman conned me out of a lot of money once. She used to loiter around this church. I have no negative grudges against then and now, she probably needed the money and ever since the con, she used to wave at me everytime we met somewhere around the campus. Fond memories.

I don’t know why I’m mentioning this. But this topic about the dog reminds me of that parish. For some strange reason, all of these elements inappropriate as they are in the parish gives me a warm fuzzy feeling of God’s all-accepting love. When I still went to mass there, I felt extremely welcome even though there wasn’t a single human voice greeting me.

Except for the altar, which is usually the first thing you see here in the United States of America, when you walk into the Church, your description sounds like the way my parents talked about their old Church’s growing up in Ireland.

My father had a bird that flew everywhere he went, even to Mass and School, but for some reason, that bird always stayed outside.
Even here, when my parents were younger things like that occasionally happened. They didn’t have a lot of air conditioning then. They do now.

I do know a Priest who takes a dog with him everywhere he goes, but the dog never goes into the Church while Mass is going on.

For some reason, I think I would enjoy what you and my parents experienced. But, I am a Franciscan at heart, and I care very much for animals.

There is an old legend that St. Francis use to walk around with bells on his toes so that he could warn the crickets and ants and other smaller bugs that lived in the ground and grass that he was walking through so they could hear him coming and move out of the way so he wouldn’t step on them. I heard that when I was very young and have loved St. Francis ever since. I could understand someone like that, as I cared very much for God’s little creatures too. (except spiders, ugh!!!) , and I’m not real fond of mosquitos or fleas either. Other than that, I’m good.

 

[KingAlfred]

This week-end our parish is having it’s summer festival and parking was going to be difficult because the parking lot was being used for the festival stuff. So we decided to attend mass at another church in the area.

Much to my surprise, the priest came in with a dog during mass. The dog wasn’t a seeing eye dog or did not appear to be needed for medical / health reasons because the priest was moving around very well and even walked back and forth during the homily.

The dog was very well behaved and laid there off to the side on the step before the altar.

After mass was over, the priest greeted people as they left. People shook his hand and petted the dog.

Is this allowed?

It’s in very poor taste. What’s next? This is just sign that the dignity of the Mass is eroding.

 

[Nanny_PK]

One of our previous pastors had a dog, a beautiful Samoyed name Skipper. Skipper sometimes wandered into my office to say hello but most of the time he spend at Fr. Jack’s feet.

Skipper was deathly afraid of thunder. One Saturday, during the anticipated Mass, a storm blew through and thunder cracked repeatedly. The next thing I heard was frantic scratching at the sacristy door. Knowing the damage Skip could inflict by scratching & chewing, I promptly got up to let him into the church. He rushed in, terrified, looked around and spotted Jack. One reassuring pass close to his master and he contentedly went to curl up in front of the Tabernacle where he stayed until the Recessional when he proudly walked down the aisle with Jack.

I absolutely love this story!!!

I’m a revert; and when I attended the Methodist church, one of the associate pastors brought his chocolate toy poodle to services for the children’s sermon. Zacheus (because he’s a wee little dog) was also a therapy dog which meant that he would go to hospitals, nursing homes, home visits, et cetera to visit shut ins or those who were ill. The kids loved it. He’s very well-behaved, and you actually forgot he was there.

I personally don’t have a problem with it, but I’m a dog lover so… I think that as long as the bishop is okay with it and the dog is not destructive or distracting, let the puppy go.

 

[blaskoman]

That priest should be defrocked.

 

[Pax2u]

Sorry, animal lovers, but I am totally opposed to dogs (or any other animals) in church. What about people with allergies? What about people who are afraid of dogs? And what a distraction–whether or not it is being quiet, your eyes are still going to be drawn to a dog (the “out of place” item in the picture).

One summer Sunday when I was little (long ago, back in the Latin Mass days) the church doors were propped open, and in the middle of Mass Father Horton’s dog came running up the aisle, making straight for the altar and his master. Everyone laughed (and back in those days, people didn’t laugh at Mass!). An usher promptly got the dog out. The story was the highlight of that afternoon’s dinner table conversation!

 

[GodsGadfly]

One of the most orthodox and holy priests I’ve ever known was famous for his dog “Shadow” who would often, but not always, come to Mass with him. He was the pastor of a set of mission churches where my dad was the organist. When he was at the home parish, Shadow, of course, stayed in the yard.

The one mission was in a doublewide; the sanctuary was on one side, and the parish hall was on the other. Shadow would lay in the “parish hall”/vestibule all through Mass, and never move.

Shadow also knew how to “pray”: Fr. Chris would throw a treat onto a chair. Shadow would go for it. Father would say, “Not yet, Shadow, we have to pray.” Shadow would cross his forepaws on the chair, looking down at the treat. Father would say grace, and Shadow would eat the treat.

For most of the congregation, Shadow was a living homily on how to behave at Mass.

 

[mercygate]

Sorry, animal lovers, but I am totally opposed to dogs (or any other animals) in church. What about people with allergies? What about people who are afraid of dogs? And what a distraction–whether or not it is being quiet, your eyes are still going to be drawn to a dog (the “out of place” item in the picture).

One summer Sunday when I was little (long ago, back in the Latin Mass days) the church doors were propped open, and in the middle of Mass Father Horton’s dog came running up the aisle, making straight for the altar and his master. Everyone laughed (and back in those days, people didn’t laugh at Mass!). An usher promptly got the dog out. The story was the highlight of that afternoon’s dinner table conversation!

As a dog lover, I hate to agree with you. But I must. Aside from the cultural prejudice against dogs in sacred spaces, one must prudently consider the points you mention. Allergies, people who fear dogs. Anybody who walks a dog down the street becomes aware of the astounding number of people who absolutely HATE dogs. And as you mention, others fear them or are allergic. Mass is not the place for conditioning the hateful and fearful to the virtues of companion animals. Even people with service dogs should be assigned to a section of their own so they won’t cause a ruckus – which a dog will do, even if only because people are attracted to it.

 

[GodsGadfly]

"Even people with service dogs should be assigned to a section of their own "

Segregation of the disabled?

Service dogs are trained to behave in public, and they wear special outfits designating them as such. People are never supposed to approach a service dog.

But the point is really rather moot. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anyone with a service dog at Mass. It’s rare enough seeing people in wheelchairs (yet 1 in 3 Americans uses a walker, cane or wheelchair), but that’s another topic.

 

[mercygate]

"Even people with service dogs should be assigned to a section of their own "

Segregation of the disabled?

Service dogs are trained to behave in public, and they wear special outfits designating them as such. People are never supposed to approach a service dog.

But the point is really rather moot. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anyone with a service dog at Mass. It’s rare enough seeing people in wheelchairs (yet 1 in 3 Americans uses a walker, cane or wheelchair), but that’s another topic.

We have to “segregate” the disabled in our parish because wheelchairs and walkers can be obstructive and a hazard if left in the aisles. Moreover, our section for the disabled is near the door, so they don’t have to move more than necessary. I guess that’s “segregation.” I prefer to think of it as “accommodation.”

 

[crenfro]

Are we discriminating against cats again?

 

[Ruthie]

We have a blind man who is a lector, God bless him. His dog behaves just fine, and guides him to the ambo and back.

We, too, have places where the handicapped normally sit. Nobody segregates them; there are just places where it’s easier to “park.”

Ruthie

 

[Jennifer_G]

Seeing eye dog, yes.
medical dog, yes.
dog not interrupting, yes.
dog interrupting, no.


They are God’s creatures too.

I knew someone in my old church who had a guide dog (she had epilepsy, I think). I think the dog was secretly Catholic - she (the dog) would go up to the altar rail, put both front paws on the kneeler and bow her head for a blessing, and at the end of the church service, be the first to leave - quickly. (pulling her owner along with her – I’m surprised the owner didn’t fall).

Miserissima:

I wanted to mention that in the Book of Tobit, Tobias’ dog is mentioned twice:

Tobit 6:2 When the boy left home, accompanied by the angel, the dog followed Tobiah out of the house and went with them. The travelers walked till nightfall,

and made camp beside the Tigris River.

My version of the Bible doesn’t even have that part in that verse…

 

[Biblioassistant]

I knew a priest who had a cocker spaniel named Angel who would follow him everywhere. She went to Mass, curled up in a corner until Father had finished, then she’d go to the sacristy and wait for him.

I don’t have a bit of trouble with a well behaved dog at Mass. The operative term is well behaved.

 

[Mary_Harmon]

We had a priest in Texas that brought his huge Irish Setter to Mass sometimes. I never thought it was appropriate.

 

[jean8]

I absolutely love this story!!!

I’m a revert; and when I attended the Methodist church, one of the associate pastors brought his chocolate toy poodle to services for the children’s sermon. Zacheus (because he’s a wee little dog) was also a therapy dog which meant that he would go to hospitals, nursing homes, home visits, et cetera to visit shut ins or those who were ill. The kids loved it. He’s very well-behaved, and you actually forgot he was there.

I personally don’t have a problem with it, but I’m a dog lover so… I think that as long as the bishop is okay with it and the dog is not destructive or distracting, let the puppy go.

I love pets as well as the next person, but when I go to church, my entire focus is on the Lord.
Keep your pets at home.
What would Jesus do? Was he walking around with a dog, or was his focus on what God the Father told him to do.

God bless,
jean

 

[elts1956]

there is a question that needs to be asked. What purpose is served by having a dog at the mass. in the case of service animals or at an animal blessing there is certainly an objective purpose. but these must be considered as extraordinary circumstances. the matter at hand is how does having a dog at the mass distract form our full and active participation in the Eucharist and what does the dog have to benefit from all this? all things considered the dog i believe would be a distraction, one that has the possibility of disturbing the mass itself, and has little or nothing to gain from a mass as the mass was not created for animals.

Awwww Gabriel. Makes me think of being HOME. God loves all animals great and small.

 

[Holly3278]

The dog does not belong at Mass and this should be reported to the bishop just in case the dog doesn’t need to be there.

 

[Aramis]

I love pets as well as the next person, but when I go to church, my entire focus is on the Lord.

Then you shouldn’t notice said animals…

I’ve no problem with animals at the church.

At the altar, that’s a different matter.
In general, the priest’s dog (if he owns one) should be secured somewhere during mass. The rectory or the back yard are good choices. The sacristy or the office are also good choices.

I’ve seen numerous service animals, mostly seeing eye dogs or door/fetch dogs. I’ve seen a mobility dog (Mastiff used instead of a walker by a person who could hang on, but not move a walker), and a hearing ear dog. I have a friend who has a seizure alert dog, but she’s Lutheran…

I’ve also seen a chap with a seeing eye goat, and seen on TV that they use ponies for some seeing eye work now. Monkeys are also used for door/fetch work, but generally mostly by homebound persons according to the literature.

 

[JuliaT]

While I don’t think everyone should bring their pets to Mass, I really don’t think think it is that big of a deal if the parish pet wanders in.

Afterall, God thought animals worthy enough to be present at the birth of Jesus. In fact He was born in *their * home.

Please don’t misunderstand me. I am not an over the top, animal fanatic. I have been following this thread for a while and this idea just occurred to me.