{"id":388,"date":"2016-08-07T03:15:37","date_gmt":"2016-08-07T03:15:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/?p=388"},"modified":"2016-08-07T03:18:11","modified_gmt":"2016-08-07T03:18:11","slug":"for-the-love-of-dog-for-the-god-of-love","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/?p=388","title":{"rendered":"FOR THE LOVE OF DOG \/\/ FOR THE GOD OF LOVE"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Walk<\/a>A few weeks ago on a Friday, on my usual morning walk, I was pondering the gospel for the coming Sunday \u2026 especially the part known as the Parable of the Good Samaritan.\u00a0 Knowing I have to watch my time in the mornings (because my commute now takes about three times as long to detour around construction), I was trying to decide whether to take the full walk or save a few minutes time by cutting it a little short.\u00a0 When I reached the point where I\u2019d need to turn back or keep going, I decided to keep going.<\/p>\n

Just past that point, I encountered a white Labrador dog walking around loose \u2026 up on the path, then down in the street.\u00a0 I really did not have time to deal with a lost dog, I tried to tell myself.\u00a0 But what had I just been thinking about?\u00a0 A story Jesus told that turns on whether or not people will interrupt their own agendas for the sake of a stranger in need.\u00a0 And here was a creature in need of help.\u00a0 The dog had a collar \u2026 which would indicate she belongs with someone \u2026 so even if the dog didn\u2019t quite qualify as another human being, the person the dog belonged with surely qualified.<\/p>\n

I convinced the dog to come to me.\u00a0 But as I attempted to search her collar for a tag, she darted back into the street.\u00a0 There wasn\u2019t a lot of traffic on the street at that time.\u00a0 The posted speed limit is only 25mph because the road has lots of sharp curves, poor sight lines, and is a popular area for bicyclists, walkers (with and without dogs), and the occasional roller-skier.\u00a0 However, drivers regularly disregard the speed limits \u2026 and one such driver was approaching.\u00a0 I yelled and waved my arms to warn him of the dog just ahead.\u00a0 He stopped \u2026 and the driver coming from the other direction stopped as well.\u00a0 The dog made it safely out of the street and I was able to grab her collar.\u00a0 There was no tag.<\/p>\n

As I pondered what to do now, a man rode by on a bicycle.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s a nice puppy you got there,\u201d he said.\u00a0 I explained she wasn\u2019t mine and asked if he knew where the dog belonged.\u00a0 He said he didn\u2019t and pedaled on.\u00a0 Looking around at the houses across the street, I thought I remembered an older man sitting in a lawn chair tossing a ball to a similar dog in one of the yards.\u00a0 So I started to lead the dog across the street.\u00a0 Her collar was loose and she pulled out of it.\u00a0 Once I got her across the street, I managed to slip her collar back on and led her to the house where I thought she might belong.\u00a0 She went up the steps to the door readily enough and I rang the doorbell \u2026 realizing as I did that it was about 6:30am.<\/p>\n

The door was answered promptly by a woman who was fully dressed, with a dog beside her and a man standing behind her.\u00a0 I asked if the dog were hers and she said no.\u00a0 She recalled a white lab that had been lost from a home a few doors down \u2026 but that was a couple years ago.\u00a0 Then she explained that she was getting ready for her mother\u2019s funeral that morning \u2026 if not for that, she would have been glad to help.\u00a0 She gave me the name of a neighbor a few doors in the other direction who had lived there for years and who might know where the dog belonged.\u00a0 Watching me struggle with the dog\u2019s collar (it pulled loose again as I tried to lead the dog away), she offered to lend me a leash.\u00a0 I accepted and promised to return it.<\/p>\n

I took the dog to the house she suggested and, knowing it was still pretty early in the morning, I only rang the doorbell once.\u00a0 A number of lights were on, so I had some hope someone might answer.\u00a0 But no one did.\u00a0 Without a watch, I wasn\u2019t sure of the time, but I was going to be late for work at the rate things were going.The loaner leash made it much easier to walk the dog and we headed back home. \u00a0As we walked, I noticed she was favoring one of her hind legs a bit and I wondered if it had been that way for a time (she was an older dog) or if she\u2019d been injured while she\u2019d been lost.\u00a0 But she kept up at a good clip as we walked.<\/p>\n

\"LabradorRetriever_hero\"<\/a>Once we reached the house, I secured the dog\u2019s leash in the back yard, went in the house and woke the kids up.\u00a0 The time wasn\u2019t as late as I feared; there might still be enough time to make it to work.\u00a0 I gave my son the task of calling animal control to report the lost dog.\u00a0 \u00a0After helping me find dishes to put out some food and water for the dog, my daughter took care of our cats (a task that I usually do) and put my lunch items into the bag.\u00a0 As I dressed for work, the kids took reluctant turns sitting out with the dog and keeping her company.\u00a0 My son called animal control as soon as the office opened and reported that they would come at some point to pick up the dog.<\/p>\n

I was just a few minutes late to work.\u00a0 As soon as I reached my desk, I had a text from my daughter letting me know that animal control agents had just picked up the dog.\u00a0 They had left a card so I could follow up on the situation.\u00a0 My daughter had also taken a picture of the agent’s card in case she encountered anyone looking for a lost dog when she went out for a walk.\u00a0 My son was able to walk his dog and make it to his job on time.<\/p>\n

Between the bad leg and the fleas my daughter noticed on the dog, we thought she might have been lost for some time.\u00a0 We agreed the dog had such a sweet disposition; she was instantly charming.\u00a0 If no owner showed up, we were seriously considering adopting her ourselves.<\/p>\n

The following Monday, I called animal control to find out what had happened to our little friend.\u00a0 I was told that the dog had been reunited with her owner a little more than an hour after she had been picked up at our house.\u00a0 Maybe she did have a microchip and they had a way of scanning for it in the truck.\u00a0 Maybe the dog had already been reported lost with such a good description that the officers decided to contact the person who reported the dog missing before taking her to the shelter.\u00a0 In any case, the dog was reunited with her owner quickly.\u00a0 It all worked out.<\/p>\n

That particular day, I was thinking about that parable of the \u201cGood Samaritan\u201d and how I would actually tell it (rather than read it) to the congregation that coming Sunday.\u00a0 We all know the form of the story; it is certainly one of the best-known among the parables \u2026<\/p>\n

A certain person was going down the road that leads from Jerusalem to Jericho.\u00a0 As he went, he fell among some bandits.\u00a0 They stripped him and beat him and left him half-dead by the side of the road.\u00a0 Then they went away.\u00a0 By chance, a priest (a holy man) came along the same way.\u00a0 He saw the man lying naked and half-dead by the side of the road.\u00a0 But he passed by without attending to him.\u00a0 Likewise, a Levite (a higher order of priest) came along the same way.\u00a0 He, too, saw the man lying naked and half-dead by the side of the road.\u00a0 But he, too, passed by without attending to him.\u00a0 \"good-samaritan\"<\/a>But when a Samaritan \u2013 one of those despicable half-breeds of bad faith and questionable character \u2013 when this Samaritan saw the man lying naked and half-dead by the side of the road, his guts were twisted with compassion.\u00a0 Taking oil and wine, he came near the man and poured these on his wounds.\u00a0 He bandaged the man\u2019s wounds.\u00a0 Then he put the man on his own beast of burden and transported him to an inn where travelers lodge.\u00a0 There, he cared for the man.\u00a0 The next day, he took out two coins, each worth a day\u2019s wages; these he gave to the innkeeper.\u00a0 \u201cTake care of him,\u201d he told the innkeeper; \u201cif you spend more than this on his care, let me know, and I will repay you when I return.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cNow,\u201d Jesus said to the legal expert who questioned him, \u201cwhich of these three are you thinking acted as a neighbor to the man who fell among the bandits?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The whole story, of course, is intended as an answer to the question \u201cWho is my neighbor?\u201d\u00a0 We usually think of neighbors as those close by \u2026 people we know \u2026 maybe those who live in the places next door to our own.\u00a0 But Jesus answers a question about neighbors by telling a story about people who are traveling.\u00a0 The one who acts as a neighbor is the one who has compassion on the one in need \u2013 and does something the alleviate that need, something that demonstrates care and concern.\u00a0 To love our neighbors as ourselves is to act with care and compassion to those we find in need however we find them.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy enough, I suppose, to stop for a sweet lost dog \u2026 for the helpless creature herself, if not for the people who are desperately trying to find her.\u00a0 For those whom we know, whom we care about, who are dear to us, it requires no thought at all.\u00a0 Of course, we will drop everything to help as much as we can when they call.\u00a0 For casual acquaintances, those we know only slightly, we\u2019re a lot less willing \u2013 and perhaps wisely so.\u00a0 But what about the complete stranger?<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no easy answer.\u00a0 The parable makes it seem simple.\u00a0 The person in need is the neighbor and, to fulfill the commandments, one must show love and compassion to them.\u00a0 We might stop for someone we saw trip and fall in the street \u2026 summon help \u2026 direct cars around her \u2026 stay until help arrives.\u00a0 We might help someone in a parking lot jump start a car or stop for someone stranded at the side of the road \u2026 or at least call for appropriate help.\u00a0 But would we stop if there was an accident unless it directly involved us \u2026 if there were no police or paramedics or firefighters on the scene yet?\u00a0 And then what do we do for the man standing at the intersection, holding a sign asking for help?\u00a0 The woman begging bus fare in the parking lot between the grocery store and the liquor store?\u00a0 Do the taxes we pay for the transit system count? Does the change we dropped into some kettle back at Christmas count as helping the one with the sign?\u00a0 And would it truly be helping to give money \u2013 or is that delaying the person from accessing real help?\u00a0 There are no simple, clear answers.<\/p>\n

But here are some clues \u2026 because we\u2019ve lost sight of who\u2019s who in the zoo of this parable.\u00a0 We call the Samaritan \u201cgood\u201d because of what the character does.\u00a0 But no one in Jesus\u2019 audience would ever have associated an adjective like good<\/em> with anyone of Samaritan descent.\u00a0 Someone like the priest would be expected to be the hero of the tale, the example to emulate.\u00a0 If not the priest, then certainly the Levite could be expected to rise to the occasion.\u00a0 But just as the right thing to do is murky for us, it was for these characters as well\u00a0 The purity codes priests were expected to follow imposed specific sanctions for contact with a dead body.\u00a0 It would be hard to tell half-dead from all-dead without violating the laws that guided the behaviors of priests. \u00a0If the person were indeed dead, the one who had contact with him would be ritually impure, unable to perform his priestly duties.\u00a0 That the priest and the Levite are coming from Jerusalem suggests they wouldn\u2019t have been expected to perform any temple rites before they could become ritually pure again.\u00a0 Perhaps for the sake of following the rules, they weren\u2019t willing to risk contact with the man by the road.\u00a0 Should either of them have made an exception to the rules for the sake of the man by the side of the road?\u00a0 These are important people in the community, with places to go and things to do.\u00a0 Should they set aside their duties, obligations, agendas for the sake of whoever, whatever this person by the road happens to be?<\/p>\n

The Samaritan, of course, does stop to help.\u00a0 We forget now, but Jesus\u2019 audience would have regarded him as suspect and dangerous, expected a Samaritan to take advantage of a situation like that and perhaps do further harm to the man by the side of the road.\u00a0 But the Samaritan in Jesus\u2019 story does the unexpected.\u00a0 He stops.\u00a0 He does the right thing.\u00a0 He does more than just help a little.\u00a0 He either takes care of what is needed or arranges for the rest of it.\u00a0 But who do we suspect will harm rather than help?<\/p>\n

\"Accident<\/a>Almost three years ago, I was one in need of help \u2026 stuck by the side of the road after a freakish vehicle accident.\u00a0 Those already at the scene responded immediately \u2026 checked that everyone was okay, called for the police.\u00a0 The police officer came and did his job \u2013 collected the information, verified that all of us would be able to drive or otherwise remove our vehicles from the scene.\u00a0 Once that was done, he left.\u00a0 Everyone else moved on \u2026 except me.\u00a0 My vehicle didn\u2019t seem to be drivable (and that did later prove to be the case).\u00a0 I had already called my husband and he was on his way.\u00a0 But that would take time.\u00a0 Everyone left and there was nothing more to do but call the insurance company to initiate the claim, get a referral to a body shop, and arrange for the tow.<\/p>\n

While I was on my phone, a man came along the sidewalk, walking his bike rather than riding it.\u00a0 He stopped by my minivan.\u00a0 When a bus stopped at the nearby stop, he spoke to someone on the bus, but he didn\u2019t board it.\u00a0 He just waited.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t say anything to me \u2026 didn\u2019t ask what happened.\u00a0 I suppose I could have (should have?) felt a little frightened.\u00a0 After all, I\u2019m a white woman and he was African-American.\u00a0 But I found his mere presence to be a comfort, not a threat.\u00a0 I was still on the phone with the insurance company when my husband arrived.\u00a0 The two of them talked a bit \u2026 and then the man with the bicycle moved along his way.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know why he stopped.\u00a0 Maybe he was curious about what happened.\u00a0 But he never asked \u2026 and I never had a chance to ask him.\u00a0 I like to think he stopped to keep an eye out for me while I was distracted on the phone.\u00a0 Once he knew I was safe with the next person who showed up (my husband), then my unexpected helper, my \u201cgood Samaritan\u201d went on his way.<\/p>\n

We know how to do this with helpless creatures like dogs \u2026 We know how to do this for people we know, especially those we love \u2026 Can we learn to do these things for one another simply because we are all human beings?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A few weeks ago on a Friday, on my usual morning walk, I was pondering the gospel for the coming Sunday \u2026 especially the part known as the Parable of the Good Samaritan.\u00a0 Knowing I have to watch my time in the mornings (because my commute now takes about three …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-388","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-musings"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=388"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/388\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":396,"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/388\/revisions\/396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/maybegoosefeathers.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}