No coaxing rubs, no plaintive cry
Will say it's time for feeding
I've put away your bowl,
And all the things you won't be needing.
-from the poem, “Four Feet in Heaven” by Alice E. Chase
Journal Entry for August 8, 2021
I’ve had this article in my brain for nearly a week, but I wasn’t able to write a week ago because the pain was still too raw.
It was a week ago that my husband Daniel and I had to say goodbye to our cat Henning. His death was a shock to us both. We took him to a pet emergency for an issue that we thought had rectified itself only to learn that it didn’t and we would need to put him to sleep, which we did.
Every time I experience a beloved pet die, or see someone say their pet has died, I grapple with this issue: will we see our pets in the afterlife?
There was a time in my life when I thought answering in the affirmative was silly. God didn’t have time to worry about Fluffy or Fido. Of course, when you get one of the furry beasts they tend to grow on you and soon you start to see them as part of the family.
But, I also didn’t want to look at this in a sentimental way either. I wanted something took this issue on looking at the faith and looking at creation and giving as solid an answer as possible. I read the answers of a few theologians and some of them stand out. Karen Swallow Prior shared that through Noah and the ark, God saves animals. God also includes animals in the covenant with Noah and later in another covenant with Hosea. Adam gave the animals names. She concludes that in the New Heaven and New Earth where the wolf lies down with the lamb, maybe she will see her long, gone companions. “Perhaps God will honor my acts of naming the animals by bringing Gracie, Kasey, Myrtle, Peter, Oscar, and so many more there, too.”
Going back a couple of centuries, John Wesley, the founder of Methodism seemed to say that animals will be restored in the new creation which you can interpret in many ways. “The whole brute creation will then, undoubtedly, be restored, not only to the vigor, strength, and swiftness which they had at their creation, but to a far higher degree of each than they ever enjoyed,” he wrote in a 1791 sermon.
Lutheran pastor Bruce Hillman gives a number of reasons why he believes pets will join us in the afterlife. The most important I believe is that God came to save the world and not just humanity. Hillman can’t give an affirmative yes or no, but he wants to believe and more importantly, he wants to live in thankfulness to God for his dog:
When I look into my dog’s deep brown eyes, eyes that offer a gentle peace amidst a frantic world, when his eyelids are just slightly crimped and his slow panting gives the whole experience a gentle and calming rhythm, I can’t help but smile. In those moments, I often pray a prayer of thanksgiving to God, to be entrusted with so great a loyal and loving friend. Sometimes when Winston lies down next to me I catch his scent, it’s unique to him and each dog has their own, a mix of sandalwood and musk, it is strongest just behind his ears. This is the scent that you only get up close, or perhaps on his blanket. It is not the stinky or wet/dirty dog smell, it is his smell. Sometimes I wish I could capture it in an essential oil so that I can keep it forever, for it calms me. But I cannot. Winston is a gift from God, but I cannot possess him. He is here for as long as God allows him, and not a day goes by I do not give thanks.
I sometimes look at one of our other cats, Pedro. He is eighteen and walks a lot slower than he used to. I want him to stick around for a few years more, but I know the end is far closer than I would like that to be.
So, do animals join us in the afterlife? I can’t give a definite answer, but I’d like to believe God would allow it. I still believe something I wrote eight years ago after the death of another cat, Felix. I wrote," I don't know if cats or dogs go to heaven or not. I don't know if animals have souls or not. What I do know is that these creatures that enter our lives are made by God and therefore God's beloved creatures.” I will add that I give thanks to God for the love shown by Morris, Felix, Henri, Carlos, and Henning. I give thanks for Pedro and Ansel as they continue to offer love and companionship. To all the cats that have entered my life and those that will in the years to come, I say, thank you and I hope to see you on the Other Side.
But I will miss you little friend,
For I could never measure
the happiness you brought me,
the comfort and the pleasure.
And since God put you here to share
in earthly joy and sorrow
I'm sure there'll be a place for you
in Heaven's bright tomorrow...
Photo: Henning with Pedro in the background.
Unvaccinated Doesn’t Mean Anti-Vax
There’s been a lot of animosity towards those who haven’t yet been vaccinated from COVID-19. With that animosity comes a temptation to force people to get shots or else. What’s with the anger? Well, the Delta variant is sending more people to the hospital. But the other reason for the harshness is that COVID and the vaccines are like everything in our culture today, politicized. Among the right-wing, it’s a badge of honor to not get the vaccine and vice versa among liberals. On top of that, social media and the press tend to view this in political terms which means the unvaccinated are seen as Trump supporters. The truth is that the unvaccinated are far more diverse and more complex than people think. We are not taking into account the role that poverty plays in the unvaccinated. The anger towards the unvaccinated is far more in keeping with American rugged individualism than it is in the common good.
I go into this topic further in my latest essay: Giving Up Our Shot: Dealing With the Unvaccinated. If we want to see more people vaccinated, we have to stop seeing the unvaccinated as Trump supporters. Not everything revolves around politics.
En Route Podcast: The Blue, the Black and the Grey
In the summer of 1988, I went with my parents to visit Washington, DC and we went to Arlington National Cemetary. While there, I learned about the significance of Arlington: it once was the estate of one Robert E. Lee. We visited Lee’s house and the docent reminded us that it was here that Lee decided to fight for the Confederacy turning down Lincoln’s offer to lead the Union Army. I can remember the docent saying that Lee looked out from his porch knowing that once he left Arlington, he would never see it again. This was correct: the land was seized by the government and soon became the cemetery.
Even though I’m African American and have ancestors that were enslaved, I can feel a sense of sadness at this man giving up his home. On the other hand, he was also fighting for a cause that was evil, so losing his home was a just consequence.
The Civil War is an important event in the history of the United States, one that defined our nation. That four-year period, between 1861 and 1865 is a story of justice for African Americans and the reconciliation of the American nation.
I spoke with Chris Mackowski, the editor of the Emerging Civil War blog. The blog is made of a number of historians who come together to share their views on the Civil War and what it might mean for us today. During our conversation, we talk about being a fanboy of Stonewall Jackson, his experience and observations on race during a visit to Monument Avenue shortly after the murder of George Floyd, how to handle Confederate monuments, and how African American historians remind him that the Civil War is about more than battles, it’s about the emancipation of a people.
You can listen to it at the En Route Podcast website or listen to it via YouTube below:
That’s it for this week. Please pass Letters of Transit along to friends and family that might want to hear it. Send me thoughts and questions to denminn@gmail.com. See you soon!