A boy and his dog - Tuesday, 28 September 2010 at 16:03. reposted from facebook

A few days ago we lost a family member. Gyp, a loyal family dog of about 17 years, died in front of my eyes as me and my dad tried to comfort him as he went. He was well loved by the family, but showed us greater love in return. Although I was only 4 or 5 when he was born, I still remember his mum lying there with a new litter of puppies around her trying to get milk. He was my first encounter with the beauty of new life (apart form my little sister I suppose but I was too young to remember her birth). Now, I have lost a few relatives before, namely my grandad and my nana, but the death of Gyp was my first up close encounter with death, and I saw how undignified it is.

I thank God for Gyp. He showed me such love growing up. He was always keen to chase the cat, fetch a stick, or be rubbed on the belly, and always excited to see me and ready to greet me with slobbery licks on the face and muddy pawprints on front of my shirt. Reflecting on the role that Gyp has played in my life I am struck by the beauty and the precious nature of creation in a new and personal way.

 Now the bible says little about what happens to animals when they die, and i know it is tempting for animal lovers to conclude that because of their great beauty, inelligence, and personality, that they have a spirit and that in some way they are, like humans, eternal. I don't have to much to say on this point as i dont think it's something we can necessarily know for sure. Rather i think that it can distract us from the beauty of creation. There are those Christians who shy away from placing much value on animals. I think this comes from a desire to keep a clear distinction between humans and animals, and the intelligence and personality that animals express sometimes challenges this distinction for some people. Another way in which Christians often undervalue creation is through a misapplication  of end-of-the-world theology, where they justify trashing the planet because God will one day renew or replace it anyway. 

 In both of these i see a common misunderstanding being expressed, that the eternal nature of man gives them some sort of right over nature to use or abuse it in any way they see fit, and also that the temporary nature of creation somehow leaves it void of value and makes it not precious. However, whether temporary or eternal, Gyp had an intelligence, a personality, an energy, and a form that was beautiful and precious beyond my appreciation of it. I am sorry i didn't love him as much as he deserved, and i am sorry to God that i undervalued the precious gift that he was. Some things may be temporary, and their beauty may fade like the grass and flowers that are here one day and wither the next, but they are none the less majestic and magnificent. I do not struggle with the idea that God might create something that is wondrous and beautiful, but also temporary. I marvel at the idea that countless beauties and wonders in the universe have come and gone never seen by human eyes, and perhaps never to be seen. Beauties and wonders that it may be beyond the limited grasp of a fallen man like myself to comprehend. I believe that God has made us stewards over something that is beautiful and precious. Something we have bastardised, marketised, prostituted, cheapened, used, and abused. 

 There is nothing pagan or unChristian about a love for creation. It is beautiful and precious and magnificent because it is made by a beautiful, precious, magnificent God. On the contrary, i am sickened and apalled at how Christian theology can be so twisted to justify the degradation of nature. I think the church should be most horrified at the way we abuse the environment. How can we do this to what God gave us? It's like being given a beautiful painting by a magificent artist and then taking a dump on it. How is it that Christians so often show such an irreverance for creation? It boggles the mind. But i feel i've perhaps strayed from the point a bit. This isn't so much a rant about environmentalism. It's about a boy and his dog. A boy who loved his dog, though not enough, and a dog who loved his boy, perhaps more then he deserved.

 I hope that, whether or not animals are in any way eternal creatures or not, that God might make an exception for Gyp. That when i get to heaven God might see fit in His amazing grace to return Gyp to me. Who knows.

I love you Gyp. Can't believe you're gone.