EARTHKEEPING NEWS A NEWSLETTER OF THE NORTH AMERICAN COALITION FOR CHRISTIANITY AND ECOLOGY Volume Three, Number Six July/August 1994 But ask the animals, and they will teach you; the birds of the air, and they will tell you. . . . Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains; Your judgments are like the great deep; You save humans and animals alike, O Lord. (Job 12: 7 and Ps. 36: 6) PASTOR CONDUCTS MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR WESTON, THE CAT After 35 years in the pastorate, last May the Rev. Finley Schaef did something new. He conducted a service in the church garden celebrating the completed life of Weston, the feline companion for 20 years of Sue Bowen, a member of Park Slope United Methodist Church, Brooklyn NY. Assembled friends sang hymns ("All Creatures of Our God and King" and "There's a Whole World in God's Hands"), listened to scripture readings, and shared memories of Weston. Excerpts from the pastor's Reflections follow: "We are here today to honor not only a feline friend, Weston, but also the friendship itself, between a cat and a human, each members of an entirely different species. We human beings live in a natural environment and depend on it for our well-being. It's more than a question of dependence. The Earth brought us into being after millions of years of experimenting and developing life-forms. "We can be sure that the Earth did not bring us into being to despoil and destroy it — but rather to be friends. Sue's love for Weston is an example of how God wants us to live with animals and the natural world. "Of course such love must come to an end on the Earth. The evolution of the cat and the evolution of the human — as well as the evolution of a loving relation between the cat and the human — took millions of years and could not have happened if living creatures did not come and go. We accept that fact of our existence on earth, but we grieve nonetheless because loss hurts. "We are here to express our hurt and sense of loss, but also to give thanks for Weston the cat and Sue the human and their love for each other. "May the love we celebrate today — a genuine love between members of different species — grow and increase around the face of the planet Earth until the day of the Lord comes when all living creatures shall respect each other. Amen. For a copy of the order of service and meditation, write Rev. Finley Schaef, 453 Seventh St., Brooklyn NY 11215, (718) 768-3093. Home     Table of Contents