As we enter the final week of August (which is going to be a hot one in this neck of the woods), I wanted to pass along this posting from a friend of mine, Fr. Tom Zelinski from the St. Anthony Spirituality Center in Marathon, Wisconsin (http://sarcenter.com/). He truly captures the “heated” topic of the Dog Days of Summer.
This time of year is often referred to as “dog days.” I have been thinking about dogs, whatever the weather might be. Dogs have certain qualities about them that are quite appealing, when they are not suffering from particular doggie neuroses and other troubles.
Now, I have never had a dog and so have not had day to day experience with these things, but sometimes I see in dogs some wonderful qualities. They seem so loyal. They seem eager to please; some will run after a thrown ball over and over again and bring it back to you as though bringing a special gift. They look at you with wonderful brown or black eyes, almost with a kind of adoration that none of us deserves.
Dogs seem to overlook our human foibles, as though to say “I don’t care what kind of a day you have had. I don’t care if you have done something stupid. I don’t care if you are upset with some other people. I will just sit here and put my nose on your knee and stay with you.” Now, who couldn’t use a friend like that?
Such behavior sounds almost like unconditional love. I don’t know if a dog “loves” us or what goes on in a doggie brain. But the external behavior looks like a persistent, determined, loyal affection. Of what might that remind us?
This may be a “leap,” but are we not to believe the love of God is something like that for us? One of the great tasks of the spiritual life is to allow ourselves to believe that God loves us unconditionally. We do not have to earn that love. We do not have to jump through hoops to deserve it. About the only thing we can do is to reject it through our own doubt or refusal to believe we are lovable. The love of God is always there, in us, around us, in however God is present to us and to the world.
People seem to have a hard time believing that and prefer to feel unworthy or that their own sin and weakness is bigger than God’s mercy. That, of course, is absurd.
So, maybe creatures like dogs, who gaze at us with eyes of affection, can be visible reminders of the love of the God we cannot see. And maybe some people look at us that way as well. Are we paying attention?
Blessings,
Fr. Tom
