5 Responses to “Diva’s Blessing”

1. Sue Says:
   June 30th, 2007 at 10:47 pm

   My first reaction was “Yes!”

   At least one well-known member of PETA is a practicing Roman Catholic.

   And then there’s the Catholic Concern for Animals, and the Catholic Vegetarian Society.

   Another prominent Catholic is Matthew Scully, President Bush’s former speech-writer, and author of Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy

   Even Cardinal Newman and Pope Benedict XVI have made some amazingly animal-friendly statements.

   (What’s wrong with praying for one’s dog? Do you think God wouldn’t answer prayers for a non-human animal? If so, I have some personal stories to share with you.)

2. Brian Groce Says:
   July 1st, 2007 at 12:24 am

   Sue,

   Thank you for your comments.

   Not being Catholic, vegetarian or a PETA member/supporter I had no idea such groups existed, but seeing this poster (in a non-Catholic church), piqued my curiosity and made me wonder.

   Yes, please feel free to share any stories or knowledge that you have. And if you know the history of “Diva” I would be interested to hear about that as well.

   Brian

3. Google Watch: Catholic PETA » The Musings of Brian Groce » Surge Bucket Media Says:
   July 1st, 2007 at 12:42 am

   […] two in Google for the “Catholic PETA” (no quotes) search, specifically related to the Diva’s Blessing post from May […]

4. Sue Says:
   July 1st, 2007 at 1:09 am

   First, thank you for posting my comment. I was afraid you wouldn’t if you saw my blog. (Also, the reason I posted what I did on my site in reference to another blog site’s post was because the guy chose not to post my comments on his.)

   II actually found your blog while Googling for “Catholic PETA” to see what might show up, because PETA gets so much flak.

   I don’t know who Diva is. But she looks like a Pit Bull, and they need all the prayers they can get.

   I always pray for my pets when they’re critically ill, and will pray for other’s too.

   It all started with my fish who was lying at the bottom of his tank, bloated, with rotted fins and missing scales, but not “dead enough” to scoop out. I prayed for God to let him die quickly so he wouldn’t have to suffer. But after a few days — well you can read the story here:
   http://episcoveg.weblogger.com/stories/storyReader22?print-friendly=true

   That event meant so many things to me. And one thing (on the skepticism of whether a prayer is actually answered, or if there is some psychological explanation, for example) is that, unlike a dog or a cat who may “read” our concern through tone of voice, emotions, actions or body language — and may recover as a favor to us, a fish doesn’t have that sort of relationship. So I considered it a miracle when he was able to get off the rocks, and start swimming again with the rest.

   When my old dog Nicki had a stroke, I really had to consider whether or not I should have her euthanized. She couldn’t stand without falling to the right, and her eye’s shifted back and forth uncontrollably. I took her to the vet, who said she was the best she’d ever be, but he didn’t suggest euthanasia. So I emailed out a prayer request to people I know, and within a day, her eyes were back to normal, and within a couple of weeks, she could walk normally. The vet said (changing his story) that the brain has a way of recircuiting around the damaged areas. So maybe there was a scientific explanation. (But God invented science.)

   When my brother’s dog had surgery for cancer in her mouth, the vet told him he wasn’t able to get it all, and thought it would return with a vengence. He asked me to send out a prayer request, and the cancer never came back. (She ended up having surgery for another tumor about a year later, but that was successful too.) It’s been over a year, and she’s still doing well.

   (My brother isn’t, though.)

   My current dog is on a prayer list, because he had both hind legs repaired last year for ruptured cruciate ligaments. And by the time he was supposed to be recovered enough, his muscles were so atrophied (his butt was “gone” and so were the muscles in his thighs) he wasn’t able to walk at all. He’s been going to underwater treadmill therapy since November, and finally within the past month, he has started walking. He can walk about three blocks, even if he has to stop and rest. That might have happened anyway with the therapy, but the therapist was pretty surprised to see him walking on his own last week for the first time.

   Those are just a few of the more spectacular examples of what I can only consider answered prayers for animals.

   I also pray for my pets when they’re dying, because I really don’t want to have them euthanized, but also don’t want them to suffer. The last two died peacefully in the night, in the comfort of their own home, literally sparing me “the decision” that I might have had to make the next morning.

5. Sue Says:
   July 1st, 2007 at 4:54 pm

   I was trying to do an Internet search on “Diva’s Blessing” and couldn’t find anything.

   I wonder if Diva is the dog, or simply a feminine reference to God (or a reference to some unknown pagan goddess).

   Since Christians aren’t typically known for recognizing God’s care for the animal creation in a serious-enough way, maybe it’s easier to attribute a blessing to some other god(dess), than to their God. I suspect that might be why people use a non-religious term like “Rainbow Bridge” instead of “Heaven” when it comes to non-human animals.

   In other words, I have no idea.

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