Outcry over Communion as ‘puppy chow’
Wednesday, July 28th, 2010
ELCA Pastor Mark Lingle leads an Episcopal church in Connecticut that offers a monthly Communion service for "animal lovers and their pets"
© Pretty Good Lutherans
Many Christians believe that Jesus, the Good Shepherd, is present in Holy Communion.
That’s why some were outraged recently when a Canadian priest provided Communion to Trapper, a German Shepherd.
They flooded the Rev. Marguerite Rea of St. Peter’s Anglican Church in Toronto with a torrent of complaints. Rea apologized after her bishop joined the outcry.
Meanwhile, in Connecticut, an Episcopal church led by ELCA Pastor Mark Lingle, has held a monthly Communion service for “animal lovers and their pets” since 2003.
During the service, the pets receive a blessing, but not Communion, according to the website of the church, St. Francis Episcopal in Samford.
The following individuals are known murder victims with ELCA ties killed since Pretty Good Lutherans was started in September 2009: