Thursday, July 29, 2010

Canadian Anglican priestess repents of canine communion

by Ed Beavan

A German Shepherd-Rhodesian ridgeback   © not advert
Canine communicant: a German Shepherd-Rhodesian ridgeback

AN ANGLICAN church in Canada has caused an outcry after a dog was given holy communion. The Revd Marguerite Rea gave a consecrated wafer to an Alsatian-cross breed named Trapper, at St Peter’s, Toronto, last month.

It was the first time the dog and his owner, Donald Keith, had attended a service there. The Bishop of York Scarborough, the Rt Revd Patrick Yu, who oversees St Peter’s, emphasised that it was against the policy of the Anglican Church of Canada. “I can see why people would be offended. It is a strange and shocking thing, and I have never heard of it happening before.” He said he believed Ms Rea was overcome by “a misguided gesture of welcoming”. He has received assurances from her that it will never happen again. The matter was now closed, he said, as “we are, after all, in the forgiveness-and-repair business.” On Sunday, Ms Rea apologised for her action, which had been a “simple act of reaching out”...

2 comments:

Terry Nelson said...

Apology or no apology - she's clearly an idiot.

Cat said...

The dog in the picture is a purebred Rhodesian Ridgeback.