A Reflection for Lent
2010 February 16
10 Responses
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Sniffing out the work of God in the world…
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Mike, you mentioned on Twitter the story about the dog with his paws cut off. I remember it well, very well. It was the old Rubel Shelly back in the early 70s. I always hated that story for the very reason you mentioned.
A fine video. I’m always so impressed when someone puts together the perfect combination of pictures, words, music.
Evidently, I’m one of the few who never got to hear the one about the pawless dog. (That just sounds so terrible).
I’m with you, Frank – in all aspects of your response – does that make us the only two of millions that haven’t heard the story of the pawless dog? Hummmm??
Mike, sorry for the duplicate response – if you have time, please delete the duplicate and this request as well. Thanks!!
Got it, Kathy. No problem. I’m up in VT with Landon and I’m a bit slow getting to the blog.
Please, I must know, what is the dog song?
About the dog story…it was told back in the early 60s in Searcy…always by student preachers…I never heard a faculty member/adult tell it…but I do remember hearing Neale Pryor and Jimmy Allen telling us in class that they felt it was an inappropriate illustration.
Ooookay – Dee et al – you know the dog story, some of you have heard it, others that it’s inappropriate – BUT there are still some of us that simply do no know what you’re talking about. Anyone care to share for those of us that managed to miss this one?
Thanks so much – my overactive curiosity is getting the better of me. lol
I’m not Mike, but I am his age and I heard it from the mouth of none other than Rubel Shelly when he was the very young ultra-conservative preacher for the Getwell Church of Christ located in Memphis. The short version is something like this. This guy had his pet dog in a canoe with him on a lake. A lot was made about how cute and adorable the dog was, or in Rubel’s version I believe it was a puppy. Before he got to the the gory part you had fallen in love with this fictitious dog/puppy. At some point the owner throws the puppy overboard. The puppy then eagerly swims back to the boat and as he reaches up with one paw the owner takes a hatchet and cuts the poor puppy’s paw off. Undaunted, the puppy makes it back to the boat a second time and sure enough the second paw is cut off and puppy, unable to swim he slips below the water being mercilessly killed by his owner. At that point in the story I remember people crying and everyone was just torn up about that little dog. Then the audience was told how pathetic they were that they could be so moved by a story about a dog and be so little moved by the story of the death of Jesus. I remember it well, and yes, people went down in droves, and that was about 40 years ago. I hope Rubel will forgive me for dragging his name into this.
Yipes! I’m really thankful I have known Rubel only in his post-repentance era, ’cause I surely do admire him in this present era!
Emotional blackmail, no matter the source, is among the worst of human machinations. Thankfully this and other such blackmailing stunts seem to be a thing of long forgotten past.
Thanks rcorum, for taking the time to sate my curiosity.