Francis and being all good (with lots of stuff about SPCA)
This can be listened to here
Gate Pa – Pet Sunday 2017
What I want to
say:
today
we celebrate two things
first
is crazy saint of Assisi – Francis; and how when he embraced lady Poverty
allowed him to see the goodness of God in all things and all people and all
creation.
the
amazing work of SPCA -> today give freely to support this work
What I want to
happen:
people to see the goodness of
people and creation
to support generously the work of
SPCA
The Sermon
1. Introduction:
Today we celebrate
Firstly we celebrate the crazy little saint of
Assisi, who turned the church of his time and his world on its head
Francis of Assisi
who through ½ million professed followers
today in Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran and other churches around the
world,
continues to live among the poor and disposed
in some of poorest countries
and challenge unjust ways of rich and powerful
today in highest places
2. The Goodness of God
When Francis embraced Lady Poverty as his
bride - took literally command to sell
all he had and give to the poor and then go follow Jesus
when let go of all he needed to protect
he found goodness
Goodness of God seen in creation and humanity
Richard Rohr – Franciscan Priest from USA
writes
“The goodness of God fills all the gaps of the
universe without discrimination or preference. God is the gratuity of
absolutely everything. The space in between everything is not space at all but
Spirit. God is the goodness glue that holds the dark and light of things together.”
led him to do some very strange things
·
when robbers set
about beating him and stealing his cloak,
o
he did not defend
himself
o
instead stripped
off all his clothes and freely gave them as well
o
clearly they
needed them more than he
·
when known thief
came door friary and was turned away, Francis ordered the brother to run after
the man and kneel in repentance, and to bring the man back for as much food as
he needed, even if that left none for the brothers
o thief was
awestruck by such generosity
o
within a short
while came back – this time to become a friar himself
·
or in 1219 when
he joined the 5th Crusade, and walked across the lines into the
Muslim camp seeking an audience with the Sultan – the effective head of Islam
in the Middle East
o
at a time, like
now, when those of the other faith were defined by our differences and hated
o
Francis only saw
the good, and without fear went to speak to his brother
These are the stories that inspire and trouble
those who call themselves today
This is the humble man we honour today.
Who knew that “The goodness of God fills all
the gaps of the universe without discrimination or preference…. (That) God is
the goodness glue that holds the dark and light
of things together.”
3. SPCA
Inspectorate -
Our inspectorate service is at the
forefront of what the SPCA Tauranga is all about. Our Animal Welfare Inspectors
attended 374 Animal complaints in 2016 compared with 351 in 2015.
This year - 351 complaints, with
still 4 months to go till the end of the yearl
Many animals are successfully
rehomed and the owners are prosecuted and fined. There are some instances where
our hands are tied, however with the law on our side, we are able to deal
effectively with all sorts of animal abuse and neglect and will do everything
in our power to ensure the safety of the animals in our community.
Adoption - The SPCA Tauranga rescues and adopts over 950 animals
through the ‘Betty Napier Animal Shelter’ every year. All animals adopted out
by the SPCA Tauranga are de-sexed, vet checked, vaccinated, flea treated, worm
treated, micro-chipped and come with a one year SPCA membership.
Fostering - Our foster parents play the vital role of teaching our
young and vulnerable animals that they don’t have to suffer, they don’t have to
go without meals and they can learn to be a part of a family. We rely hugely on
the support of our foster parents as we simply don’t have the capacity to hold
every single animal that comes in to us at our shelter until we can find them
new homes.
180 puppies and six dogs that
came into our shelter were fostered before adoption. Foster parents looked
after 590 kittens and 105 mother cats who came into the shelter. (2015
statistics)
In 2016 we took into our care
approximately 300 puppies, 500 cats, 800 kittens, 80 dogs, 100 other (rabbits,
wildlife, etc.) almost 1800 animals (compared to 1600 in 2015), Number for this
year is already 1200 animals.
All of these animals have
entered our care and have needed our assistance in one way or another.
Sadly this care does not come free, the SPCA absorbs this cost for each animal,
and although we charge an adoption cost, this minimal fee does not cover the
cost of the care that we provide for each animal which can in reality be
approximately $350.00 per animal, so as you can imagine any support, donations
and the likes are much appreciated.
Education - Education gives us a way to encourage the humane
treatment of all animals through interaction, sharing information, stories and
fun activities. We believe that through education we will help to improve the
lives of animals in our homes and communities today and for generations to
come. It is a vital component in our purpose of preventing cruelty to animals.
Comments