Keawala'i Congregational Church, Kahu's Mana'o

Kahu's Manao

Keawala‘i Congregational Church
United Church of Christ (USA)

Second Sunday of Advent
Sunday, December 6, 2009

The Rev. Kealahou C. Alika

My dog Hanu will be celebrating his first birthday on December 10th. I haven’t decided what I will do for him that day – maybe I’ll take him for an afternoon swim in the ocean and provide him with a dinner that will include a little more than his regular dry dog food.

If he were capable to talking I am not sure what he would say it has been like for him to live with me over the last year. As for me I figured out pretty early on that the dog training classes we’ve attended, the books I’ve read and the conversations I’ve had with many of you who have dogs were meant not so much for Hanu’s benefit but for my benefit.

One of the lessons I’ve learned is about how impatient I can become and of how easily that can affect the way I interact with him. On a couple of occasions I became so frustrated I struck him with enough force on his back side to know that what I had done was wrong.

He needed to be disciplined not struck. The sense of remorse that I felt was immediate - occurring long before I even raised my hand.

Some will say that Hanu is just a dog. But even as a dog, I know that he does not deserve to be struck because of my impatience.

I saw him for the first time when he was barely six weeks old. While I know that love at first sight is a dangerous proposition, I must admit he looked innocent enough as a puppy that I could never imagine him eating my furniture.

Hanu was born into a litter of four dogs. I told the owner of the dogs that I wanted Hanu as soon as he was weaned off his mother. If that was not possible then I probably would not be able to take on the responsibility of raising him.

I saw him again for the second time when he was dropped off at my house two weeks later. It’s been a whirlwind ever since.

I have absolutely no regrets about my decision. But I realize having Hanu has meant that I’ve experienced a change of life and heart because of him. He has taught me that I am capable of being a jerk and that I needed to take a long hard look at myself and decide what kind of a person I was going to be.

At first glance it may seem that our reading from The Gospel According to Luke would have little to do with dogs. Although John the Baptizer spent most of his time in the wilderness eating locusts and wild honey, it is unlikely that he would have anything positive to say about Hanu. In John’s day dogs were generally despised outcasts.

Dogs were known for their ravenous and ruthless nature and given to prowling and filthy habits. In fact the Bible contains about forty references to dogs as unclean animals. (The New Compact Bible Dictionary, Bryant, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1967, page 41)

Hanu may “just be a dog” to others, but like most dog owners I know I would be the first to say, “Yes, but he is my dog.” The lesson I’ve learned from Hanu is in some ways the lesson John sought to teach others at the banks of the Jordan River a long time ago. Make ready! That is what John implores of those at the river and for those of us gathered here this morning.

Make ready! This season of Advent is a time of preparation and it involves more than cleaning and getting out Christmas decorations, buying a Christmas tree, baking and cooking, hosting and attending far too many holiday parties. John the Baptizer reminds us that Advent is a time to prepare to welcome the birth of Jesus once more. (Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 1, Bartlett & Taylor, Westminster/John Knox Press, Louisville, Kentucky, 2009, page 45)

The preparation requires that we look at ourselves. John challenges us first to repent – to change our minds, our way of thinking, to turn around and to re-orient ourselves.

John proclaims “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” It is John who knows we are capable as human beings of being total jerks. Whether Hanu is aware that I am capable of being a jerk, I have at least been reminded by him that such is the case.

John’s message of repentance cannot be avoided. As we think of all of our preparations for Christmas and the lists of things we need to do, people we need to see, places we need to be, the last thought most of us would have is the need for repentance. We would rather for John simply to go away – further into the wilderness – out of sight and out of mind. But “John confronts us, commands our attention, and demands our response.” (Op. cit., page 47)

We are called to examine our lives, our values and our priorities as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus once more. I said that having Hanu has meant that I’ve experienced a change of life and heart because of him and while Jesus may find it implausible that I would compare my relationship with him to my relationship with Hanu, the truth is I’ve experienced a change of life and heart because of him.

As we gather around the table this morning to share the Lord’s Supper, we are called to turn from sin and to turn to God; to seek God’s forgiveness and to prepare the way of the Lord. We are called to repent and to prepare ourselves to receive the good news of his birth once more and to know that all of our lives and hearts will be changed and transformed because of him.

Thanks be to God. Amen.

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