The image shown is at the Confraternity of Penitents Home Office. This is an old
figurine of a dog and not one of the types available for donation. See
selections below.
Start a new Christmas Tradition and put a dog at your manger!
Dog at the Manger
As Christmas draws near, our thoughts turn to the stable in Bethlehem. We can
imagine Mary and Joseph gazing in awe at the Christ Child, lying asleep in a
manger. In fact, many renditions of the Nativity of Christ portray this very
scene. The holy couple gazed at a slumbering newborn infant and knew they were
seeing God.
Ameil (“Doc”) Klein, postulant with the Confraternity of Penitents (2011), is currently
in a battle with cancer for his life. His reflection, “Learning from Timmy,”
follows as well as its connection to the Christmas miracle.
“One of my dogs, a three-year-old little Coton de Tulear, is teaching me how to
pray!
“Back in the hospital again, with plenty of time to sit in front of the Blessed
Sacrament in the hospital chapel, I sometimes found my thoughts less than
centered on God as they should be. I found myself thinking about Timmy. That, to
be sure, is a bit unusual -- certainly inappropriate!
“But then I realized that Timmy, when I'm home, often just sits in front of me,
wagging his tail, looking at me with his big black eyes, obviously "telling" me
how much he loves me. When he falls asleep, all I have to do is move, making a
sound, and he looks up again and starts wagging his tail again.
“In a sense, Timmy has shown me how to spend long periods of time in front of
the Blessed Sacrament. Just, in a sense, wagging my tail, saying “I'm glad
You're here. And thank You for loving me.”
“I'm, of course, familiar with the hundreds of beautiful prayers written over
the centuries in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. They're all important
statements of faith. But for me personally, Timmy's way is the most reverent.”
Timmy’s adoring gaze at Doc must be akin to the adoration and awe in the gaze of
the Blessed Mother and St. Joseph as they could not take their eyes off the
Infant Christ. When we approach the manger, or when we sit before the Lord in
the Blessed Sacrament, perhaps we should be grateful if our attention is fixed
on Jesus as Timmy’s is fixed on Doc. How wonderful to have deep, religious
thoughts or to offer beautiful prayers of praise and adoration of Our Lord! But
could it be more meritorious just to gaze on our Lord with love and devotion,
recognizing Him as Master and sitting ready to serve Him, at His command? When
we assemble our Nativity sets under our Christmas trees this year, perhaps we
ought to place a little statue of a dog in the scene. That dog represents us.
A blessed Christmas to you all!
Madeline Pecora Nugent
I was given a small
figurine dog by my son one Christmas when he was about 12 yrs old...I gave him
some money for Christmas and he went out and bought a dog and he liked it so
much he still gave it to me as a gift that year. (he's 44 yrs old today). I
still have it and thanks to this inspiring story I will put it in front of my
Nativity scene......and remember Doc & Timmy......in my prayers... Christmas
Blessings to all...... Fran (2011)
Thanks to Doc Klein, the
Confraternity of Penitents is pleased to offer a dog or dogs for your Nativity
scene. The adult dogs shown below are made of hard plastic and are approximately
1 1/2" tall and 3" long. The puppies shown below are made of hard plastic and
are approximately 1 1/4 inches tall and 3/4 inches high.
Suggested donation per dog
or puppy, including shipping, is $1.95 each. If ordering two or more, suggested
donation is $1.50 each, which reflects the savings on shipping.
Each figurine comes with a
copy of the above story "Dog at the Manger."
Our choice of dogs, please. Each one is love-able! If
you have a specific request, please ask us and we will try to honor it.
Adult Dogs
Puppies
Use our
postal mail order form
to pay by check.
Use the button below to order
dogs or puppies with PayPal or a credit card.
When you get to the "Review Your Order" page,
you will see a link on the left that reads in
small print, "Add special instructions to the
seller." Click on that link and email us any
special instructions.
TO ORDER TWO OR MORE ITEMS FROM
DIFFERENT PAGES
OF THE CFP HOLY ANGELS GIFT SHOP, PLEASE
FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Please LIST the items you wish to
order below.
2.THEN use the button below to pay for
your total order on line with PayPal or
a credit card.
3. IF THERE IS NOT ENOUGH SPACE TO LIST
ALL THE ITEMS HERE, process your order
using the button below. When you get to
the "Review Your Order" page, you will
see a link on the left that reads in
small print "Add special instructions to
the seller." Click on that link and
write a detailed list of ALL the items
you are ordering. THEN process your
payment.
We will mail all your items in one
shipment, thus saving you postage.
To learn about a
disciplined, Catholic, joyful Rule of Life
that can help you draw closer to God while
living in your own home, consult the Home
Page of the Confraternity of Penitents,
linked to in the link box at the top of this
page.
Thank you and God bless!