Apocalyptic Groveling and Golden Retrievers

In the book of Revelation, the fawning adulation of the twenty-four elders, the thousands of angels, and the four strange creatures dominates the story. When you hear the verses movingly declaimed from the pulpit, they do sound quite religious, quite worship-y.

But, to me these passages have always seemed more awful than awe-full. First, there's the whole sucking-up aspect. These creatures are already in heaven, what is it they are hoping to weasel out of God with all this bowing and scraping?

Second, I wonder where any sense of personal dignity has disappeared to. "Get a life," I want to shout to them. "He's holy. We get it, but what about you? Leave off the groveling and do something, be something."

And then one day recently my golden retriever Herie (sounds like Harry), prostrated himself in front of me. The word prostrate brings all kind of negative associations, but Herie had something to teach me about submission. Herie lowered the front half of his body - his tail wagging the entirety of his back end - and gazed up at me with happy eyes. He was saluting the God of his universe. She feeds him, she provides him with comfy blankets on which to sleep. She washes him and cuts his nails - these are not fun for Herie but he seems to realize they are good for him. She even throws his toy squirrel for him to retrieve.

Herie's bow, his 'worship,' was about him as much as it was about me. Sure, he acknowledged me as superior. But he also affirmed his identity. His head is the one that shows up in my lap for petting the minute I've finished dinner. He is my faithful protector, curling up in the hallway where he can keep an eye on me and mine. He is my tail-wagger and front-door barker.

Herie's bow summed up that relationship in one graceful move. Submission isn't the same as cowering. Inequality can result in resentment and suppressed rebellion. However, at its best submission acknowledges inequality while affirming reciprocity.

All of that makes it sound boring. What Herie has taught me about submission is that it is full of pleasure and energy. I read the fourth chapter of Revelation with new eyes. This is no somber ceremony, this is a celebration -- joyful, hopeful, and, above all, playful.