A controversial animal rights charity has called on a bishop to resign – because he does not think Southwark Cathedral should have had a funeral for their cat.
The Cathedral held a memorial service for their beloved moggy, Doorkins Magnificat, last week.
But among a minority voicing displeasure at the move was the Bishop of Burnley, Philip North.
“Is this a joke?” he asked. “I do hope so. If not it’s grossly insensitive to bereaved families and those ministering to them in the NW under the regional Coronavirus restrictions.”
PETA, an animal rights lobby group, has now waded into the row, by writing to the Archbishop of Canterbury, the top bishop in the Church of England over the comment.
They say Doorkins, a stray who made Southwark Cathedral her home, “was no less a parishioner because she had four legs rather than two.”
Their letter states: “How can he possibly think, much less say, such a thing? Honouring the life of a beloved animal takes nothing away from those who have lost loved ones in this pandemic or in any other way.
“For those who knew, cared for, and loved Doorkins Magnificat, the service provided a chance to mourn – and remember – this wonderful cat who drew people to the cathedral, brought joy to so many, and was no less a parishioner because she had four legs rather than two.”
The letter has not been responded to, the group says.
PETA also, by its own admission, uses “actions colorful and controversial” to court publicity.
They add: “The central tenet of Christianity is kindness towards all of God’s creatures – including those who have fur, feathers, or fins. If the Bishop doesn’t understand that, we ask that he resign from a post that he’s not fit to hold.”
The Dean of Southwark, Rev Andrew Nunn, told the congregation remembering Doorkins’s life on Wednesday that he could not agree that a cat did not deserve a service.
“Some may think that cats don’t deserve ceremonies and eulogies and prayers, that their death should pass without comment or occasion,” he said.
“But I can’t agree and I’m not particularly a cat person, or at least I wasn’t before I met her, but this little cat, who arrived at our door, who chose us and stayed changed our lives and enhanced our mission and ministry.”