The Hound

Pity me, pity me, O you my friends, for the hand of God has struck me! Why do you hound me as though you were divine, and insatiably prey upon me?

This reading from Job reminds me of “The Hound of Hell” - not the Hound of Heaven.  In Greek mythology the hellhound Cerberus belonged to Hades, the Greek god of the underworld.  Cerberus was a huge, three-headed, pitch black dog guarding the underworld’s entrance.

This “Hound” is not divine; it’s the one that relentlessly pursues us and preys upon us without stopping.  It’s the one that guards the entrance to our own personal underworlds of sadness, depression, fear, and anxiety preventing us from leaving our pits of despair.

The Hounds in our lives need re-training – perhaps a visit from television’s Cesar Millan.  They need to heel when told to do so.  They need to stop the incessant barking that drives us insane.

I suspect the best Hound trainer is Jesus Christ.   He helps us control our hellish thoughts and behavior that strike us and prey upon us.  We need not say “pity me” when we are troubled and harassed by the Hound.   With Jesus helping us we can leash the Hound and walk out of our underworlds into the light of day and God.

Deacon David Pierce