Pope Francis caused some controversy among theological conservative Roman Catholics when he counseled a young person who had recently lost their dog to death. Pope Francis reassured them that their dog was in heaven.

One of my favorite stories about Pr. Dietrich Bonhoeffer is eerily similar to what Pope Francis encountered last week. (Pr. Bonhoeffer is the great German Lutheran pastor who resisted Hitler and the Nazi party during WWII. He was eventually killed for his active resistance.)

The story:

A tearful boy whose dog had just died asked Pr. Dietrich Bonhoeffer if he would see his dog again in heaven. Bonhoeffer responds, “Look, God created human beings and also animals, and I’m sure he also loves animals. And I believe that with God it is such that all who loved each other on earth — genuinely loved each other — will remain together with God, for to love is part of God. Just how that happens, though, we admittedly don’t know.”