Lying in a remote part of North Wales is a small community called Beddgelert with a population of only a few hundred. The one big attraction to tourists as they pass through the town is a well maintained grave. It’s the grave of a dog whose name was Gelert. On the monument is the story of how he came to rest in this place. Some call it fact while others call it a mere legend. Any way you look at it the tale inscribed upon the stone is a sad one.
"In the 13th century Llewelyn, prince of North Wales, had a palace at Beddgelert. One day he went hunting without Gelert, "The Faithful Hound", who was unaccountably absent.
On Llewelyn's return the truant, stained and smeared with blood, joyfully sprang to meet his master. The prince alarmed hastened to find his son, and saw the infant's cot empty, the bedclothes and floor covered with blood.
The frantic father plunged his sword into the hound's side, thinking it had killed his heir. The dog's dying yell was answered by a child's cry.
Llewelyn searched and discovered his boy unharmed, but nearby lay the body of a mighty wolf which Gelert had slain.
The prince filled with remorse is said never to have smiled again. He buried Gelert here".
It reminds me of another incident. One in which a man was beaten, scourged and hung on a cross when all he was trying to do was save those who killed him.
However, the monument left behind is not made of granite, but of flesh and blood. His followers, the church, stands as a reminder that we, His heirs, live because of Him.
“For the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.”
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