The Blessing of the Animals: St. Francis Feast Celebration
Please forgive my oversight by neglecting to write about one of the most famous celebrations that happen at the beginning of the fall each year. October 4 is the date of the annual Feast Day celebration which commemorates St. Francis of Assisi, the patron Saint of all animals and God's creatures It is one which that so many animal lovers look forward to and participate, bringing their beloved pets to participating churches where they are blessed.
Photo: Dog blessed in Amsterdam, New Zealand via Huffington Post
St. Francis, who lived approximately between 1181 to 1226, was the founder of the Franciscans. There are many stories about his life which highlight his amazing ability to communicate with animals. Some of the more famous stories talk about how he was able to tame a wolf that was terrorizing a small village, and that he was often seen preaching the gospel to birds.
In his "Canticle of the Creatures, an Ode to God's Living Things, St. Francis wrote, "All praise to you, Oh Lord, for these brother and sister creatures."
Since the bond between humans and their pets is often very deep. It is generally based on true unconditional love. This extraordinary day is celebrated by a very special event, the annual Blessing of the Animals, in cities, towns and villages around the country. This celebration is both unique and very moving to the animal owners who participate.
St. John the Divine
In New York City, this fall, Father Joe Koury, pastor at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church blessed 17 dogs and cats, using an aspergillum, a holy metal instrument to sprinkle all of the animals with holy water. Father Koury said, "This is a relatively simple ceremony, but it's also very important to do this to realize that animals are also a part of God's creation. Saint Francis said, 'Those who will exclude any of God's creatures from shelter or compassion and pity will deal likewise with their fellow man."
At St. John the Divine, the magnificent gothic cathedral, camels, tortoises and birds were those among the animals that took part in their 26 year annual tradition of Blessing of the Animals celebration. All the animals traveled the entire length of the 900-foot long cathedral, for the first time in many years.
In Long Beach, California, over 300 animals and their owners took part in the festive blessing event, which included a widely diverse group consisting of a serval wild cat, ground hog, Tawny Owl, squirrel monkey monitor lizard, 7' albino Burmese python, coatimundi, kinkajou, kestrel falcon, desert tortoise and a horse.
Enjoy the video of the event uploaded to YouTube by justinrudd, and experience a few moments of the blessing ceremony.
Have you participated in any Blessing of the Animals events? Leave a comment and share your experiences.
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Comments (7)
jmuhj October 7, 2009 4:13 PM
Very nice and positive, and so glad they include the rest of us, not just the christians.
Iniki October 7, 2009 5:15 PM
Yes, my animals have been a part of a blessing service on more than one occasion. This year the celebration was held early. We took the goats and sheep and one of our cats. It was a wonderful service.
Vicki October 7, 2009 5:38 PM
I have heard about this but have never been to or participated in it. But I do think it is a wonderful idea, and a day that is very special to our pets.
Amy October 8, 2009 4:51 AM
We have a couple churches where I live that have the same blessing each year. There are usually pictures in the local newspaper covering the event.
Ruth from England October 8, 2009 5:28 AM
When we had dogs we walked with them to an open air Blessing of the Animals service, it was lovely, like a scene out of Brother Sun Sister Moon.If anyone hasn't seen that video it's the story of St Francis, it has the most beautiful songs and music and touching scenes.
I watch it over and over again.
Jessy October 8, 2009 8:42 AM
In my city we have a very big church does this once a year and they also go to our animal shelter's.... I've seen this on the news... I am thankful that there is something like this out there....
annie October 10, 2009 12:29 AM
i've taken animals to be blessed several times. one year paco -- my blue crowned conure -- was not feeling well, so i took some of her feathers to be blessed, then put them on top of her house. she got better quickly.
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