I had a busy day planned for today, but I couldn't miss a trip downtown with Taz for the Blessing of the Pets this morning. It was held in the little park across from the St. Francis of Assisi Chapel, in honor of the Feast of St. Francis, which is October 4.About twenty-five dogs were there, a few of them rather obviously old or infirm, plus a long-haired cat in a carrier, a bunny on a little boy's lap, and a red-eared slider being affectionately stroked by a middle-aged lady. A lectern had been set up for the priest atop a raised planting bed, and rows of chairs provided for the pet owners.
After introductory remarks, a reading from Scriptures, and a sermon, the priest stepped down (well, fell off of the wall, actually, but without apparent injury) and announced he was going to walk amongst us, reciting a blessing and sprinkling the animals with holy water.
"Please tell your pets I come as a friend," he implored, only half-humorously.
That's the priest on the left wielding the aspergillum, the altar boy in the middle with the basin of holy water, and Taz, of course, distracted enough by the operation to leave off licking Donna's face for a moment.
I have to say I had been a little apprehensive about taking such a wired dog into a crowd of other animals, but in fact she was quite well-behaved. She seemed almost intimidated by the numbers and by the novelty of the situation. Or maybe she knew she was in the presence of holiness.
Cicily, thanks for the heads up on the blessing of the animals. I, too, wanted to go but was unsure as to how my crazy beagles would act. If Taz could act respectful then I'm hoping Miss Rose and Mr. Lucky would behave in an appropriately holy manner also.
ReplyDeleteMiss Rose considers herself Catholic after her most notable escape, the one where she was gone overnight, after conning a pizza by walking into a pizza kitchen and making good buddies with the State Police. I had stopped by the Catholic church complex near the Quad and asked a priest to alert the area to her escape and my phone number. He promised to prayer for her. The next day she was mine again. The kind father even did a follow up phone call. I'm an atheist so I am not convinced of the power of prayer but apparently Miss Rose is a complete convert. Mr. Lucky remains a pagan.
I've heard of this but I've never had it done to my dog. I live in Boston and don't know if it happens here. My pup is just one and a half years old. It would be cool to have him blessed one day.
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