The Feast of
St. Francis of
Assisi is celebrated by many Christian churches the world over on October 4th which commemorates St. Francis' death.
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| The Church of St. Francis of Assisi |
A service of Blessing of the Animals often takes place the first Sunday in October as Francis is known for his love of animals. The Church of
Bethesda-by-the-Sea shares in this splendid tradition.
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| A blessing in action |
I'm not sure when BBTS's event began but nationally it crawled into being in the 30's. Sunday's celebration was a marvelous event, and I met a number of people who attended every year. {
It sure looks like they all came this year.}
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| The church is full and many are blessed |
The most popular blessing in the US is found at
St. John the Divine in New York City and began in 1985. According to
Squidoo, "Each year thousands of animals with their humans congregate [there] for the annual Holy Eucharist and
Procession of Animals."
But
I wondered what it might be like from Ranger's perspective. {
Ranger is our 3 year old Shih Tzu seen above.}
Let's put it this way. Nearly every day, Ranger and I take a stroll or two through the church grounds. He loves to chase frogs, smell the flowers and greet the staff. I think he feels like this is part of his home.
Now imagine coming to church on Sunday and having hundreds {
"maybe even thousands," says Ranger} of creatures invading!!!
Dogs of all shapes and sizes, cats in baskets, snakes, an ocelot, a chinchilla...would it ever end?
Poor Ranger endured it very well I would say. He did not bark at any of the visitors (furry or otherwise).
And his comment on the whole thing?
He left a small note for his new friends about every 15 feet on our walk Monday morning. 'Nuff said!
Until next time, Eli
