Blessing of the Animals

Our dog Zoe meets a piglet at last year's Blessing of the Animals

During one of my favorite church services of the year the pews are crowded with wagging dogs, adaptable cats and assorted adorable pocket pets. Last Sunday morning, we had the Blessing of the Animals at Hennepin Church.

“But ask the animals,
and they will teach you;
the birds of the air,
and they will tell you;
Ask the plants of the earth,
and they will teach you;
and the fish of the sea will declare to you.
Who among these does not know
that the hand of God has done this?" — Job 12:7-9

I am a crazy animal lover, so I get a thrill from walking around before the service and visiting with the pets and their people. Then we have prayer, song, sharing of what we learn from our animal companions (punctuated with woofs, howls and me-ooows) and our ministers bless each animal. We take our daschund, Zoe, who is overjoyed to see pastors Leah, Bruce or Sally. Our cats Thelma-Louise and Griffin prefer to stay home, so they are blessed by proxy through their photos. We also took a photo of Guinan to be blessed.

Bless the Beasts and the Children

(Perry L Botkin, Jr. / Barry De Vorzon)

Bless the beasts and the children
For in this world they have no voice
They have no choice

Bless the beasts and the children
For the world can never be
The world they see

Light their way when the darkness surrounds them
And give them love, let it shine all around them

Bless the beasts and the children
Give them shelter from the storm
Keep them safe, keep them warm

Light their way when the darkness surrounds them
And give them love, let it shine all around them

Bless the beasts and the children
Give them shelter from the storm
Keep them safe, keep them warm

This year among the faithful, we saw a King Charles spaniel puppy, a Brussels Griffon, a Bassett Hound, a dear Corgi named Hoover Von Vacuum, and many others. A few brave kitties were also there, including a slightly put out twenty year old Himalayan. The smallest vistor we saw was a hamster transported in his habitat. Our friends Mickey and Sara were their with their Border Collie mix Brumby, Springer Spaniel Ellie and Chi-Weenie (Chihuahua & Daschund), Wednesday.

A Prayer for Animals

Hear our humble prayer, O God,
for our friends, the animals,
especially for animals who are suffering:
for any that are hunted or lost of deserted
or frightened or hungry;
for all that must be put to death.
We entreat for them all Thy mercy and pity,
and for those who deal with them
we ask a heart of compassion and gentle hands and kindly words.
Make us, ourselves, to be true friends to animals
and so to share the blessings of the merciful.
- Albert Schweitzer