As you pass through the front entrance of our church, you encounter the metal statue of St. Francis. St. Francis was a mystic monk who is now the patron saint of ecology and the natural world.
It is traditional on or around the feast day of St. Francis (October 4) to hold a Blessing of the Animals. While we often talk about God’s blessing on human beings or on the Church, we don’t think as frequently about the tangible ways God blesses the natural world and the animals that inhabit it. During a Blessing of the Animals, we make obvious what is always already true: that God blesses all Creation.
On Sunday October 4 at 1:00 PM you are invited to bring your animal friends to the labyrinth outside the church for a blessing. Please only bring animals if it is safe for the animal and for people; if you aren’t sure, you can bring something else (a favorite blanket, something from its cage, a beloved toy) to have that blessed. Please use leashes, carriers, and cages so that everyone remains safe!
The blessing liturgy should only last a few minutes, and then each animal will have the opportunity to be blessed individually.
It’s also traditional at the Blessing of the Animals to follow in the spirit of St. Francis and make an offering to the well-being of the natural world. We encourage you to donate to a favorite animal charity, to First Plymouth’s Creation Justice efforts, or bring a gift of pet food (or human food) to place in our Free Pantry next to the labyrinth!
We hope to see you at 1:00 PM on October 4 for this tradition—old in the history of the Church, but new to First Plymouth!