Our Annual Pet Blessing

A Pet Blessing is a great way for a church to meet its neighborhood.

Today, St. Benedict hosted its annual Pet Blessing. Two of my wonderful leaders set up plates of dog and people cookies, a water bowl, lemonade and coffee. I put on a stole and we  gathered under our driveway portico to welcome folks to the blessing. One of our middle schoolers passed out bulletins. Adam took pictures. (We left Odo at home because it’s challenging to lead a worship service or take photos and control your beagle at the same time.)

This was the warmest weather we’ve ever had in early October – 84F! This was also the loudest blessing I can remember – a Doberman and two little Pomeranians were having a shouting match. We had two little Jack Russell terriers, shivering with anxiety in their owners’ arms. There was a Husky puppy and when I asked the family what they were most thankful for in their dog, one of the teenagers said without missing a beat, ‘That he’s finally potty trained!” Others were thankful for more ordinary things: for companionship, for love, for the “crazy” (!) in their dog, for a pet who played with their kids. I also blessed photos of four cats, since a parking lot of full of dogs is not the first place most cat owners want to bring them.

It was a lovely 15 minutes of animal holiness. One dog kissed me on the nose. Another kept trying to walk away from me – (clergy do make some folks uneasy). One woman asked me to pray for her dad, who’s in intensive care.

Uh, that’s enough blessing. Thanks, lady!

It seems that we’re the only Pet Blessing left in Bolingbrook. I couldn’t find any other postings online advertising one in 2013. A bit sad. Animals are so important to people; it’s nice when people can have a way for that to be acknowledged spiritually.

Still, our Blessings are modest each year- 20-30 people and 8-12 animals. About half the folks are from the church and half from the neighborhood. A few folks are repeat attendees each year. They remember us, but every year I’m embarrassed because I can’t remember them! (Sometimes, I remember their dogs, which might be even more embarrassing.)

I like the Pet Blessing because it’s a way to meet our neighbors and to remind them and ourselves that we’re a church that belongs to our neighborhood and not just to ourselves.