Imagine holy water splashed on your face while a priest reads the line, “Blessed are you, Lord our God, in all your creatures! Amen.” This is what it is like for many pets during the blessing of the animals.
Every Sunday closest to Oct. 4 at the green in front of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Niantic, community members bring their pets to be blessed. This special day in the church is to celebrate Saint Francis: the patron saint of animals and the environment.
The day starts off with a church service which is before the blessings on the green. During the service, people pray and sing for all wild animals, pets, and those who care and nurture animals. What is different about this service compared to normal services is its focus on animals.
“It’s a way to honor creation, to honor God’s creations,” former rector at St. John’s and current interim rector at Christ Episcopal Father Anthony Dinoto said. Father Dinoto has been conducting these types of services at St. John’s for nine years.
He believes pets play an important role in society by keeping people company.
“During the pandemic, people were isolated. Pets were the only company they had,” Father Dinoto said.
Besides St. John’s, many others take part in this day. They all pay their respects to Saint Francis, and the relationships
