Did you know St. Francis of Assisi is the Patron Saint of Animals? For the last six years, Jay and I have been sponsoring the Blessing of the Animals at OLPH on or near the Feast Day of St. Francis, which is on October 4. Due to the COVID19 Pandemic, however, Parish Council has decided to postpone this event until Saturday, January 9, 2021 at 10 AM in the area between the rectory and Stokes Hall. We hope the pandemic will have lessened by then! The weather should be cooler, too.
Blessing of the Animals is personally one of my favorite events at our church! We’ve had the police horses and K-9s, hamsters, pigs, and a lot of well-behaved dogs. The roosters of Ybor must be non-Catholic; they don’t seem to hang around during the event.
I’ve been to many events like this during my life, and one thing that has happened at every single one: as soon as the priest begins speaking, all the animals become silent – a miracle in itself!
Please mark down January 9, 2021 and join us once again, and please pray this pandemic will be mostly over by then!
by Stan Kutz
