Religion News Service

Birds, worms, rabbits: Francis of Assisi was said to have loved them all – but today's pet blessings on his feast day might have seemed strange to the 13th century saint

(The Conversation) — Medieval monastics were often discouraged from owning companion animals, which were viewed as a distraction, a religion scholar explains. (The Conversation) — Each year, if you ...
Daily Herald

Annual Blessing of the Animals ceremonies to honor St. Francis are this week

People with their pets wait for a priest's blessing inside San Francisco church on the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi in Santiago, Chile, Thursday, Oct. 4, 2018. Traditional stories about the life ...
National Catholic Register

St. Francis of Assisi, Death, and a Dog Named Alta

It was just last year on Oct. 1 that my dear father left this earthly life for something far greater. I am still learning to comprehend that greater, but I am still blown away by the many graces that ...
The Gazette

Local churches’ ‘blessing of the animals’ continues tradition of Saint Francis of Assisi

MARION — With dogs on one side and cats on the other, only a pair of gerbils parted the small sea of pets gathered outside Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on Sunday. There, dog barks and cat meows ...
KWQC

Blessing of Animals in honor of St. Francis of Assisi’s Feast Day Saturday morning

DAVENPORT, Iowa (KWQC) - St. Anthony Church and McAnthony Window held a blessing of animals Saturday morning. The event honored St. Francis of Assisi’s Feast Day, which was Oct. 4, according to the ...