We all suspect there are those outside our parish who believe St. Joan of Arc is going to the dogs. Had any of them been around on Sunday, October 1st, their belief would have been confirmed, literally. 

     There they would have been greeted by dozens of doting owners along with dogs of every shape, color and size milling about, sniffing, tail wagging, some even loudly voicing their feelings. There were not only dogs, although they were the most numerous, but cats, rabbits, gerbils, rats, hamsters, several lizards, two or three turtles and one fish. By the more or less official count there were about 70 or so eager critters, visitors to St. Joan’s who were waiting to receive the blessing reserved for their kind on a Sunday closest to the feast of St. Francis, their patron saint and historical advocate. 

    According to Ronald Ecker, Reflections on Life and Other Stuff:  “..in honor (of Francis) a  life-affirming, critter-loving ceremony called the Blessing of the Animals is celebrated each year at many a Christian altar.” These include the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, and the university chapel at Duke University. Ecker goes on to say that “All beings born of strife share kinship by descent. This knowledge should encourage us not only to be good to other human beings, but to all our noble kin: ‘All creatures great and small.’”

    In St. Joan’s version of this age old ceremony all the guests were invited into the gym, then stood, sat or crouched in a more or less fluctuating circle. In the middle and toward the back was Father Jim DeBruycker, the anchor,  flanked by musicians, Anna and Fred Vagle. Also joining in were Julie Madden, Peace and Justice Minister, along with her son, Josh and his friends, Jon and Jared, all special helpers.  What better song to begin with than “All God’s Critters Got A Place In The Choir”? 

    Father Jim read a  passage from St. Francis’ Sermon To The Animals to the somewhat restless congregation. Julie, in honor of the invited guests, continued with a reading from Genesis: “And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the cattle according to their kinds, and everything that creeps upon the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” As she spoke, a turtle crawled determinedly across the gym floor toward the lectern where she stood as a nearby Golden Retriever, ears alert, stared intently at this intriguing moving object.   

      Next came introductions as Father Jim took the mike around for all to hear the names of each of the normally unchurched who were present. With that came the actual blessing - a shower of holy water for each and every one, none excluded. The humans, animals in tow, looked serious during this brief ceremony, while a cat meowed loudly through it all accompanied by what could have been more than one affirming “woof!” or two.

    All good ceremonies need a story, so Father Jim accommodated by reading “St. Francis And The Wolf”  over the din. It is the tale of an evil wolf who terrifies a village by eating some of its citizens on a regular basis. No one knows how to stop this slaughter until St. Francis comes to their rescue. Confronting the beast and speaking gently, but firmly to him, Francis guides him to contrition and blessed forgiveness.  From then on, the enlightened wolf becomes the pet and protector of the villagers who feed him from their own tables until he dies of old age.

    After a reading of  the Prayer of St. Francis, the ceremony ended and Julie invited all to treats of both the human and animal kind served outside. Small bowls of water set along the curb in front of the Parish Center awaited any who were thirsty, except for one bowl which contained a turtle, probably the one who trekked across the gym floor earlier.

    Here is the short, but official parish report on the entire event (submitted by Julie:) “It was vintage SJA - sacred and goofy at the same time! No one pooped on the gym floor and no one bit anybody else. Big success.”

ALL GOD’S CRITTERS GOT A PLACE IN THE CHOIR

All God’s critters got a place in the choir
Some sing low, some sing higher
Some sing out loud on the telephone wire
And some just clap their hands or paws or
Anything they got. Now. . . . . .
Bull frog, the hippopotamus and a cow make up the alto section, while dogs, and cats are the middle as honey bee hums and cricket fiddles, the donkey brays, the pony neighs and old coyote howls. Little birds sing the melodies, the hoot owl hollers and the jay bird disagrees. Ducks and possums get into the act and “porcupine talks to himself.”

It’s a simple song of living sung everywhere
By the ox and the fox and the grizzly bear,
The grumpy alligator and the hawk above,
The sly raccoon and the turtle dove.

ALL God’s children got a place in the choir!

and

Jo Welch-Youngren worked with Harvey Egan in the early days of St. Joan of Arc. At that time she, Cy and Joan Speltz, Nancy Anderson, Darlene Arbuckle, Ferry Deslauriers, and John McGowan made up the staff. We all pitched in and did everything that needed doing and had a ball every day. Jo’s first husband, Jack Welch, was buried from St. Joan’s in 1980. Later she married Dave Youngren, moved to New Mexico, then returned to her roots. Now she and Dave sit on the left side center at the 9:00 o’clock Mass on Sundays and love every minute of it. Jo can be reached at joandave@ties2.net.

         This song, and the ceremony around it affirms St. Joan’s motto: “We welcome you wherever you are on your journey.” And after Sunday, we might add, ”no matter who, or what, you are.”