On the occasion of the party of San Francisco de Asís, patron of animals and ecology, the archbishop of Santiago (Chile), Cardinal Fernando Chomali, offered a blessing of pets in virtual modality.
Within that framework, about 5,000 people connected from their homes to receive the blessing through the Zoom platform and on Instagram, Facebook, and the Archbishopric YouTube channel.
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During the transmission there were moments of prayer, reflection, and the blessing of the cardinal, who recalled the importance of care for creation and respect for all creatures.
The call was wide and the faithful from different parts of the archdiocese said present with their pets.
“I am impressed that almost 5,000 people on all platforms participated in this blessing,” The cardinal expressedobserving that “this demonstrates, in the first place, an increasingly large awareness of the value that animals have and the need to take care of them.”
“I insisted that we must be very careful to avoid any form of animal abuse,” said the purple.
When referring to the virtual modality of this blessing, he said: “Platforms are a new way to accompany and announce the Gospel. People felt accompanied by God and the Church, and many listened for the first time the life of San Francisco de Asís, an extraordinary life.”
From homes, participants shared images and testimonies of gratitude: “It was very exciting to receive the blessing with my dog. We felt a very nice connection with the whole community,” said one of the people who followed the transmission.
“Beautiful gesture on the day of San Francisco de Asís, the blessing to our pets that accompany us throughout our lives and fills our day to day with happiness,” said another of the faithful.
“What a beautiful initiative, it is difficult to take to the face -to -face pets,” said another virtual ceremony participant.
The day concluded with a message of thanksgiving and a call to take care of the common house, following the teaching of San Francisco de Asís, which invites you to look at all creation as a reflection of God’s love.
Julieta Villar
I am a journalist, a graduate in Communication from the National University of La Matanza in Argentina. I have work experience in non -governmental organizations. Since 2016 I dedicate myself to Catholic journalism, first in the Argentine Catholic Information Agency (AICA) and, since 2022, as a correspondent for ACI Press for Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Bolivia.