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Pets raise the woof at Belfast Cathedral’s Service of Thanksgiving!

Monday September 23rd 2024

Captain The Cruising Kitty and owner Holly Hennessy with Dean Stephen Forde before the Pets’ Service.

Belfast Cathedral’s popular Pets Service with the Blessing of the Pets returned to St Anne’s on Sunday September 22, with a host of dogs and cats joining their owners for this Service of Thanksgiving. [PHOTO GALLERY BELOW]

The Dean of Belfast, the Very Rev Stephen Forde, said the service was an opportunity to celebrate God’s creation, to remember the responsibilities for the world we share with all God’s creatures, and to hear God speaking through everything he has made.

“By blessing pets and their owners, we are asking God to cause their life together to flourish, confident that this is God’s desire for all his creatures,” the Dean added.

The service was last held outdoors on the Cathedral steps during the Covid pandemic, and many of those who attended on Sunday were delighted to see it back!

They included Catherine and Timothy who brought the lovely Lady, aged 17. Lady was ‘bridesmaid’ at their wedding 10 years ago.

Lynsey and Chris were accompanied by Ptolemy and Bonita, two Yorkshire Terriers they welcomed into their lives from Almost Home Animal Rescue more than two years ago.

The aisle of Belfast Cathedral is looking a bit busy!

Henry Wee Wheels is a regular at the Pets’ Service, rescued from a shelter in China by his owner Sharon Warnock. Henry has no back legs and gets around on specially adapted wheels. Joining Henry at the service were two of Sharon’s other rescue dogs from China.

Holly Hennessy brought her cat Captain (the cruising kitty) along. Holly and Captain are residents of the Villa Vie Residences’ Odyssey – a cruise ship which has been docked in Belfast for more than three months undergoing repairs – and Captain has quite a following on his own Facebook page.

Two Maine Coon cats – enormous and very fluffy – were getting plenty of attention, arriving into the Cathedral in a special trailer. Reuben, 11-months-old, and his aunt, Phoebe, were brought along for a Blessing by their owner Sharon.

The Rev Canon Tracey McRoberts MBE was in the congregation with her dogs Buzz and Rex, who incidentally are among six regular four-legged attendees at services in St Matthew’s, Shankill, where Tracey is rector.

Pat brought her dog Gizmo, doing well for 16-years-old, while Milo, a Chow Chow who enjoyed the service from the central aisle, was basking in the celebrity spotlight having featured in an article in a Malaysian newspaper that very day!

And finally, on the way out, Sherlock the cat got the say miaow to the Rev Cameron Mack’s unnamed Lego cat – who actually proved more trouble than you might imagine, losing his tail at one point and then dropping another body part (possibly a leg) in front of a horrified Sherlock!

The service was led by Dean Forde, with music from the Cathedral Choir. Hymns sung were All Creatures of our God and King; All Things Bright and Beautiful and How Great Thou Art.

The special prayers included thanks for the work of organisatiosn which advocate and safeguard animal welfare and those who provide shelter for neglected or abandoned animals; for assistance animals; and for beloved pets who have died.

Dean Forde and Rev Cameron were joined by Canons Mark Reid, Kevin Graham DL MBE and Mark Taylor for the Blessing of each individual pet during the service.

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