Blessing of the Pets: Rocco My Soul!

Me, Rocco and Rabbi Rosenthal

This weekend at churches -- and at least one synagogue that we know of -- pets of all types were celebrated as part of the annual Blessing of Pets.

A few years ago I took Cosmo to one of the blessing celebrations at a local church. It was a terrific event and a wonderful ceremony for all the pets.

So I was especially excited to learn that our local synagogue was conducting a blessing yesterday. Ahavath Achim Synagogue in Atlanta conducted the event with Northside United Methodist Church.

It was held outside on the grounds of the synagogue where folks gathered with their pets and each one received a blessing.

Before our blessing, Rabbi Rosenthal chatted with us and asked about Rocco.  He wanted to know what I wished for Rocco and he wanted to know if I had any concerns. We chatted some about Rocco's  activities, his overall terrific dogginess and my wish for his continued good health.

Then, the Rabbi blessed him, and we got this certificate...

Because this was a Jewish blessing, we were asked to choose a Hebrew name for our pets. I chose Nefesh, which means soul ... a fitting name for soul pup like Rocco whose name also causes me sometimes to break out in song, singing "Rocco my soul in the bosom of Abraham!"

Check out this version of the song. It's bound to make you smile and want to get up and dance!

Each October, the annual blessings of pets are conducted in remembrance of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals and the environment.

Cosmo posed with St. Francis' statue in Milan
during our trip there several years ago

Today we're also participating in the weekly Monday Mischief Blog Hop brought to you by Alfie's Blog, Snoopy's Dog Blog and My Brown Newfies.

Ohhhh, Rocco my soul!!!