Blessing of the Animals at St. Denis Catholic Church

St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals and nature, died late at night on Oct. 3 and his feast is celebrated on Oct. 4 each year. The Sunday before his feast day, churches around the world bless animals in honor of St. Francis - a tradition the saint started nearly 800 years ago.

Local pets from throughout the area gathered at in Manasquan at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 2 to receive their blessing. The priest spoke about St. Francis, read a blessing, and then individually blessed each animal and their subsequent owners with holy water.

Each pet left (a little wet) with a bag of treats and a St. Francis pin for their collar.