Friday is the fiesta of San Antonio Abad (St. Anthony the Abbot) in Fuencaliente, and at midday the priest holds a special, traditional service to bless the animals in the church square. I was curious, so a few years ago, I went.
I didn’t know whether to expect pets or farm animals, but there were both. At twelve promptly, the priest came out, gave a short sermon on looking after your animals, said a prayer, and then sprinkled the animals with holy water.
When the cat got wet, he said something you don’t expect to hear in church, but everyone else seemed happy.
Members of the congregation
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