The Surreal Ritual of Animal Blessings in St John's Cathedral, NYC
The owls are not what they seem.
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I was sick all last week, inexplicably coming down with strep throat while in LA. Falling ill while both on vacation and during the summer is low-key embarrassing. While I recover at home, I want to share the second essay from the book Why Do We Photograph Animals, by Thames & Hudson, that I have not yet published on Substack.
I published part 1, last week.
If you bless an animal, does that mean it has a soul? And if it has a soul, does that mean you shouldn't eat it?
These were the questions going through my mind as I photographed the 34th annual blessing of the animals in New York’s grandiose Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Even most native New Yorkers are unaware that every October, animals big and small are brought to the Upper West Side to be blessed in honor of Saint Francis, their proclaimed patron saint. That year, the Procession of the Animals consisted of, among other creatures, a spider, a rat, a hawk, a cow, a horse, a couple of owls, and a camel. A tortoise had to be wheeled in on a cart in order to avoid delaying the ceremony with its unhurried pace. Afterwards, the priests gathered in the garden to bless pets brought by the attendees — mostly dogs, some cats and a parrot. All in all, it was a very strange afternoon.
A disclaimer: I am neither religious nor am I vegetarian. When it comes to food, I am an “occasiotarian.” In the past I have been a voracious meat eater, then, after reading a couple of books about factory farming, I became briefly but enthusiastically vegan, which was followed by being vegetarian (can't live without cheese and butter) and then compromising down to pescatarian (sushi would my last meal on earth). Finally, I settled on a sustainable compromise – eating a little bit of everything, while limiting meat to rare occasions.
Photographing the blessing ceremony reignited my conflicted relationship with the issue. There was something schizophrenic in the numinous spectacle. The care put into handling every single creature in attendance was moving, but I couldn't escape the feeling that the animals were props in an elaborate religious pageant. With this in mind, I tried to avoid taking “cute” animal photos, and instead presented the ritual as slightly unsettling. I photographed each animal as a spectacle in itself. Even a hedgehog was handled as if it were a precious object. King for a day.
During the ceremony of St Francis, the social constructs that go into dividing animals into sub-groups — pets vs. livestock, cute vs. disgusting — partly dissolved. Such distinctions became irrelevant. Spectators were occasionally allowed to pet the animals assigned to various handlers. A teenage girl was cradling a brown rat in her arms. She gleefully observed the reaction of people as they first lightly stroked the friendly critter, then took a moment to realize that they just petted... a New York City rat. Not the cute, white lab variety. The subway kind. The look of kindness on faces was quickly replaced by horror, then confusion. In this context, a rat was just as cherished as the magnificent white horse, a crowd favorite. For one brief day, all animals present became equal.
One of my favorite images from the event is a portrait of an owl (cover photo). The yellow eyes eerily match the golden crosses and robes of the clergy behind. The beak is frozen mid-scream. I imagined hearing a faint echo of the infamous line from David Lynch's Twin Peaks, “The owls are not what they seem.” In this photo, the bird seems to understand something no one else does.
The resulting photo feature ran in the New York Times. The reporter interviewed me for the piece and we discussed my existential musings about the ritual. In turn, he presented the question about animal souls to Bishop Daniel, who oversaw the ceremony. I was eager to get an answer from the legitimate authority. Unfortunately, the Bishop deflected, saying such questions were above his pay grade. In this theological and moral conundrum, I was once again left to my own devices.
That night I had a cauliflower steak for dinner.
Confessions of a “Pupparazzi," From Westminster to Dog Parks
Why We Photograph Animals, Thames & Hudson
Find me on Instagram @dina_litovsky
The camel image is fabulous! How delightful 😍
Wow, this is so wild. A wonderful peek into a strange tradition. I love the picture of the owl, but omg the photo of the dog looks just like a religious painting with the way his head is rolled back and eyes to the sky! 😍