FOR OUR ANIMAL FRIENDS AN OLVERA STREET TRADITION BRINGS BLESSINGS TO ALL CREATURES.Byline: Rachel Uranga Staff Writer Myra Myra (mī`rə), ancient city and seaport of Lycia, S Asia Minor (now S Turkey). The Acts of the Apostles reports that the city was visited by Paul. According to tradition, it was the see of St. Nicholas. Ruins of a theater are on the acropolis, and the necropolis has many grand tombs. buckled her front knees to the floor, bowing as Cardinal Roger Mahony sprinkled holy water holy water, in Christian churches, water blessed to symbolize spiritual cleansing. In Roman Catholic churches there is a bowl (stoup or font) of holy water near the doors, so that the faithful may bless themselves with it on entering. Holy water is a sacramental and is used in formal blessings, including the asperges. on the nearly 6-foot-tall llama llama (lä`mə), South American domesticated ruminant mammal, Lama glama, of the camel family. Genetic studies indicate that it is descended from the guanaco. Smaller than the camel and lacking a hump, it somewhat resembles a large sheep with a long neck, camellike face, and long ears. during the annual Blessing of the Animals at Olvera Street Saturday. The black, lanky llama stood by curiously after, watching as hundreds of animal owners presented their festively dressed pooches, parakeets parakeet or parrakeet, common name for a widespread group of small parrots, native to the Indo-Malayan region and popular as cage birds. Parakeets have long, pointed tails, unlike the chunky lovebirds with which they are sometimes confused. The budgerigar, also called the shell, zebra, or grass, parakeet (Melopsittacus undulatus), is the best known of the true parakeets., horses, bulls and iguanas iguana (ĭgwä`nə), name for several large lizards of the family Iguanidae, found in tropical America and the Galapagos. The common iguana (Iguana iguana) is a tree-living, strictly vegetarian species found along streams from Mexico to N South America.. They were all sprinkled with holy water in what's become a 73 year-old Easter tradition in Los Angeles. For more than an hour, pet owners held their sometimes squirming pets, from hamsters to snakes, in a processional line that stretched for more than a block as they awaited the cardinals' blessing. Every year, Penny Mctaggart, who helped raise Myra, brought her and six other llamas from a ranch in Little Rock, Calif., to seek the blessing. ``God has often used the service of animals or made them the symbolic gift of salvation,'' said Mahony in opening the ceremony from a stage adorned with yellow and orange lilies. Pet lovers came from as far as Oxnard and Riverside, and even the Los Angeles Police Department brought out two horses from its mounted unit. Dressed in purple leggings, platforms and a olive shirt, Dyan Hill of Glendale color-coordinated with Psyche, her 11-year-old Shih Tzu-Chihuahua mix, whom she brings every year. ``Usually, I have a mother-daughter outfit for her,'' Hill explained as the bonnet-wearing Psyche with purple sunglasses eyed two gray wolfhound wolfhound: see Irish wolfhound.">Irish wolfhounds Irish wolfhound, breed of very large hound whose origins may be traced back many centuries in Ireland. The tallest of dogs, it stands about 34 in. (86.4 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs about 140 lb (63.5 kg). Its rough, wiry coat is usually gray in color. Originally bred as a hunter, the Irish wolfhound had become almost extinct by the mid-19th cent.. All the while, a small crowd of observers snapped shots of Hill and the white, doll-sized dog she clutched. ``I want her to get all the love,'' said Hill. Practiced in Mexico, England and Austria, among other countries, the tradition of blessing animals is said to date back to San Antonio de Abad, the patron saint of the animal kingdom. Olvera Street merchants began practicing the celebration in 1930 as a way to lure tourists. Since then, the ceremony has blossomed. ``This year, there are more animals than any other year,'' said Albert Gribbell, who has served as a master of ceremonies of sorts for the past 28 years. This year, he said, seemed different in other ways. ``We are all giving thanks to our troops who are away from home.'' CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1) A llama is led before Cardinal Roger Mahony Saturday afternoon for the annual Blessing of the Animals on Olvera Street. (2) Peter Aguillard of Los Angeles brings his iguana, Ganga Man, to be blessed by Cardinal Roger Mahony. Charlotte Schmid-Maybach/Staff Photographer |
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