Prayer to Saint Francis for animals
"The animal world, like all creation, is a manifestation of God's power, wisdom and goodness, and as such deserves man's respect," said Pope Pius XII as early as November 1950. Pope Francis, with his encyclical Laudato Si, continues to call on every Christian to see in Creation and in every creature, the work of God, to love and protect them. So in our prayers, we can entrust animals to God, and in particular our pets, dogs, cats... Protector of animals, St. Francis of Assisi is often called upon for his powerful intercession in our prayers to protect animals, to heal a sick animal or to find a lost pet. Find out how and why to pray to Saint Francis for your pet.
Prayer to Saint Francis of Assisi for the protection and healing of an animal
"Saint Francis,
Brother of men and every creature,
You, the bird saint,
You, who spoke, soothed, comforted animals, especially those who were suffering as in the case of your Brother Wolf,
I entrust to your intercession this animal which is dear to me: (name the animal)
Following your example, I praise the Lord God, creator of the world and all that inhabits it:
"Praise be to you, my Lord, with all your creatures."
Lord, I thank you for the presence of this animal in my life.
Through him, as through every creature, I see the sign of your goodness and love for us.
Today, I come to ask you for the grace (to find him, to heal him, to welcome him to your side...).
Through your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us, Lord.
In everything and everywhere, thy will be done.
Amen"
Why pray to Saint Francis of Assisi for animals?
Saint Francis, protector of animals
Saint Francis of Assisi left everything to follow Christ. His life of poverty led him to live in close contact with nature and animals. In the life of this Italian saint, there are many examples of this fraternity between himself and animals. He had a relationship with birds, who would fall silent to listen to him, hence his nickname "the bird saint." He knew how to calm and appease a ferocious wolf that was terrorizing a village. By looking with love and compassion on the hungry beast, on his "Brother Wolf" as he called him, St. Francis tamed the wolf of Gubbio.
This love for the whole of creation is reflected in the prayers written by the saint, notably his beautiful Canticle of Creatures.
Named patron saint of ecologists, St. Francis is the object of intercessory prayers for everything to do with animals and nature.
Which other saints are prayed to for animals?
- Saint Roch is also often prayed for animals, especially dogs, for whom he is the patron saint.
- Saint Anthony of Padua is known for his effective intercession when we have lost something, so we canentrust our prayers to him to find a lost pet.
- We can also entrust a sick animal to the angel Raphael. This archangel is known as the healing angel. He intercedes for the sick before God.
Pray for Creation and all God's creatures with Hozana!
"Then God said: Let the earth bring forth every kind of living creature: tame animals, crawling things, and every kind of wild animal. And so it happened: God made every kind of wild animal, every kind of tame animal, and every kind of thing that crawls on the ground. God saw that it was good." (Genesis 1, 24-25).
God saw that it was good. God loves each and every one of his creatures. Through novenas and online retreats on Hozana, let's ask the Lord to help each of us grow in love and respect for all his creation.
- With , entrust your pet to the patron saint of animals and discover more about his life and spirituality,
- With , take a month to pray for God's creation,
- and pray for the world.
