Hmmm, will wonders never cease? 🙂 For a wondrous event, read the article on "Blessing of the Bicycles". Think the '3-in-1 oil' would be cheaper & wiser than the going rate of 60 quid a barrel... 🙁
Bloomberg: Crude Oil Trades Above $60 on Concern Over Iranian Production
Vancouver's bikes are blessed, anointed with '3-in-1 oil'
'Bicycle is symbolic of an ecologically responsible lifestyle,' reverend says
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Rev. Emilie Smith of the Anglican Church and Rev. Peter Fischer, a Lutheran, blesses bicycles and bicyclists at Christ Church Cathedral in downtown Vancouver Friday afternoon. A dab of sunscreen went on the nose and a drop of oil on the chain of bicycles.
CREDIT: Steve Bosch, Vancouver Sun
Rev. Paul Borthistle blesses bicycles and bicyclists Friday.
About 50 people stood on the steps of Christ Church Cathedral with their bicycles Friday listening to the ringing of bells. Bicycle bells, that is.
Mounted on bicycles wearing their bike helmets and rain jackets, the cyclists rang their bells to start Vancouver's first blessing of the bicycles event aimed at promoting cycling as an alternate means of transportation to the automobile.
Reverends Paul Borthistle and Emilie Smith of the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster and Rev. Peter Fischer of Christ Lutheran Church led the blessing, that included the sprinkling of holy water over cyclists and the anointing of bicycles with "blessed 3-in-1 oil."
"We're trying to draw the connection between responsible use of creation and bicycles," Borthistle said in an interview.
"The bicycle is symbolic of an ecologically responsible lifestyle, so when we're blessing the bicycle, what we're saying is we're acknowledging that [cyclists] have made a conscious choice to live in an ecologically responsible way."
Almost every part of the bicycle was blessed at the event. "Bless these seats that they shall carry us in comfort...Bless these wheels and tires that they soften the blow of the unsuspected pothole...Bless these bicycles, martyred saints of the machine age," cyclists recited on the steps of the cathedral over the rumble of buses, cars and trucks driving past on the corner of Burrard and Georgia Streets.
While the ceremony had a lighthearted feel to it, Borthistle said the blessing did have a significant purpose. "In this case, we're not causing anything to happen, and we're not creating a blessed relationship...We're naming before the people in attendance a relationship that already exists.
"By naming it, you give it power," he said.
Ellisha Kamell, 27, took a bus all the way from Chilliwack to participate in the event with a new bicycle she bought earlier in the day. "It's a great thing to ask for God's blessing for making responsible choices about sustainability," she said of the event.
Paige Dampier, one of the organizers of the event, said the idea came from similar blessings that had taken place in New York City and Los Angeles. "We timed it so it coincides with the Critical Mass ride in June which tends to have a festival atmosphere because it's Bike Month," she said.
She said the event is part of a larger campaign to think about how our transportation choices have social concerns. "It's a way to say that as faith communities, we are concerned about the state of the planet and want to be part of a positive solution," she said.
As part of the ceremony, a moment of silence was observed for cyclists who had been injured or killed in a cycling accident showing the dangers cyclists face on the streets with automobiles.
"Cycling is a lot of fun, but there's risk involved when it's used for daily transportation," said Fischer who does not own a car and bikes around town.
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MANY BLESSINGS
What else besides bicycles will a cleric bless for you?
- People, relationships
- Pets, animals
- Jewellery marking special moments
- Cars, vehicles
- Homes, buildings
- Boats, ships