(All make the sign of the cross as the minister says:)
Minister: Our help is in the name of the Lord.
All: Who made heaven and earth.
Reader: Genesis 2:19-20a
So the LORD God formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the air, and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each living creature was then its name. The man gave names to all the tame animals, all the birds of the air, and all the wild animals.
The word of the Lord.
All: Thanks be to God.
(With hands joined, the minister says the prayer of blessing. )
O God,
you have done all things wisely; in your goodness you have made us in your image and given us care over other living things. Reach out with your right hand and grant that these animals may serve our needs and that your bounty in the resources of this life may move us to seek more confidently the goal of eternal life.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
All : Amen.
(After the prayer of blessing, as circumstances suggest, the minister may sprinkle those present and the animals with holy water.)