By Mary Stadnyk | Associate Editor

As a way to spiritually gather people, Father Richard Osborn, parochial vicar of St. Mary Parish, Middletown, looks for opportunities to hold special blessing ceremonies. One such occasion would be the blessing of homes, and another is the one he held the afternoon of April 27 – the blessing of vehicles.

Father Osborn said that parishioners and their vehicles, whether they were cars, motorcycles, mopeds, segways, RVs, vans, towed boats, bicycles, unicycles, skateboards, blimps, pogo sticks or hot air balloons, were invited for a brief prayer service, after which he then blessed each vehicle individually.

Reflecting on having blessed 50 vehicles, including one motorcycle, Father Osborn felt the turnout was good and the blessing “resonated very much with people.”

Emphasizing that parishes need to continually reach out and evangelize all people, including people who perhaps are present more out of obligation rather than desire, he said, “It is so important for Catholics to gather as a community of faith and to invoke the grace of God for protection and guidance as disciples of Jesus Christ.

“Public events like this, I hope, will help people to be more open to invoking God frequently and be receptive to his grace and the promptings of the Holy Spirit in their lives,” said Father Osborn. “I hope this day and similar events work toward that goal of bringing people closer to Christ and his Church.”