A priest in Brazil taught his parishioners a lesson in humility and the importance of showing love to all of God’s creatures last month as a runaway playful dog interrupted mass. The yellow pup came into the church with a collar but without his owner.
In a video posted to Facebook by the town of Paróquia Nossa Senhora das Dores — situated in the Floresta neighborhood of the city of Belo Horizonte — Father José Geraldo Sobreira doesn’t miss a beat as the pup strolls into his service. A parishioner caught the adorable scene on their phone, and now it’s been viewed over 7 million times in just a couple of weeks!
Not wanting to make his furry guest feel unwelcome during his self-imposed playtime, Fr. Sobreira was more than tolerant of this light-hearted interruption. In fact, he carried on the service even as the dog nuzzled and tried to play with him!
Now he’s what you call a pro folks!
Both the priest and the pup was smiling ear to ear. He even gave the dog some belly rubs, and now the two are getting lots of attention.
Some viewers even called the dog’s presence a “divine sign.”
However, we’re not sure if the dog was heaven-sent. In turns out, that the pup was a wee bit destructive when he first came in.
According to a communications advisor from the church:
“It happened during the Sunday Mass at 9 a.m., a puppy got lost in the street and entered the church. The animal was on a leash, which indicates that he was a domestic animal.”
And it seems the pup’s initially behavior almost got him shown the door (and perhaps some serious time in confession).
“He entered the church after Mass had already begun. He went up to the altar, bit and pulled the towels from the altar, destroyed some flower arrangements, even the priest wanted him to leave.”
But once the dog calmed down a bit — after all, he was only a puppy — while not necessarily ideal, his playful antics became more tolerable.
“While the readings were being read, and all were seated, the dog wanted to play with the priest, biting and pulling his robes,” the adviser said.
Sobreira announced to his parishioners that the dog simply wanted to play — but you can bet those robes needed some mending after the service!
The pup even got ahold of one of the pieces of paper the priest was trying to read from and continued to test the durability of his garments.
As it turns out the pup came to the right place — the spokesperson also said that Sobriera has a soft spot for animals and is a dog-owner himself after a little “Christmas miracle” last year:
“A fun fact is that after the Christmas Eve Mass, on December 24, a puppy dog was abandoned inside the church, and the priest adopted it later.”
And don’t worry, the pup did eventually find his way back to his owner. When the dog was finally escorted from the church later, a homeless person recognized him and knew who he belonged to.
It so happens that his owner — who has Alzheimer’s disease — accidentally left the door open and the mischievous pup took it as a sign to engage in a little holy adventure.
By the way, the pious pup’s name is Herman.
You can check out Herman’s cute church antics in the video below. And please be sure to share this story with friends and family.
https://www.facebook.com/nsd.bh/videos/602438453601616/?v=602438453601616