Two Catholic women and an Indonesian Catholic priest faced criticism on social media for allegedly planning a dog “wedding ceremony.”
The two Alaskan Malamutes reportedly exchanged vows at a Jakarta mall on July 14 for an estimated 200 million rupiah ($13,350). Online commenters scolded them for wasting money. The event featured a procession appropriate for a human wedding.
By dressing the canines in Javanese attire, they were also charged with disrespecting the culture.
Following the social media controversy, Capuchin Father Lorenzo Heli, who is credited with blessing the canines at the ritual, was compelled to release a clarification on July 20.
The ceremony’s priest from South Jakarta’s St. Francis of Assisi Tebet Parish described his actions as merely a “pet blessing.” He denied claims that he presided over a “animal wedding.”
He claimed that pet blessing is a custom that “is very much in line with the spirituality of the Franciscan Order as taught and always lived by Saint Francis of Assisi.”
Additionally, he said that he barely spent five minutes at the event during the pet blessing session and skipped the subsequent session.
Jojo, the male dog, wore a tuxedo to the blessing ritual, and Luna, the female dog, a white frock.
But for the welcoming event, the dogs wore customary Javanese attire made just for canines. The two owners were dressed in green Javanese garb as well.
The two dog owners were pressured by numerous organisations to apologize or face legal action for defaming Javanese culture.
Due to the fact that many Indonesians are living in poverty, the ceremony was also criticized as a waste of money.
The two dog owners formally apologized on July 19 at a press conference in response to the criticism.
The female dog’s owner, Indira Ratnasari, expressed her deep regret and profuse apology to Javanese culture activists as well as to all Indonesians who were harmed by the incident.
She added that she had no desire to disparage Indonesian culture in general or Javanese culture in particular.
The male dog’s owner, Valentina Chandra, also expressed regret to Catholics and the Archdiocese of Jakarta “for the misinterpreted news of the blessing of animals.”
Professor of dogmatic theology and Franciscan Father Andreas Bernadinus Atawolo asserted that pet blessings are typical practice in the Catholic Church.
“Even if it’s a male and female animal pair, the objective is to preserve the dignity of all beings. But since animals are not people, it is impossible to compare them. Therefore, treating animals excessively is not necessary, let alone going above and beyond what we would do for someone else,” he explained.
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