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Circus Elephants Blessed Before Tonight's Show

Tribune photo by DEBORAH MERON

National Circus Chaplain Father Jerry Hogan said a prayer for the elephants before sprinkling them with holy water at the St. Pete Times Forum.

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TBO.com staff report

Published: January 2, 2008

The Rev. Jerry Hogan, chaplain to the nation's circuses, blessed the Ringling Brothers elephants before the opening of the circus's Tampa run tonight.

Hogan, who works under the auspices of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, sprinkled the beasts with holy water and said a prayer in the plaza outside the St. Pete Times Forum.

The half-dozen elephants were treated to a meatless feast of fruit, bread and vegetables. Circus clowns rolled watermelons to the animals, who made a show of squashing the melons with their feet and swigging the pieces back with their trunks.

Hogan has blessed trapezes and tigers, train cars and tents, and serves as chaplain to an estimated 10,000 circus workers in the United States.

"They're people who have a tremendous talent," Hogan told The New York Times in a 2001 interview. "They feel it's a vocation."

For more information on circus times and tickets, visit TBO.com, Keyword: Circus

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