Sudbury church 'Car and Bike Blessing' asks people to reflect on 'responsibility'
'We think we're eternal when we've got those machines in our hands,' says Father J. P. Jolicoeur
A Catholic church in Sudbury wants you to think twice every time you get behind the wheel — and it hopes blessing your car, motorcycle, scooter or bicycle will help to drive home a message or safety and responsibility.
Father Jean-Paul "J.P." Jolicoeur is the parish priest at Saint-Jean-de-Brébeuf Catholic church in Sudbury.
On Sunday at the church, he was blessing all kinds of vehicles — or rather, he said, their drivers.
"You ask God in a certain way to be present with the individuals that accept His presence in their lives, and also make them aware, " he said.
You've got a responsibility.- Father Jean-Paul "J.P." Jolicoeur
"We've got a vehicle that could be a weapon, and it could be dangerous. We have to use it very wisely ... We think we're eternal when we've got those machines in our hands."
Jolicoeur said from his perch at Saint-Jean-de-Brébeuf, he sees too many drivers behaving as if they're "alone on that road."
"Being on Notre Dame Avenue, with about 50,000 cars that go by every day, we see people on cell phones, we see people that use the street as a racetrack ...so, you become conscious."
Jolicoeur, who personally owns and rides a motorcycle, said he hopes the blessing gave people time to reflect on the gravity of road safety.
"[Know] that you're created free, here. You're the one who has his hands on the steering wheels or on the bike handles. You've got a responsibility."