Blessing of Objects

[Diaconia]

May it please you, O Lord, to consecrate and sanctify these hands by this anointing and our + blessing.

All: Amen.

And having made the sign of the cross over the hands of the ordained he continues: That whatever they bless may be blessed, and whatever they consecrate may be consecrated in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

To the above form each of the ordained adds: Amen.[/INDENT]
These words were said for a reason: the hands of an ordained priest bestow blessings!

Sadly, this rite is no longer present in the Ordinary Form of priestly ordination.

The ability to bless objects comes from the exercise of sacred power, handed on by the bishop who ordains a deacon or priest.

Deacons can bless persons and objects, and their hands are NOT anointed during ordination - thus the ability to bless objects does not come from the anointing.

A priest’s hands are anointed to consecrate the gifts at Mass.

Sacramentals require a priest or deacon to bless them, even if laypersons can assist in the distribution of the objects blessed by a cleric (e.g. ashes or palms).

In the end, laity can **ASK **God (read: pray for) to bless someone or something – like during Grace before Meals, but only a cleric can **GIVE **a blessing - because both the *ability *to do so AND the *authority *to do so was given them when they received sacred orders.

God bless,

 

[franciscanhobbi]

To “preside at blessings” is not the same thing as to impart a blessing–it’s not the same thing as blessing an object and as a result, the object becomes a blessed object.

That’s the topic here.

The question was “can a layperson bless an object?”

The answer to that is no.
A layperson can say a prayer over an object, but that object is no different than it was before. It’s not a blessed cross or a blessed rosary unless a priest or deacon imparts a blessing upon it.

The many and various uses of the word “blessing” do not always refer to imparting a blessing on an object or person.

What about when St Clare of Assisi blessed bread? Then it was considered blessed bread. I think there are fewer distinctions than all here think there are.

 

[FEQuis]

These citations from the Catholic Encyclopedia should help with understanding:

newadvent.org/cathen/15687b.htm

A woman, even though an abbess or prioress having jurisdiction over her nuns, cannot bless publicly, since the office of benediction comes from the power of the keys, of which a woman is incapable. She can, however, bless her subjects in the same manner as parents are wont to give their blessing to their children, but not with any sacramental power even though she have the right to bear the crosier.

newadvent.org/cathen/02599b.htm

With these various significations [of blessing] it is not the present purpose to deal. Coming, then, to its strictly liturgical and restricted sense, blessing may be described as a rite, consisting of a ceremony and prayers performed in the name and with the authority of the Church by a duly qualified minister, by which persons or things are sanctified as dedicated to Divine service, or by which certain marks of Divine favour are invoked upon them. The following aspects of the subject will be discussed:

It seems to me this is the difference:

A lay person cannot perform a ceremony and prayers in the name of and with the authority of the Church. That is rooted in the binding and loosing powers of Apostolic Succession.

As far as a non-liturgical blessing goes, one can bless those one has authority over. A mother can bless her children, a father his wife and children. An Abbess can bless her subjects as can a Mother Superior. This is a natural authority and part of the responsibility of authority, but it is not Apostolic Authority with the authority of the Church behind it.

Here is my opinion:

While both are rooted in authority, they are two different kinds of blessings. The authority of the Church is binding - if a priest blesses an object in a manner approved by the Church and the object or person is of the right kind or disposition, it is blessed for sure, and God will respond.

The other kind of blessing is a beseeching of God to send His grace upon those persons (or things) we have authority over. As laymen we do not have the authority of the Church and the promise of binding and loosing. So we can ask for a blessing, but when we are done we cannot say the object or person is “blessed” because we don’t know.

So, for sure, we should bless our wives, children, charges, etc. as often as possible. But it is not the same as when a priest blesses someone or something because he acts in the name of the Church with the authority of the Church, and God promised His response to that.

 

[FEQuis]

What about when St Clare of Assisi blessed bread? Then it was considered blessed bread. I think there are fewer distinctions than all here think there are.

Are you referring to the origins of Hot Cross Buns as related here?

*Clare knew the Pope and his Cardinals could not get back to Assisi in time for lunch, so she invited him to join them in their extremely humble fare of stale bread.

We really believe the Pope was honored to be able to live the Gospel life with these selfless ladies, if only for this brief time.

He joyfully accepted their hospitality. The hard pieces of bread were placed on the table. Clare asked the Pope to bless the meal.

He asked Saint Clare to bless it.

Out ofhumility, she said she was a sinner, and could not possibly bless the bread, especially in the presence of Christ’s vicar on earth.

The Pope had no problem with that.

He ordered Clare to bless the bread.

She closed her eyes, raised her arm, and blessed the bread with such reverence, not a sound could be heard.

When she was finished, a gasp of amazement escaped from all present.

A large cross had formed on each piece of the hardened bread.
*

Two things

First, this is apocryphal at best. It may or may not have happened, though I like to believe it did. But as a story it isn’t evidence of anything.

However, assuming it did happen in the way it was related, it does not imply the bread was considered blessed in the sense of a sacramental. She asked God’s blessing for a meal and was rewarded with a miracle.

If you’re referring to something else, though, I’m not familiar with it, so could you relate the story?

 

[franciscanhobbi]

Are you referring to the origins of Hot Cross Buns as related here?

*Clare knew the Pope and his Cardinals could not get back to Assisi in time for lunch, so she invited him to join them in their extremely humble fare of stale bread.

We really believe the Pope was honored to be able to live the Gospel life with these selfless ladies, if only for this brief time.

He joyfully accepted their hospitality. The hard pieces of bread were placed on the table. Clare asked the Pope to bless the meal.

He asked Saint Clare to bless it.

Out ofhumility, she said she was a sinner, and could not possibly bless the bread, especially in the presence of Christ’s vicar on earth.

The Pope had no problem with that.

He ordered Clare to bless the bread.

She closed her eyes, raised her arm, and blessed the bread with such reverence, not a sound could be heard.

When she was finished, a gasp of amazement escaped from all present.

A large cross had formed on each piece of the hardened bread.
*

Two things

First, this is apocryphal at best. It may or may not have happened, though I like to believe it did. But as a story it isn’t evidence of anything.

However, assuming it did happen in the way it was related, it does not imply the bread was considered blessed in the sense of a sacramental. She asked God’s blessing for a meal and was rewarded with a miracle.

If you’re referring to something else, though, I’m not familiar with it, so could you relate the story?

No, I had just heard she blessed the bread, I was not aware of all the details.
Thank you for relating it!