Can a person make their own holy water?

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Okay so obviously holy water blessed by a lay person isn’t the same thing as holy water blessed by a priest but can one do it? I mean, a priest told me that you can do lay blessings on things like your apartment so I figured you could make holy water with a lay blessing. So, if you can do this, would it be just as powerful/valuable/grace filled as holy water blessed by a priest? If you can make your own holy water, is there anything besides water that you put in it? I say this because I read that holy water is made using water and a tiny bit of salt. Also, does it have to be any type of water or can it be tap?
 
Holly3278 said:
Okay so obviously holy water blessed by a lay person isn’t the same thing as holy water blessed by a priest but can one do it? I mean, a priest told me that you can do lay blessings on things like your apartment so I figured you could make holy water with a lay blessing. So, if you can do this, would it be just as powerful/valuable/grace filled as holy water blessed by a priest? If you can make your own holy water, is there anything besides water that you put in it? I say this because I read that holy water is made using water and a tiny bit of salt. Also, does it have to be any type of water or can it be tap?
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To be Holy Water the water MUST be blessed by a priest. A lay person CANNOT turn water into Holy Water!
What you have read is nonsense.
 
Holy water must be from a priest.
In many parishes there is a place where the faithful can pour out holy water for their use. This is where you can get it.
 
Holly,
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No, but you can make your own Holly water.  ROFL (I crack myself up.)

Just get you an empty gallon milk jug.  Clean it out good.  Fill it with water.  Then, bring it to your priest and have him bless it.  He can also bless salt, which I think is better, because it lasts longer.
Scooby 🙂
 
My church has Holy Water on tap … have you inquired as to the location of Holy Water at your parish, or is this just something you were wondering?
 
Why can’t she make holy water? I make holy food at every meal.

I read somewhere that the effectiveness of a lay blessing is proportional to the faith and grace of the person performing the blessing. The priest has the support of the entire church faithful, present and departed, when he blesses something. I suspect his blessing is more powerful.
 
This last post about making “Holy Food” at every meal touched me. We had a local breakfast shop in the neighborhood I used to live in – it has won the “Best Breakfast in Town” award 5 or 6 years in a row. This was a funny thing, because while the food was delicious and very delicately prepared, it was vegetarian! The town was heartily carnivorous!! Most people turn up their nose at the idea of a vegetarian breakfast – no bacon, no ham!! So how was this possible?

One time I spoke with the gentleman who ran the place. I asked him this very question. He surprised me by saying, “How do you feel when you visit this cafe?” I considered this and said, “Very peaceful.” He said “That is no mistake. We cultivate that particular sense, we bless this place every morning. And as we prepare each and every single one of these meals, we ‘chant love’ into the food.” I said “What does that mean?” He said “Just what I’ve told you. We say ‘Love. Love. Love,’ as we prepare it, and then we serve it to each person in kind. We believe they receive this ‘Love,’ and the offering goes beyond mere food.”

I don’t know what his spiritual/religious tradition is, but his practice is simply beautiful, and it reminded me of the poster who said he prepares “Holy Food.” This is lovely! 🙂

Peace!
 
Scoobyshme said:
Holly,
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No, but you can make your own Holly water.  ROFL (I crack myself up.)

Just get you an empty gallon milk jug.  Clean it out good.  Fill it with water.  Then, bring it to your priest and have him bless it.  He can also bless salt, which I think is better, because it lasts longer.
Scooby 🙂
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:rotfl: Holly water! 😃 That’s cute Scoobyshme! 👍

That said, thanks! Anyway, which is more powerful, blessed salt or holy water? Also, what is the difference between blessed salt and blessed and exorcised salt?
 
Yes, the church allows you to make your own holy water.

Simply take an 8 gallon pot and fit it with 6 gallons of water (or a 10 gallon pot and fill it with 8 gallons of water), place it on the burner, and boil the Hell out of it! :rotfl:
 
while I am chuckling at the last poster’s hot joke (the next time I boil water I’ll be smiling, I know!), I have to say that no, we can pray that water be blessed but we need a priest to make Holy Water.

I would say both Holy Water and blessed salt are equal - I’m presuming the blessing is the same but the substrate is different. However, I’m not sure of this. Get some of both, Holly!
 
Ordinarily speaking, the basic rule of thumb is that those who have spiritual authority over another person can give that person a blessing. That is why parents can give a blessing to their children. In the case of deacons, canon law says the following:

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A deacon can impart only those blessings which are expressly permitted to him by law (canon 1169 §3).

This differs from priests in that while a deacon can only give those blessings expressly permitted to him, the rule for priests is that they can impart any blessings, except those reserved to the pope or to bishops (canon 1169 §2). In other words, the law appears to be more restrictive about the ability of deacons to impart blessings than it is about the ability of priests to do so.

If a deacon is giving a blessing permitted to him to give, it would seem that the article or person he is blessing has been truly blessed and that the article would become a blessed sacramental.

forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=122933
 
Holly3278 said:
:rotfl: Holly water! 😃 That’s cute Scoobyshme! 👍

That said, thanks! Anyway, which is more powerful, blessed salt or holy water? Also, what is the difference between blessed salt and blessed and exorcised salt?
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The blessings/exorcism remains with the substance only as long as the substance remains. So, for holy water, that means until it evaporates. Salt remains salt for longer, unless it gets wet, then it dissolves. So, I would say blessed salt is better, because it should last longer. (I think it needs to be non-iodized, if I recall correctly.)
 
StFrancisXavier said:
Ordinarily speaking, the basic rule of thumb is that those who have spiritual authority over another person can give that person a blessing. That is why parents can give a blessing to their children. In the case of deacons, canon law says the following:
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I bless people every time that they sneeze, even though I have no spiritual authority over them. Is this wrong?

I also bless my food and water before each meal. Doesn’t that make it holy food and holy water?
 
MtnDwellar said:
I bless people every time that they sneeze, even though I have no spiritual authority over them. Is this wrong?

I also bless my food and water before each meal. ** Doesn’t that make it holy food and holy water?**
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No.
 
A California priest told me that I could make my own holy water with tap water and salt. He was a modernist, and I didn’t agree with his statement.

You should get your holy water from a Catholic Church.
 
I know of Catholics (including Scott Hahn) who bless their bed and their childrens rooms with holy water. Generally speaking, a blessing is a prayer dedicating something to a sacred purpose. But certain things, like the blessings that make things into sacramentals (holy water, statues, etc) are reserved to the Church (Deacons, Priests, Bishops) due to the nature of the blessing.

With regard to which such and such is more powerful, remember that the sacramental’s power generally depends on the faith of the person using it and their willingness to cooperate with whatever graces from God that they recieve from it. If we don’t keep that in mind its easy to unintentionally get the idea that we’re talking about different levels of “magical” powers. Blessed salt has no “power” in and of itself but rather God’s name has been invoked, in the blessing (prayer) God has been asked to let His grace work through that item (perhaps we could say He has “infused” His grace into the item? I’m not theologically qualified to know if that would be a good way to phrase it, though.)

P.S. Since you seem interested in apologetics from your other thread, read Acts 9:11-12 in regard to God’s grace working through sacramentals/relics. Also 2nd Kings 13:21. Keep those in your back pocket!
 
The blessings for salt and holy water are different. The blessing for Holy Water seems designed more to bring holiness and goodness in. The blessing for the salt seems more to keep evil out. Use them both!

For those posters who say that I cannot make holy water - Tell me what happens to food and water that I bless each day before a meal? I blessed it - it is holy. I am eating some holy cereal as I am typing this post. 👍
 
Certainly as baptized Christians we are called to be blessings and to bless. However there is structure to the Church that by virtue of Holy Obedience we must abide by. I agree with Mtndwellar that there is a change over our food and drink when we bless them.
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     Sadly  I just wrote a reply. I had it all edited and correctly spelled.  The reply was based on a real event and clearly demonstrated the limits of the  common priesthood that all Christians are called to be.  It also showed what a wonderful blessing we have with our clergy who are devoted to service of God and what special authority God gives them. Then I pressed something the computer clicked and it was lost in cyberspace.
Many Blessings to You All,
BluesPicker
 
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