Holy water and holy candles

[anonymous1995]

I always want to get some holy water and holy candles home for praying.

1. Is it allowed to go to a priest and ask for holy water? (I am afraid he will misunderstand me as pagan or superstitious.)
2. I read on the Internet about the differences between the Old and New Rite for Blessing of Holy Water - the Old Rite affirmatively drives away the Evil and invokes God’s blessing of the water while the New one simply calls for God’s blessing of the water as a symbol of His grace. So will it be too awkward if I go to my priest at an OF parish (there is only one parish in communion with Rome which offers weekly EF Sunday Mass, but I am unfamiliar with people there since I had only been to there a few times), handing him salt and water telling him to bless according to the Old Rite?
3. Can I bring my candles to the priest for blessing? I got a white candle during Easter Vigil Mass but it was too long and my mom thought it was inauspicious (my mom isn’t Catholic) so I had to throw it away.

 

[SyroMalankara]

I don’t think it would be fair to ask a priest to bless in a specific form. Any priest is equally able to bless using any form. Would it be fair to ask the local Latin Church priest to bless only in the Syriac form, used by the Syro-Malankara Church, or the Anglican Use priest to bless in the Ukrainian form? Unless it is a public blessing, why should the form of the blessing matter so much for you as a layman using an item privately?

 

[FAB]

I always want to get some holy water and holy candles home for praying.

1. Is it allowed to go to a priest and ask for holy water? (I am afraid he will misunderstand me as pagan or superstitious.)
2. I read on the Internet about the differences between the Old and New Rite for Blessing of Holy Water - the Old Rite affirmatively drives away the Evil and invokes God’s blessing of the water while the New one simply calls for God’s blessing of the water as a symbol of His grace. So will it be too awkward if I go to my priest at an OF parish (there is only one parish in communion with Rome which offers weekly EF Sunday Mass, but I am unfamiliar with people there since I had only been to there a few times), handing him salt and water telling him to bless according to the Old Rite?
3. Can I bring my candles to the priest for blessing? I got a white candle during Easter Vigil Mass but it was too long and my mom thought it was inauspicious (my mom isn’t Catholic) so I had to throw it away.

Yes you can ask for Holy water and for your candle to be blessed and have it in your home, it makes no difference as to how the water is blessed, the effect is the same.
Dcn Frank

 

[Rich_C]

1. Yes, there is nothing superstitious about holy water.
2. I wouldn’t ask father to do things the way you want, but perhaps you can find a place where holy water is blessed using the old rite. I personally believe it is a stronger blessing, based on the advice of two priests.
3. Yes, and at certain times of the year it’s especially appropriate to get your candles blessed. We bought them to Candlemas for a blessing back in February.

 

[frizzgrig]

handing him salt and water telling him to bless according to the Old Rite?

I would not tell a priest to do anything, I would ask him. Nicely

 

[oldgraymare2]

In some churches, the holy water is already available, and you can just go up and get some to take home.

I remember in one church that I used to go to for Adoration, the holy water came out of a faucet on the wall of one side of the church, as you entered the church in the vestibule. I had never seen that before.

 

[anonymous1995]

I would not tell a priest to do anything, I would ask him. Nicely

Yes yes it should be ‘asking him in a nice manner’ instead of ‘telling’

Sometimes I read on the Internet that the ‘effectiveness’ of holy water blessed according to the Old Rite is stronger. But I’m skeptical of this, as I think as long as the blessing is validly performed by a priest in communion with Rome, how much grace one receives depends on God’s mercy and the recipient’s faith. I tend to put it this way: the Old Rite expresses exorcism in a more explicit way than the New. Just it.

Any advice?

 

[anonymous1995]

I don’t think it would be fair to ask a priest to bless in a specific form. Any priest is equally able to bless using any form. Would it be fair to ask the local Latin Church priest to bless only in the Syriac form, used by the Syro-Malankara Church, or the Anglican Use priest to bless in the Ukrainian form? Unless it is a public blessing, why should the form of the blessing matter so much for you as a layman using an item privately?

Yes you’re right. I shouldn’t ‘instruct’ a priest into doing something.

My original worry is that the water blessed under the New Rite may be infiltrated with demonic influence if not properly exorcised, as some Internet articles say so. Now it is dismissed I guess. Given that they are the same blessing from God.

 

[Amanda_Germany]

Surely you can ask any priest to bless your candles.
Holy water should be available in every church. We have a kind of cauldron with a faucet to get Holy Water from.

 

[pianistclare]

Yes you’re right. I shouldn’t ‘instruct’ a priest into doing something.

My original worry is that the water blessed under the New Rite may be infiltrated with demonic influence if not properly exorcised, as some Internet articles say so. Now it is dismissed I guess. Given that they are the same blessing from God.

Please be careful what you read on the internet, and consider the sources.
The prince of lies loves to detract from the Church.
Peace.

 

[Rich_C]

My original worry is that the water blessed under the New Rite may be infiltrated with demonic influence if not properly exorcised, as some Internet articles say so. Now it is dismissed I guess. Given that they are the same blessing from God.

That sounds a bit extreme, but the way I look at it is you get what you ask for.

The old rite does ask for more protection from evil, so I would rather have that kind of holy water any day.

 

[chefmomster2]

I personally believe it is a stronger blessing,

How is one "blessing “stronger” or “weaker” than another? Isn’t a blessing a blessing? Isn’t it God who actually blesses?

 

[Rich_C]

How is one "blessing “stronger” or “weaker” than another? Isn’t a blessing a blessing? Isn’t it God who actually blesses?

Read my post #11. If you ask for greater protection from evil, you can expect greater protection, right? That’s all I’m saying.

 

[Rich_C]

For those who are interested, I looked up the blessings. I’ve only assisted at the old rite blessing and couldn’t remember much of the new one, so this was interesting for me.

After some scripture readings, the new blessing is one of the following three format, plus the closing prayer:

Prayer of Blessing

After the reading, the celebrant says:
Let us pray.

All pray briefly in silence; then, with hands outstretched, the celebrant says the prayer of blessing:

Blessed are you, Lord, all-powerful God,
who in Christ, the living water of salvation,
blessed and transformed us.
Grant that when we are sprinkled with this water
or make use of it,
we will be refreshed inwardly by the power
of the Holy Spirit
and continue to walk in the new life
we received at Baptism.

We ask this though Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.

or

Lord, holy Father,
look with kindness on your children
redeemed by your Son
and born to a new life by water and the Holy Spirit.
Grant that those who are sprinkled with this water
may be renewed in body and spirit
and may make a pure offering of their service to you.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.

or the celebrant says:

O God, the Creator of all things,
by water and the Holy Spirit
you have given the universe its beauty
and fashioned us in your own image.
R. Bless and purify your Church.

O Christ the Lord, from your pierced side
you gave us your sacraments
as fountains of salvation.
R. Bless and purify your Church.

O Holy Spirit, giver of life,
from the baptismal font of the Church
you have formed us into a new creation
in the waters of rebirth.
R. Bless and purify your Church.

After the prayer of blessing, the celebrant sprinkles those present with holy water, as a suitable song is sung; as circumstances suggest, he may first say the following words:

Let this water call to mind our Baptism into Christ, who has redeemed us by his death and resurrection.
R. Amen.

The is the old rite blessing, including the mandatory exorcism of the salt (which may be done earlier or together):

“V. Our help is in the name of the Lord.

R. Who made heaven and earth.

Exorcism of Salt

O salt, creature of God, I exorcise you by the living God, by the true God, by the holy God, by the God who ordered you to be poured into the water by Eliseo the Prophet so that its life-giving powers might be restored. I exorcise you so that you may become a means of salvation for believers, that you may bring health of soul and body to all who make use of you, arid that you may put to flight and drive away from the places where you are sprinkled every apparition, villainy, and turn of devilish deceit, and every unclean spirit, adjured by Him Who will come to judge the living and the dead and the world by fire. Amen.

Let us pray.
Almighty and everlasting God, we humbly implore Thee, in Thy immeasurable kindness and love, to bless + and sanctify + this salt which Thou did create and give over to the use of mankind, so that it may become a source of health for the minds and bodies of all who make use of it, and may rid whatever it touches or sprinkles of all uncleanness and protect it from every assault of evil spirits. Through our Lord, Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who lives and reigns with Thee in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. R. Amen.

Exorcism of Water
O water, creature of God, I exorcise you in the name of God the Father almighty, and in the name of Jesus Christ His Son, our Lord, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. I exorcise you so that you may put to flight all the power of the Enemy, and be able to root out and supplant that Enemy with his apostate angels: through the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who will come to judge the living and the dead and the world by fire. Amen.

Let us pray.
O God, Who for the salvation of mankind has built Thy greatest mysteries on this substance, water, in Thy kindness hear our prayers and pour down the power of Thy blessing + into this element, made ready for many kinds of purifications. May this, Thy creature, become an agent of divine grace in the service of Thy mysteries, to drive away evil spirits and dispel sickness, so that every-thing in the homes and other buildings of the faithful that is sprinkled with this water may be rid of all uncleanness and freed from every harm. Let no breath of infection, no disease-bearing air, remain in these places. May the wiles of the lurking Enemy prove of no avail. Let whatever might menace the safety and peace of those who live here be put to flight by the sprinkling of this water, so that the healthfulness, obtained by calling upon Thy holy name, may be made secure against all attack. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who lives and reigns with Thee in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.

R. Amen.

 

[Miserissima]

How is one "blessing “stronger” or “weaker” than another? Isn’t a blessing a blessing? Isn’t it God who actually blesses?

This thread made my day.

Does one receive “more of” or a “holier version” of Jesus from the Eucharist from an EF instead of an OF?

(No.)

“Inauspicious” means “unlucky,” indicative of her home environs.

I see this as a clue that possibly leaning toward a desire to do the "right thing"according to the Church would not encourage leading a newbie toward scrupulosity or superstition.

I’m sorry to report that sacramentals such as holy water do not carry more blessing because of how it has been blessed.

If you request an exorcism of the water, and provide a copy of the words to the priest, please come back to tell us all about it. You can still receive the efficacious sacramental from the stoup in your local parish.

 

[Rich_C]

This thread made my day.

Does one receive “more of” or a “holier version” of Jesus from the Eucharist from an EF instead of an OF?

(No.)

This is a poor analogy though, since the only thing in the Mass that matter sacramentally is the words of institution, intention and using the right matter. Since these are virtually identical in both forms, it would be silly to say there is any difference in the Eucharist Himself.

But in the case of the two holy water blessings, the words of blessing are quite different.

You can still receive the efficacious sacramental from the stoup in your local parish.

I agree that all holy water is efficacious. The Church’s own rite couldn’t be anything other than valid and efficacious: She is the Bride of Christ.

I’m just saying, the Church isn’t asking God to give holy water the same power with the new rite as with the old. It’s self evident. Both waters are holy, but one has more petitions and protections involved.

 

[chefmomster2]

Read my post #11. If you ask for greater protection from evil, you can expect greater protection, right? That’s all I’m saying.

I just haven’t heard of this before. When we ask God to bless us, I assume that He does so with His fullness of love. I would feel presumptuous asking for “greater” protection. As if in some circumstance God would send “lesser” blessings?

What am I missing?

 

[Miserissima]

This is a poor analogy though, since the only thing in the Mass that matter sacramentally is the words of institution, intention and using the right matter. Since these are virtually identical in both forms, it would be silly to say there is any difference in the Eucharist Himself.

But in the case of the two holy water blessings, the words of blessing are quite different.

I agree that all holy water is efficacious. The Church’s own rite couldn’t be anything other than valid and efficacious: She is the Bride of Christ.

I’m just saying, the Church isn’t asking God to give holy water the same power with the new rite as with the old. It’s self evident. Both waters are holy, but one has more petitions and protections involved.

I stand corrected, then.

There is, “holier water than holy water,” because tee form of blessing hasn’t been abriged.

Is that what you are saying?

 

[Rich_C]

I just haven’t heard of this before. When we ask God to bless us, I assume that He does so with His fullness of love. I would feel presumptuous asking for “greater” protection. As if in some circumstance God would send “lesser” blessings?

What am I missing?

In other instances, I’ve read and been told that we shouldn’t limit God’s generosity by asking only for little things. Remember the prophet who got mad at the King or Israel for not asking for a blessing, and then promised the savior, Christ? Elsewhere, we’re taught to ask for what we need.

I’m not a theologian, I just always understood that we may not always get what we ask for, but we can count on not getting what we don’t ask for.

Anyway, I don’t mean to stir up any doubt in anyone’s hearts. I trust the Church. Only a couple of priests have pointed out to me on difference occasions that in the case of the holy water blessings, they’re just different and one asks for protection from demons and all sorts of evils, and the other doesn’t ask for those things.

Therefore, I think it’s a legitimate desire to have holy water blessed according to the old rite.

 

[Rich_C]

I stand corrected, then.

There is, “holier water than holy water,” because tee form of blessing hasn’t been abriged.

Is that what you are saying?

Exactly. This was explained to me by two different priests. One of them strongly dislikes the Latin Mass in fact, but he has been trained as an exorcist in Rome and highly values the older holy water blessing over the new.