Offertory water not blessed

[mulrooney]

At my parish, they seem to have stopped blessing the water in the cruet just prior to mixing it with the wine at the offertory. On occasion, a visiting priest saying the mass will bless it, which throws the deacon and the server into shock. Am I missing something liturgical, here?

 

[AJV]

At my parish, they seem to have stopped blessing the water in the cruet just prior to mixing it with the wine at the offertory. On occasion, a visiting priest saying the mass will bless it, which throws the deacon and the server into shock. Am I missing something liturgical, here?

The rubrics of the missal/sacramentary post 1970 say nothing about blessing the water. The practice of blessing the water is a carry over from the Mass before 1970 when the water was blessed before being added to the wine. Some priests in the seminary are trained by older priests who continued blessing the water out of habit and so they do it (or they are trained by priests who were trained by older priests)

 

[michaeldaniels]

Just one of many things that seemed to have just passed away with time…oh how I yearn for the older days. What is a nostalgic Catholic to do?

The rubrics of the missal/sacramentary post 1970 say nothing about blessing the water. The practice of blessing the water is a carry over from the Mass before 1970 when the water was blessed before being added to the wine. Some priests in the seminary are trained by older priests who continued blessing the water out of habit and so they do it (or they are trained by priests who were trained by older priests)

 

[Crumpy]

I don’t know the real story, but let’s pick a nit here.

I know what you mean, when you say the water is blessed. But, then only a drop is put in the chalice. If the rest of the water is unused, does it get dumped? Why bless it, just to discard it?

Blessing is an action of dedication, but so is the offertory prayer that the priest says just a moment later. If the water is not blessed by the one act, it is by the other, no?

 

[PacoG]

I know what you mean, when you say the water is blessed. But, then only a drop is put in the chalice. If the rest of the water is unused, does it get dumped? Why bless it, just to discard it?

It’s water. Why would it get dumped? It’s not like it spoils. My experience has been that it gets put away (usually the wine cruet is refilled and the two are put away in fridge in the sacristy) and used at the next Mass. Why would any sacristan, priest, deacon, go through the trouble and waste of time of emptying out a cruet of perfectly good water and refilling it after every Mass. It makes no sense.

 

[Symeon]

I don’t know the real story, but let’s pick a nit here.

I know what you mean, when you say the water is blessed. But, then only a drop is put in the chalice. If the rest of the water is unused, does it get dumped? Why bless it, just to discard it?

Blessing is an action of dedication, but so is the offertory prayer that the priest says just a moment later. If the water is not blessed by the one act, it is by the other, no?

Just wanted to point out - the water is not dumped. The priest uses it (or should) to cleanse the chalice after Mass. He pours the water into the chalice and drinks it.