Poll: Holy Water at home?

[DJJG]

Hi.
Do you have a holy water font, in your home and do you use it?

I know many family and friends, who do have a font, but it is always empty and never used, they don;t remember to fill or use it.:nope:

I have one at my front door and use it every day.
When I first put it up, I put a large note on my front door, COVERING THE DOORKNOB, which said “USE HOLY WATER,” this way I had to lift the note to leave the house AND THUS REMEMBER TO USE THE FONT. In less than a week I didn’t need the note anymore.

 

[RomanRyan1088]

Yes i have one, and i put it in my room as you come in. I remember to use it, but everyone in a while i 4get

 

[Meggie]

I have a tiny bottle that I got from my youth group…my mom thinks its a sacrliage

 

[space_ghost]

Meggie:

I have a tiny bottle that I got from my youth group…my mom thinks its a sacrliage

how are you using it?

 

[space_ghost]

Never have had one. but in the past months, i have thought about getting one… sacrileged is of course my biggest concern… visitors that are ignorant about what it is are sometimes likely to misuse to be cute… not sure yet just when and how many to get…

 

[Debbie]

We actually have two holy water fonts in our house. One, next to the door to our garage, is never used–we just forget (but WILL BE now that I’ve partaken in this poll!), and the other is in our 3yo daughter’s bedroom. It’s down at her level so she can use it when she gets up in the morning and before we say our prayers at night. Sometimes we forget, and occasionally I have to remove it for “abuse,” but she’s pretty good about it. She likes to bless me and our dog with it!

Thanks for the nudge, I will fill the other font and put a sign on the door knob!

Debbie

 

[Micki]

I currently don’t but I’m seriously thinking about it.

Micki

 

[princz23]

My daughter received one at vacation bible school. I thought it was great and mounted it in her bedroom. I use it when I dare to go in there, but after reading this post, I think I would like one in an area that could be utilized daily!

 

[system]

With my last few coins I bought a ceramic one in Compostella, Spain, at the end of my pilgrimage… I used it for awhile, then thanks to the neighbor’s cat, it fell off the wall and broke (never trusted that cat…something satanic about that cat…).

We had one at home by the front door, but we never had holy water in it, as far as I can remember. Sometimes when we were playing we’d put tap water in it and ‘bless’ ourselves.

OK, so you’ve nudged me. I’ll get out the superglue and the bottle of holy water I filled at church last Easter, and I’ll start using it again.

In the meantime, though, I’ve just mentally invoked the Holy Spirit whenever leaving my apartment, so I guess I’ve been using it in spirit, sort of…

Thanks for the nudge!

 

[naprous]

Ok, so what makes this water holy, anyway? And how would one use it if one had it? And why?

If I sound suspicious, it’s partly because I recently visited a church in Sardinia which was built on top of a pagan well of the Nuraghic period (remains having recently and spectacularly excavated), and the church has a well inside it connected to the other well. Obviously, the site had been a pagan holy site, which was turned into a Christian site (there are many of these converted holy sites in Sardinia – as St. Gregory the Great recommended, by the way) in order to encourage the “former” pagans to visit the site.

But not being a water-worshipper, I don’t get it. Yes, I was baptised, but according to my understanding, you could have baptised me with Evian or water from the gutter, and I would be just as validly baptised. So what’s with the holy water?

Naprous

 

[Detroit_Sue]

We have fonts at every entrance (3), and we’re pretty good about using them.

 

[system]

naprous:

Ok, so what makes this water holy, anyway? So what’s with the holy water?

Naprous

Others will no doubt answer better. You just rang a bell with something I read in An Exorcist Tells His Story by Gabriele Amorth. It’s under the heading of objects used in exorcisms (water, oil, salt):

Among the means that exorcists…commonly use I mention first exorcised water (or at least holy water)…
Exorcised water. Blessed water is already widely used in all liturgical rites. Its importance reminds us immediately of baptism. During the prayer of blessing with exorcised water we ask the Lord that, through aspersion with water, he will grant us the following three benefits: forgiveness of sins, defense from the wickedness of the evil one, and the gift of divine protection. (In Italy, when we want to give an example of two things that are incompatible, we say that “they are as incompatible as the devil and holy water.”) The prayer continues by mentioning other effects of exorcised water. Besides delivering from the demons, such as healing illness, it also increases divine graces and protects houses and all the dwellings in which the faithful live from every evil influence caused by the wickedness of Satan. The Ritual also lists protection against every insidiousness of the infernal enemy and from every presence that could be harmful to the well-being or the peace of anyone living on the premises, granting them health and serenity. - page 117.

*Many times I have been approached by people…who questioned whether a loved one was under the influence of a demon…Usually, after I bless some items of clothing, they are put back in the closet of the affected individual . Many times the victim tears off the blessed clothes as soon as he puts them on, because their touch is unbearable… Blessed water is another test. For example a mother who suspects an evil presence in a son or husband uses blessed water to cook some soup or to brew coffee or tea. Often the affected person finds that particular food bitter and inedible, without understanding why. – *page 120

*I end this chapter with an anecdote concerning blessed water. Father Candido was exorcising a possessed individual. The sacristan approached him with the aspergillum and the bucket of holy water. Immediately the demon turned to him and said, “With that water you can wash your snout!” Only then the sacristan remembered that he had filled the bucket at the faucet but had forgotten to have it blessed. – *page 121

 

[naprous]

Hmm. I hate to say it, Nel, but those stories remind me of something out of an early medieval saint’s life, or possibly Caesarius of Heisterbach from the twelfth century. And while I love what early medieval saints’ lives tell us about early medieval beliefs about possession by spirits, I don’t use them as a model for my daily actions. I do like that Italian proverb, though – I’ll definitely have to ask my Italian husband about that!

So is holy water font just a do-it-yourself home exorcism kit, folks, or does someone else want to contribute another explanation? And tell me more about blessing the water.

Naprous

 

[LilyOfTheFather]

The holy water font at home serves more or less the same purpose that one in a church does. Blessing ourselves with the water reminds us of our baptism; making the sign of the cross invokes the power of God to protect us from evil. I have the feeling I’m missing a point here; could somebody fill it in?

 

[Annunciata]

I have a rather unique bottle of holy water…
it’s an atomizer w/ a medal of St. Michael attached to the front of the bottle. I first saw it when Mother Angelica was advertizing on the EWTN Catalogue and I though it might be a nice idea for my 7th grade CCD Class. They loved it!
As they came into class each Sunday Morn., they would come up to my desk and spray some on their fingers and bless themselves…this was a new gimmick and you know how kids love that.

I brought it home at the end of the year and have been using it especially during thunderstorms…
I remember my grandmother used to bless the windows during storms.

 

[Edwin1961]

I have holy water but no font.
(As a byzcatholic we have no need for one, yet we tend to bless everything we get our hands on.)

go with God!
Edwin

 

[naprous]

I suppose I’m betraying the fact that I didn’t grow up Catholic here, but I’ve never been all that clear about the function of the holy water font at the church, either. Yes, I see people crossing themselves as they enter (and sometimes as they leave) the church, but I’ve never quite gotten the point. It strikes me, personally, as vaguely magical rather than as authentically spiritual or religious in nature. An evocation of our baptism, fine, but once again, why “blessed” water? What’s blessed about the water?

And I definitely don’t understand holy water at home. Who blesses this water anyway, and under what circumstances? Why would blessing windows with water have any significance?

I’d truly love to hear more about one practice of cradle Catholics that I just don’t “get.”

Naprous

 

[Deacon_Tony560]

Holy Water is a sign of our baptism. Just as you were baptized with water “In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” The water of your baptism was blessed by an Ordained Priest or Deacon, just as your Holy Water is. There are some great little books on Sacramentals. Many folks have Holy Water by their door as we do in our house. Remember you do not have to be ordained to bless someone. Parents and Grandparents are encouraged to bless their children/grandchildren, daily. After a while, when our grandkids were little, they refused to leave our house without a blessing. Scott Hahn and Marcus Grodi mentioned how they bless their children every day. It plants a little seed of faith.

Deacon Tony

 

[Leo44]

After the lighting of the Easter candle and the proscession into the church with the new light, the candle is placed into the water to be used for the baptism at the Easter Vigil. There are prayers said over the water (blessings), and this becomes “holy water”. When entering church and making the sign of the cross with the “holy water” our venial sins are forgiven. This is a very strong sacramental.

The catechism says 1670 Sacramentals do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church’s prayer, they prepare us to recieve grace and dispose us to cooperate with it.

1667 “Holy Mother Church has, moreover, instituted sacramentals. These are sacred signs which bear a resemblance to the sacraments. They signify effects, particularly of a spiritual nature, which are obtained through the intercession of the Church. By them men are disposed to recieve the chief effect of the sacraments, and the various occasions in life are rendered holy.”

 

[misericordie]

DJJG:

Hi.
Do you have a holy water font, in your home and do you use it?

I know many family and friends, who do have a font, but it is always empty and never used, they don;t remember to fill or use it.:nope:

I have one at my front door and use it every day.
When I first put it up, I put a large note on my front door, COVERING THE DOORKNOB, which said “USE HOLY WATER,” this way I had to lift the note to leave the house AND THUS REMEMBER TO USE THE FONT. In less than a week I didn’t need the note anymore.

The use of PROPERLY Blessed Holy water is very important. Some liberal priests say, “well, it is JUST to remind us of our Baptism.” NO, NO Father, you are WRONG, it is MUCH more than that according to Church teaching. It is a sacramental which erases venial sin. It is a powerful sacramental against demonic temptations and infestations, and maybe their is so much sin and fallen away or broken catholic household(NO peace) because the homes have not been properly blessed and Holy Water is not used. Actually it is traditional catholic practice that all priests MIX the Holy water with what is called the “exorcism salt, or exorcised salt.” It is common table salt in which the priest says a special exorcism prayer(there is one specifically for this) over the salt which is to be used as a powerful sacramental against the devil, for healings, and to mix with Holy water. It is sad that the practice of the priest to place one or a few grains of exorcism salt on the tongue of the newly baptized, has disapeared almost. Some baptisms now the priests does not even mention “do you renounce satan”? But asks, do you renounce evil. Last Sunday I was at a Novus Ordo Mariachi mass and their was a whole lot of things going on at once, a baby was baptized and the preist said, "okay everyone, lets baptize the baby, lift up your hands EVERYONE and say: "1I baptize you, in the Name…etc. Actually, baptisms should NOT even take place IN THE Mass. I vowed NEVER to go to that parish for Mass again, sad, their founder was recently canonized too: saint Luigi Orione(Sons of Divine Providence: Priests of Don Orione’).