What to do with statues, medals and holy pictures

[Singapore_Nick]

since blessed statues, medals, holy pictures are considered sacramentals, I wonder what is the proper way to dispose them if they are broken, rusty or faded. Can we dispose them into the rubbish chute ? if not why ? I am aware that blessing these items DO NOT make them “LIFE”

 

[lrcatholic95]

Holy Pictures you burn and statues you brake and bury them…I’m not sure about the medals. We do not throw them away because for a picture of the Blessed Virgin to rub up against rotten apples and other rubbish is unsettling, not appropriate for a image of a Holy person

 

[CatholicLife]

Broken or damaged sacramentals should be burned or buried. If you decide to burn them you have to bury the ashes. Even though they are not “alive” they should be treated with respect since they are blessed items.

 

[goforgoal]

I know this is probably a silly question to ask but can these be re-used or even recycled?

At the Church I attend we have two statues of Our Lady of Sorrows and St. John. Our Priest explained to us that the statues were very badly damaged but if you were to see them you wouldn’t think it.

Can you re-use a holy candle for a vase? or to put coins in there for a donation to the Church, convent, or to the poor?

God bless,
goforgoal

 

[zab]

since blessed statues, medals, holy pictures are considered sacramentals, I wonder what is the proper way to dispose them if they are broken, rusty or faded. Can we dispose them into the rubbish chute ? if not why ? I am aware that blessing these items DO NOT make them “LIFE”

There are many people who restore old statues, including myself. But I am only interested in the ones that have nice detail in them. Some people have statues that are heilooms from their family or maybe a gift from their wedding that they attached to for sentimental reasons and they have asked me to repair. Otherwise, I would recommend breaking them up and burying the blessed items. If they are not blessed they can be thrown in the trash like the numerous nice pictures and things that come in the mail. However, some of those mailings can be saved and given to other charities to distribute.