When should holy water fonts be filled

[Don9of11]

I always thought that after the Easter Vigil all the holy water fonts in the church are filled again. My parish has yet to fill them and instead has a big punch bowl full of holy water in the Narthex that you use to bless yourself until Wednesday of this week. Does anyone know what the church documents say about when to fill the holy water fonts after Easter Vigil?

 

[Corki]

As long as there is Holy Water starting with the Easter Vigil, I doubt there is a “rule”. The smaller fonts are just a convenience so they are probably not regulated.

 

[jmcrae]

I always thought that after the Easter Vigil all the holy water fonts in the church are filled again. My parish has yet to fill them and instead has a big punch bowl full of holy water in the Narthex that you use to bless yourself until Wednesday of this week. Does anyone know what the church documents say about when to fill the holy water fonts after Easter Vigil?

We had ours refilled right after the Baptisms were done.

 

[Rolltide]

The correct answer is… they shouldn’t be empty in the first place! Emptying the Holy Water fonts during Lent is technically an abuse.

 

[MarkThompson]

The correct answer is… they shouldn’t be empty in the first place! Emptying the Holy Water fonts during Lent is technically an abuse.

They would be empty during the Triduum. Not an abuse. According to the CDWDS:
The practice of the Church has been to empty the Holy Water fonts on the days of the Sacred Triduum in preparation of the blessing of the water at the Easter Vigil, and it corresponds to those days on which the Eucharist is not celebrated (i.e., Good Friday and Holy Saturday).

 

[Rolltide]

They would be empty during the Triduum. Not an abuse. According to the CDWDS:
The practice of the Church has been to empty the Holy Water fonts on the days of the Sacred Triduum in preparation of the blessing of the water at the Easter Vigil, and it corresponds to those days on which the Eucharist is not celebrated (i.e., Good Friday and Holy Saturday).

My mistake, you are correct. I read the original post too fast, and I thought they were talking about the “trend” on putting sand in the Holy Water fonts for the entirety of Lent.

 

[Don9of11]

Thanks everyone for your help. I received an reply from the Office for Worship in the Cleveland Diocese.

After mass on Holy Thursday all the holy water fonts are emptied. Is this a tradition in the Catholic Church?

Yes, the order for Prayer (Ordo) for 2011 states on page 95 “Holy Water may be removed from all fonts. They are refilled with the water blessed at the Easter Vigil.

My reason for asking, when should the holy water fonts be refilled?

*As you will note the above says that they are refilled with water blessed at the Easter Vigil. It doesn’t say when, however, the Roman document Paschale Solemnitatis states in paragraph 97: “Mass is to be celebrated on Easter Day with great solemnity. It is appropriate that the penitential rite on this day take the form of a sprinkling with water blessed at the vigil … The fonts at the entrance to the church should also be filled with the same water.”

This indicates that by Easter Sunday the fonts should be filled with the baptismal water that was blessed at the Vigil.*