The Use of Holy Water

By Rev. Rebecca

First a joke:
Q: How do you make holy water?
A: You boil the hell out of it.

Water is a central and indispensable sign for Christians and reminds us continually of our baptism. Holy Water is water that has been blessed by a priest or Bishop and is used at the entrance of a church, in a baptismal font or pool, or used to sprinkle and bless people. We trace the use of blessed water to Psalm 51, “You shall purge me, O Lord, with hyssop, and I shall be clean.” A common chant during Eastertide is Vidi aquam - “I saw water” from Ezekiel 47 that reminds us that we must be cleansed before God’s presence. Again, there is no superstition here, rather, the humble physical element of water is seen as a sign of God’s healing, cleansing grace. “Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow” (Psalm 51:7).