Holy Water
Water blessed by a priest. Catholics bless themselves with it at the church door as a reminder of their Baptism.
What the Holy Water means
Holy water is water blessed by a priest, invoking God's blessing on those who use it. On entering a church, Catholics dip their fingers in the font and make the Sign of the Cross. The Catechism explains that a church needs a holy water font for "fostering remembrance of the baptismal promises" (CCC 1185), and that the sprinkling of holy water recalls Baptism (CCC 1668).
Holy water is used in all blessings and is recommended for the home. Traditionally the priest sprinkled the people with it before the principal Sunday Mass, a rite called the Asperges after its first Latin word, "you will sprinkle," from Psalm 51. In the Easter season the chant Vidi aquam took its place.
HistoryThe Apostolic Constitutions, compiled around 400, attribute the use of holy water to the Apostle Matthew, though the Catholic Encyclopedia notes that firm documentary evidence comes relatively late. The fourth-century prayer book of Bishop Serapion of Thmuis includes a blessing of oil and water during Mass, and in the ninth century Pope Leo IV ordered every priest to bless water each Sunday and sprinkle the people with it.
