Holy Water

52 Weeks in Orthodoxy

A photo a week from our life in Christ in the Orthodox Church

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The practice of Orthodox Christianity is concrete. Every sense is engaged as the participant lights a candle, makes the sign of the cross, smells the incense or tastes the blessed bread. Blessings of the faithful in church or in the home, provide more tangible experiences.  In the church, the priest will dip a blessing brush in holy water to sprinkle over the people.  A good drenching of holy water is a glorious thing.  At home, our priest will ask a boy to cut some greenery from the yard which will be used for the same purpose.  On the day of our house blessing, my son cut several small sprigs of hemlock, which Father Paul used to bless all the corners of our home and out into the yard.  After each room and corridor was blessed with holy water, using the sprigs of greenery, we felt quite safe in our abode, knowing that Jesus Christ was proclaimed there in a very real way.