Holy Water and Oil

[Natsumi Lam]

Hi Family,

What is the process of making water holy or oil holy?

Does it have special powers?

What is it used for?

Is it superstition or a placebo?

Is there biblical support?

~Natsumi Lam~

 

[HTacianas]

Hi Family,

What is the process of making water holy or oil holy?

Does it have special powers?

What is it used for?

Is it superstition or a placebo?

Is there biblical support?

~Natsumi Lam~

Holy water is water blessed by a priest. Typically oil is used as chrism but I'm not sure what specifically is the process in making it holy. @ArmyMatt could probably help you with that.

 

[Monk Brendan]

Hi Family,

What is the process of making water holy or oil holy?

Does it have special powers?

What is it used for?

Is it superstition or a placebo?

Is there biblical support?

~Natsumi Lam~

Holy Water and Holy Oil are not Christian magic.

They are what the west calls Sacramentals bringing blessings to those who use them with faith.

Oil may be blessed towards the end of Vespers on major Feasts. This is NOT the same as the Chrism or Holy Unction.

Water is blessed for Baptisms. There is also the Great Blessing of Water on Theophany (6 January) and other blessings of water done as required or requested.

The prayers for blessing water and oil are in one of the liturgical books.

 

[Sabertooth]

What is the process of making water holy...?

From a Catholic priest that my wife once knew: Boil the Hell out of it...!

 

[TuxAme]

In order to bless water or oil, you must have valid holy orders (so, be a Catholic or Orthodox priest). The particular blessings aren't known to me, but can be found in the book of blessings, I'm sure.

I wouldn't refer to blessings as "powers".

Monk Brendan described the uses of them well.

Neither.

Aside from the water used for the Jewish rites of purification and the petition in James to have elders come and anoint the ill with oil?

 

[Natsumi Lam]

In order to bless water or oil, you must have valid holy orders (so, be a Catholic or Orthodox priest). The particular blessings aren't known to me, but can be found in the book of blessings, I'm sure.

I wouldn't refer to blessings as "powers".

Monk Brendan described the uses of them well.

Neither.

Aside from the water used for the Jewish rites of purification and the petition in James to have elders come and anoint the ill with oil?

So protestants cant pray over water to make it holy?

Do priests have a different Holy Spirit than protestants?

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

From a Catholic priest that my wife once knew: Boil the Hell out of it...!

There is a preacher who sends out "personalised" letters enclosing a small phial (empty) with the instructions that if they send in money, they will get the phial filled up with special anointing oil to heal their sickness or receive other blessings. He is using the oil as a magic potion to get "your miracle". This is as much witchcraft as a witch using a magic potion to manipulate people to do what she wants them to do.

Also, it is a money-making scam, like the "seed-faith" scam used by other preachers who promise that if you send an offering to them, you will get a truck load of money in return.

Proverbs says that a fool and his money are soon parted.

There are two countries where it would like a much more powerful form of witchcraft to separate gullible people from their money - New Zealand and Scotland!!!

I once got a stern tithing lecture from a Life Church pastor because I said that because I am a NZ Presbyterian, I have to be careful about opening my wallet just in case the moth flies out!!

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

In order to bless water or oil, you must have valid holy orders (so, be a Catholic or Orthodox priest). The particular blessings aren't known to me, but can be found in the book of blessings, I'm sure.

I wouldn't refer to blessings as "powers".

Monk Brendan described the uses of them well.

Neither.

Aside from the water used for the Jewish rites of purification and the petition in James to have elders come and anoint the ill with oil?

The water in the Jewish rites and the oil in James were never meant to be used as magic potions to purify, or to bring healing to the sick person. There is no virtue in the water and the oil. It is the act of faith toward God that has virtue and if the person is purified or healed it is because of an act of faith, and in the case of healing, from the direct power of the Holy Spirit and not through the oil.

 

[FireDragon76]

So protestants cant pray over water to make it holy?

Typically, Protestants do not use holy water. Some might I suppose. I still have some leftover holy water from my days in the Orthodox Church, but I don't really use it anymore.

Pastor read from one of our rites of blessing the water in the font of our Easter vigil and then sprinkled us with it using an aspergillum. But it is simply a reminder of our baptism. Likewise, pastor does anoint those who are baptized with chrism, but we just consider it an outward sign of what happens in baptism, it is not a sacrament and there is no magic involved. The same is true with anointing oil.

Honestly, you would be much better as a Protestant getting a cross and hanging it on your wall. I have crucifixes and crosses in most rooms of my house.

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

Typically, Protestants do not use holy water. Some might I suppose. I still have some leftover holy water from my days in the Orthodox Church, but I don't really use it anymore.

Pastor read from one of our rites of blessing the water in the font of our Easter vigil and then sprinkled us with it using an aspergillum. But it is simply a reminder of our baptism. Likewise, pastor does anoint those who are baptized with chrism, but we just consider it an outward sign of what happens in baptism, it is not a sacrament and there is no magic involved. The same is true with anointing oil.

I think the principles around holy water and oil are more of church tradition than Scripture. There are no references to it in any of the New Testament gospels or epistles.

 

[Natsumi Lam]

Typically, Protestants do not use holy water. Some might I suppose. I still have some leftover holy water from my days in the Orthodox Church, but I don't really use it anymore.

Pastor read from one of our rites of blessing the water in the font of our Easter vigil and then sprinkled us with it using an aspergillum. But it is simply a reminder of our baptism. Likewise, pastor does anoint those who are baptized with chrism, but we just consider it an outward sign of what happens in baptism, it is not a sacrament and there is no magic involved. The same is true with anointing oil.

Honestly, you would be much better as a Protestant getting a cross and hanging it on your wall. I have crucifixes and crosses in most rooms of my house.

Do you use the crosses as a reminder or to ward off stuff?

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

Do you use the crosses as a reminder or to ward off stuff?

Using the cross to ward off stuff is witchcraft as well.

 

[FireDragon76]

Do you use the crosses as a reminder or to ward off stuff?

Mostly as a reminder. Spiritual warfare of that sort is not a big part of my Christian life anymore, but at one time I suppose I was more in that sort of mindset. As my faith has grown I just feel like I don't need it anymore. But YMMV.

I think that sort of thing from a Lutheran POV is adiaphora (neither necessary nor prohibited). At one time, Lutherans used to perform a traditional rite of excorcism before baptism, "Begone evil spirit, make way for the Holy Spirit!", but it was never considered strictly necessary for the sacrament, and has fallen into some disuse (we still ask candidates or their sponsors if they reject the Devil, though).

At one time Lutherans were persecuted for holding onto rituals of this sort. Johann Arndt, the father of Lutheran pietism, who was otherwise sympathetic to the Reformed churches (Calvinists), was chased out of his university job because he believed in performing exorcisms before baptism, among other things. Reformed considered exorcism to be superstition.

 

[ArmyMatt]

Holy water is water blessed by a priest. Typically oil is used as chrism but I'm not sure what specifically is the process in making it holy. @ArmyMatt could probably help you with that.

I don't post outside of TAW

 

[Natsumi Lam]

I don't post outside of TAW

May i ask what TAW is?

 

[ArmyMatt]

May i ask what TAW is?

The Ancient Way, the Orthodox subforum on here.

 

[Natsumi Lam]

The Ancient Way, the Orthodox subforum on here.

Ah ok thank you.

 

[Natsumi Lam]

What are the logistics behind anointing with oil and making it holy? Ex 40:9

 

[Jonathan Mathews]

Hi Family,

What is the process of making water holy or oil holy?

Does it have special powers?

What is it used for?

Is it superstition or a placebo?

Is there biblical support?

~Natsumi Lam~

I don't know of any NT scriptures that showed they blessed the oil to make it holy. They just used plain oil, and it was the Faith of the sick and the Prayer of Faith of the elders that allowed God to heal. The Power is given thru Faith, not in the oil or water itself.

 

[prodromos]

I don't know of any NT scriptures that showed they blessed the oil to make it holy. They just used plain oil, and it was the Faith of the sick and the Prayer of Faith of the elders that allowed God to heal. The Power is given thru Faith, not in the oil or water itself.

Acts 19:11-12
God's Grace can remain with physical objects or substances, including the physical remains of God's holy ones.
2 Kings 13:21