The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1915-01-23

power of the blessed Trinity the
spirits of evil may be utterly expelled
from this world and lose all influence
over mankind. Then God is besought
to bless the water, that 1t may be ef-
fective in driving out devils and in
curing diseases; that wherever it is
sprinkled there may be freedom from
pestilence and from the snares of
Satan.
Then the priest puts the salt into
the water in the form of a threefold
cross, saying: May this mingling
of salt and water be made in the name
of the Father and of the Son and Of
the Holy Ghost"
Why does the Church use salt in
holy water? Because it was a Jewish
custom, and because of the symbolic
meaning of salt. Just as salt is used
for cleansing and to quench fire, SO is
salt used to preserve from decay.
Therefore the Church combines them
in this sacramental, to express the
various reasons why it is used-to
help to wash away the stains of sin, to
quench the fire of our passions, to. pre-
serve us from relapse into sin More
over, salt is regarded as a symbol Of
wisdom, Our Lord called His Apos-
ties 'the salt of the earth" because by
them the knowledge of the Gospel was
to be spread over the world. The Gus
tom of using it is very ancient one,
and is traced by some to the second or
third century.
Holy water is used in the blessing of
nearly everything which the Church
wishes to sanctify. The Ritual con-
tains hundreds of distinct benedictions
in which it is to be used. Besides the
pouring of baptismal water which
forms the matter" of the Sacrament
of Baptism, the sprinkling of holy
water is a part of the ceremonies OF
Matrimony, of Extreme Unction, and
Of the administration of Holy Com
munion to the sick; and it is employed
also in the services over the dead.
The Asperges, or sprinkling of the
congregation on Sunday has a mysti-
cal meaning. 1t renews every Sunday
the memory of Baptism, by which we
have been sanctified and purified from
sin; and it is intended also to drive
away all distractions which might
hinder us from the proper hearing of
Mass. 1t is well to remember that the
holy water need not actually touch
every person in the congregation. The
whole assembled body of the faithful
| is blessed together, and all receive the
benefit of the blessing even though the
| holy water may not reach each in
| dividual
Holy water should be used fire.
quently. There is an indulgence OF
one hundred days every time it is
taken. This indulgence was renewed
by Pope Plus TX. in 1876, and in order
to gain it there are three strict re-
quirements: The sign of the cross
must be made with the holy water
| the person must have contrition for
his sins, and he must say the words
I'm the name of the Father and of the
Son and of the Holy Ghost
Stand at the door of any church and
watch the people who enter. Do many
of them gain the indulgence? They
| dip their fingers into the holy water
make myterious motion in the air
and pass along. There is no recollec
| ton, no audible sound, no recognizable
sign of the cross-merely an action
performed through habit and in very
slovenly manner. None of the above
requirements are complied with. Bear
in mind that while the use of holy
water in any way may be beneficial, to
gain the indulgence it is necessary to
make the sign of the cross, to say the
usual words, and to have in our herts
a spirit of contrition.
~ -PIouidcRce Visitor