Photo illustration of holy water by Jeff Jacobs Pixabay.
HYDE PARK – For the Catholic Church, holy water is an important part of their church worship services, especially during Easter. There is a font of holy water at the front of the oratory, or place of worship, set aside for ordinary parishioners as a place of divine worship.
Catholics dip their fingers in the font of water and bless themselves as they enter their church remembering their baptism and baptismal promises. They also use it as an opportunity to renounce Satan and show they disdain sin.
“Holy water is a symbol, it is what we use for baptism,” said Father Robin Cruz of St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church located in Hyde Park. “Normally, we use the font filled with Holy water to immerse those being baptized.”
Father Cruz was born and raised in the Philippines and served as a priest there for 20 years. He arrived in Utah to begin his ministry here. Cruz is part of the Diocese of Salt Lake City and was assigned St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in 2022.
He said those wanting to be a member of the Catholic Church must be baptized in the font of holy water.
“We use regular water the same as everyone else uses in the valley,” he said. “Blessing the water by a priest is the most important thing. It doesn’t matter where the water comes from as long it is blessed by a priest.”
“Holy water is especially important on Easter,” Father Cruz said.
“We have an Easter vigil that will happen on Saturday March 30,” he added. During the Easter vigil a lot of holy water will be blessed.
The water also has deep meaning, as it symbolizes life and death as well, but it also represents repentance of sin and rebirth into a new life.
Baptismal candidates usually go through a long period of preparation and learning before they can be baptized.
“This year we have 19 Catechumen (those ending the process of purification) to become converts to Christianity,” he said. “They generally spend a year receiving training in doctrine and discipline before baptism.”
Those being baptized will be immersed and soaked in the water. Everyone attending the mass will be renewing their baptismal promise.
During Easter they also use holy water on their Sunday Easter service.
“At Easter time babies can be scheduled for baptism, this is something special,” he said. “If people would like to take some Holy water home for Easter they can come and bring small containers or bottles to get some of the holy water and take it home.”
Father Cruz said baptism in holy water traces back to the baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ in the river Jordan where he was baptized by John the Baptist.
Holy water can be used by Catholics to bless people, places, and things that are used by humans in their goal of glorifying God with their lives.