{"id":37447,"date":"2022-02-04T16:03:57","date_gmt":"2022-02-04T16:03:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/catalog.obitel-minsk.com\/blog\/?p=37447"},"modified":"2022-02-04T16:03:57","modified_gmt":"2022-02-04T16:03:57","slug":"storing-and-using-holy-water-and-prosphora-at-home-how-to-do-it-reverently","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/catalog.obitel-minsk.com\/blog\/2022\/02\/storing-and-using-holy-water-and-prosphora-at-home-how-to-do-it-reverently","title":{"rendered":"Storing and Using Holy Water and Prosphora at Home. How To Do It Reverently?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Holy water and prosphora are gifts that strengthen us on our life path to God. However, their grace-filled properties are manifested only when a person accepts these sacred items with prayer, sincere faith, a pure heart\u00a0 and a desire to be closer to God. Reverence for sacred objects is an expression of our reverence for God, Who sends down His grace through them. How should these objects be stored and used correctly at home?<\/span><\/p>\n

The Meaning of Holy Water and Prosphora<\/h3>\n

Holy water is consecrated either during the Great Blessing of Water on the\u00a0 Feast of Theophany or the Lesser Blessings of Water. It can also be the water from a holy spring. There are different traditions for using the Epiphany water or the holy water, consecrated during the year. All of these traditions treat holy water with appropriate reverence.<\/span><\/p>\n

The use of prosphora in many traditions is similar to that of the antidoron, which is partaken instead of communion. Not being able to take communion every day, we can attain the grace of the Holy Spirit by eating with faith a small amount of prosphora (as well as antidoron or artos) with holy water. Of course, this does not fully replace the Holy Communion, whose significance is immeasurably higher, but being a symbol of the Eucharist, the prosphora can give daily support to our spiritual and physical strength. Some saints are known to have limited their daily meal to only prosphora and water. Among them is the Venerable Theodore of Sykeon (6th century), who left home at the age of 14 and lived at the church of the Great Martyr George, eating only one prosphora a day. Venerable Isaac of the Kiev Caves (11th century), becoming a monk, chose to lead an edifying life in a cramped cave and ate one prosphora every two days.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Using Holy Water and Prosphora at Home\u00a0<\/h3>\n

There are no strict rules limiting the use of holy water and prosphora by a Christian at home. According to tradition, it is customary to take a small amount on an empty stomach with special prayer and reverence on the days when a person does not receive Communion. Perceiving the prosphora as a substitute of the Holy Communion, the Church Fathers, as a rule, do not bless women to eat them during menstruation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition, holy water (in special cases and with the blessing of the confessor, with prosphora) can be eaten at other times of the day, regardless of the meal. According to the Instructions for the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, contained in the Typicon, those who limit themselves in the use of holy water because of eating food are wrong, <\/span>\u201c<\/span>for the grace of God was given to sanctify the world, and of all creation…<\/span>\u201d <\/span>Some holy fathers (among whom there were also doctors) blessed people to drink holy water more than once a day in case of illness or in moments of strong temptations. However, it is important that this freedom is not perceived as permissiveness, and that a person approaches this holy substance with the fear of God.<\/span><\/p>\n

Other ways to use holy water:<\/span><\/p>\n