Holy Waters

I was raised by a devout Irish Catholic mother. Holy water was a staple in our home. Holy water was a common solution to ailments, illnesses, blessings and spiritual enhancement. It was as accessible & popular as peroxide & Palmolive soap.

I understood it’s symbology & the reverence my mother had for it. I understood her belief in its miraculous power. I too have experienced first hand small miracles from blessed holy water sourced from sacred land & ground.

Although I still keep holy water in my home and have doused myself in its ritualistic mythology, I have begun to seek solace in its abstract elements and contemplate what it actually means to be holy.

I can’t help but think that ordinary things can also be holy water. Sure, they lack the blessing and “activation” that is believed to heighten its healing abilities but curiosity and rebelliousness lead me to believe that holy water can also be the tears we shed, the hands we hold, the smiles we share with a stranger; the medicine we offer through acts of kindness & service.

What if our every day actions are holy waters we extend outward to our community and inward to our own spirit?

To a stout & rigid person of faith, this idea can be perceived as sacrilegious or even malicious. Yet, being children of God aren’t we all essentially holy water taking shape in human form?

And what does it mean to be holy? Are there requirements one must meet in order to be deemed holy? Does it require a certain number of hours spent kneeling in silent prayer? Or how often we say the rosary? Attending daily mass? Exuberant amounts of self sacrifice and martyrdom?

Perhaps “holy” is a person who lives their ministry quietly admits the birds and trees. Can holy possibly extend to the person that feeds the hungry, wipes away the tears of a child, holds the hand of an elder transitioning from this life to another?

Holy, is a living breathing force as mesmerizing and powerful as a blazing fire lighting our way in the darkness. Holy is the sound of children laughing. Holy is the wind whistling through trees and caressing our skin on a crisp fall day. It’s a community gathering in celebration. Holy, is deep love that penetrates the heart with joy.

How are you holy? How do you offer your holy waters?