Here Are 8 Powerful Ways to use Holy Water

“From long experience I have learned that there is nothing like holy water to put devils to flight and prevent them from coming back again. They also flee from the Cross, but return; so holy water must have great virtue. For my own part, whenever I take it, my soul feels a particular and most notable consolation.” – St. Teresa of Avila

When we read this quote from St. Teresa of Avila, we should be reminded of the importance of holy water. As a recalling of our baptism and our baptismal promises, Catholics dip their fingers in the holy water and make the Sign of the Cross when entering the church.

Our baptismal promises included renouncing Satan and disdaining sin. However, we probably rarely bring this to mind and take holy water for granted most of the time. Because we use it so regularly, it’s an easy thing to do.

We must remember that this water, through the priest, is blessed by God in virtue of Christ’s baptism. The Catholic Church possesses an enormous power of imparting sacramental grace, and holy water as a sacramental receives its power through the prayer and authority of the Church.

The rite of the blessing said over water by the priest to make it holy contains prayers of exorcism. It can banish demons, heal the sick, and send unwarranted grace upon us, and yet most of the time we cross ourselves with this water without even thinking about how holy it really is.
Read the priest’s profound prayers of blessing over holy water here and find a downloadable PDF here.

The fact of the matter is that holy water is a powerful sacramental and we ought to use it daily. To prevent us from using it without thinking, we should consciously find ways to use it more. Holy water can be used to bless people, places, and things that are used by humans in their goal of glorifying God with their lives.

Here is a list of eight ways to use holy water in your everyday life:

1. Bless yourself – This suggestion is obvious, but if we are only blessing ourselves with holy water on Sunday, then aren’t we missing out on the rest of the week? You can never have too much grace or blessing in your life. Use holy water daily. Keeping a holy water font in the home is a great idea so that you, your family, and guests can be blessed in the comings and goings from your home. Keep the font right by the front door to ensure you never leave home without it.

2. Bless your house – If you haven’t taken the time to bless your house with holy water, then no time is better than the present. Your home is the domestic Church and is in need of spiritual protection. You can sprinkle holy water in your home yourself, or have a priest formally bless your home using holy water as part of the house blessing ceremony.