Ceremonies continued
The Bishop goes towards altar to be consecrated; at a distance from it, he kneels and says:
O God, come to my assistance.
The Bishop rises and the choir responds:
O Lord, make haste to help me.
The Bishop says:
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
The choir responds:
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
It is done in the same manner and place a second and third time, the voice louder each time. When finished, the Bishop blesses water and salt, ashes and wine.
I exorcize thee, O creature of salt, in the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who said to his Apostles: Ye are the salt of the
earth, and through his Apostle said: Let your speech be always taken
with a grain of salt; that thou be made holy for the consecration of
this church and altar, to expel all temptations of evil spirits;
that all who partake of thee be wholly clean in soul and body; and
that thou be a protection and confirmation of salvation. Through the
same our Lord Jesus Christ thy Son, who shall come to judge the
living and the dead, and the world by fire.
R. Amen.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with thy spirit.
Let us pray: Lord God, Father almighty, who hast vouchsafed to
give this heavenly grace to salt, that by this all things may be
preserved which thou hast given to men for food, bless this creature
of salt so that it may drive away the enemy, and grant to it a
healthful property, that it may bring those partaking of it to
health of soul and body. Through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.
I exorcize thee, O creature of water, in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, that thou repel the devil
from his goal, the just, lest he be present in the shadows of this
Church and altar. And thou, O Lord Jesus Christ, impart the Holy
Spirit to this thy Church and altar, that he may strengthen the
health of the bodies and souls of those worshiping thee, and that
thy name be magnified among the nations; and let those doubting in
heart be converted to thee, and have no other God before thee, the
only Lord, who shall come to judge the quick and the dead, and the
world by fire.
R. Amen.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with thy spirit.
Let us pray. O Lord God, Father Almighty, creator of all the
elements, who through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord caused to be
made this element of water for the salvation of all mankind, we
supplicants entreat thee that, hearing our prayers, thou wouldst
sanctify it by the countenance of thy holiness; and thus cause to
depart from it the assault of all unclean spirits, and wheresoever
it shall be sprinkled in thy name, cause the grace of thy blessing
to come, and cause all evils to withdraw far away, for the sake of
us beseeching thee. Through the same Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with Thee, God, world without end.
R.
Amen.
The blessing of the ashes:
O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
The Lord be with you.
R. And with thy spirit.
Let us pray. O almighty, eternal God, spare those that are
penitent, be merciful to Thy suppliants, and vouchsafe to send Thy
holy angel from heaven to bless and sanctify these ashes, that they
may be a wholesome remedy to all who humbly call upon Thy holy name,
and who, accusing themselves of their sins as their consciences
accuse them, deplore their crimes before the face of Thy divine
clemency, or eagerly and humbly entreat Thy excellence and goodness;
and grant, by the invocation of Thy most holy name, that all who
shall sprinkle these ashes on themselves, for the remission of their
sins, may receive health of body and salvation of soul. Through
Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.
Then the Bishop takes salt and mixes it in the ashes in the form of a cross, saying:
Let this mixture of salt and ashes be made one, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
R. Amen.
He receives the container of salt and ashes and pours in water in the form of a cross, three times, saying:
Let this mixture of salt, ashes and water be made one, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
R. Amen.
The blessing of the wine:
O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
The Lord be with you.
R. And with thy spirit.
O Lord Jesus Christ, who in Cana of Galilee made wine out of
water, and who art the true vine, increase thy mercy on us; and
vouchsafe to bless and sanctify this creature of wine, that wherever
it is poured or sprinkled may be replenished and sanctified by the
abundance of thy blessing. Who with the Father and the Holy Spirit
lives and reigns, God, forever and ever.
R. Amen.
The wine is mixed into the water in the form of a cross, saying:
Let this mixture of wine, salt, ashes, and water be made one, in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
R. Amen.
O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry
come unto Thee.
The Lord be with you.
R. And with thy spirit.
Let us pray. Almighty eternal God, creator and preserver of all
mankind, and giver of spiritual grace, and bestower of eternal
salvation, send thy Holy Spirit upon this wine mixed with water,
salt, and ashes, so that, armed by the protection of heavenly power,
it may assist in the consecration of this church and of thy altar.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who lives and reigns with
Thee in the unity of the same Holy Spirit, God, world without end.
R. Amen.
The Bishop says over the blessed water:
Be sanctified through the Word of God, O water of heaven; be sanctified, O water, that was walked upon by the footsteps of Christ; O water, which though held by mountains art not cut off; O water, which dashed against cliffs art not destroyed; O water, which though scattered on the lands dost not vanish. Thou dost sustain the dry land, thou dost bear the weight of the mountains, nor art thou overwhelmed; thou art contained by the height of heaven; thou, flowing around all, dost wash all things, but art not washed. Thou wast bound in a solid mass for the fleeing Hebrew people: unbound anew, thou didst destroy by the salty vortices of the Nile those dwelling nearby, and thou didst pursue the enemy throng with a raging sea: one and the same, thou art salvation for the faithful and punishment for the criminal. The rock struck by Moses spewed thee forth, and thou wast not able to hide in the secret crag; with majesty thou didst come forth by command. Thou dost make fruitful the fields by pleasing rain carried in clouds. Through thee, for bodies parched by heat, a drink is provided, sweet for mercy and salutary for life: thou dost come flowing from the depths and thou dost preserve whether thou dost provide the spirit of life within or the fertile juice without; lest the earth, lifeless with desiccated viscera, deny the annual harvest: let th beginning and the end exult in thee; or rather, it is from God, that we may not know thy limits, or, O almighty God, whose powers are beyond knowing, Feils are working on this Thou art the author of blessing, thou the source of health: we humbly entreat and beseech thee, that thou pour down the shower of thy grace upon this house with the abundance of thy blessing; bestow all good things; grant prosperity; repel adversaries; destroy the demon of evil crimes; and establish the Angel of light as friend, defender, and provider of good things. This house, begun in thy name, and perfected by thy help, may thy blessing uphold for a long endurance. May these foundations, the roof, the entrances, and innermost recesses be worthy of thy protection. May the walls be strong and the place useful for men by the light of thy countenance.