Water is necessary for a person in everyday life. But there is still a special, holy water, which is a church shrine and has a higher purpose. She can heal, and believers treat her with reverence.
Holy water is considered the image of God's grace. It cleanses believers from spiritual filth, strengthens their strength and spirit.
In the Orthodox Church there is a great and small blessing of water. A small illumination of water is performed throughout the year during prayers and the Sacraments of Baptism, and a great or Epiphany - only once a year at Baptism. It is called great because of the special solemnity of the rite and is performed at the end of the liturgy according to the charter. It is accompanied by a great blessing of the procession to the springs, which is called the "passage to the Jordan."
The Monk Seraphim of Sarov, every time after the confession of the pilgrims, always gave them a drink from the cup of the Epiphany water. When someone was sick. The holy elder blessed him to take a tablespoon of this water every hour and said that there was no stronger medicine than holy water.
In Orthodox Christianity, it is customary to drink holy water in small quantities on an empty stomach, along with a piece of prosphora. First of all, this refers to Agiasma, the Epiphany water, consecrated the day before and on the very holiday of Baptism. It is received with faith and prayer and heals bodily diseases.
Holy water is sprinkled on their dwelling to expel evil spirits.
It is believed that holy water never deteriorates and can stand for a very long time. Its special properties include the fact that by adding even a small amount of holy water to ordinary water, you can transfer to it beneficial properties and that too becomes holy.
Although it is customary to drink Epiphany water on an empty stomach, but with a special need for God's help: during serious illnesses and the temptation of evil powers - you can and should take it at any time.
If holy water is treated with reverence, it will be fresh and pleasant to taste for a long time. They store it in a separate place, preferably on a home altar, next to the iconostasis.
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