Father Isadore Dziadyk blessing a classroom with holy water

The ice cross in the IHMS playground

The Feast of Epiphany is a liturgical event that is celebrated every year on January 6th. Over the centuries, it has evolved to commemorate the baptism of Christ by St. John almost 2000 years ago in the river Jordan. During Epiphany, people traditionally attend a prayer service where the priest blesses regular water into holy water - a “Blessing of the Water” ceremony. Years ago, it was customary to go to the nearest river where a priest would bless an entire river. Since the ceremony took place outdoors on a river or lake during the first week of January, an ice cross was often constructed for the event. After the ceremony, parishioners would take some of the holy water home with them.

On Friday, January 15, 2010, the staff and students of IHMS celebrated Epiphany with a short prayer service in the gym followed by a Blessing of the Water ceremony in the school playground. (Last year, the entire service took place indoors because of extreme windchill). The service was conducted by the school chaplain, Father Isadore Dziadyk, OSBM. The outdoor part of the ceremony took place beside a specially constructed ice cross in front of the grade 3 classroom window

Gathering outdoors for the blessing of water ceremony

In order to bless the water, Father Isidore invoked the Holy Spirit to come upon the water, and then did four triple blessings over the water. The first blessing involved the use of 3 triple candlesticks called Trikirion.

1) He did a triple blessing with a Trikirion A Trikirion stands for the Holy Trinity. Jesus is the Great Light, and when immersed, the burning candle (the Lord) sanctifies the water (the world).

2) He did a triple blessing with his hand The hand is a concrete, physical way in which the water is blessed. This symbolizes the fact that God is with us in a concrete way through the humanity of Jesus.

3) He did a triple blessing with his breath Breathing over the water, the priest asks the Holy Spirit to come upon the water. It is by the power of the Holy Spirit that the water is blessed.

4) He did a triple blessing with the immersed cross The cross represents Jesus’ personal descent into the water.

At this point, the blessing of the water ceremony was over. Before returning to their classrooms, the students filed back into the gym to listen to the Performing Group sing a selection of Christmas carols.

The Performing Group singing Christmas carols

After recess, Father Isidore walked around the school with a small group of students and blessed each room with a sprinkle of the newly blessed holy water. The students, lead by Mrs. Stanowych, sang a hymn throughout this process.

Father Isadore blessing the school with holy water

The holy water that was left over from the ceremony is kept in the front foyer near the trophy case for anyone interested in taking some home with them. It can be used for blessing your home or car, and can even be used for drinking. Please bring a container of your choice to school and help yourself.