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Home , Holy water, Sacramental

Holy and Incense

Chapter One Part One—Evangelicals Discovering

Revelation and Direction

As our began to discover the beauty and truth of liturgical worship and theology in the late 1980s and early 1990s, my inquisitiveness led me to ask the Lord the question, “What is holy water?” Coming from the nondenominational Evangelical mentality, my questions included “How is holy water different from any other type of water?,” “How can holy water be used to affect the lives of people when I have believed for so long that faith is the only requirement?,” and “What references are there to holy water in the , and what support for its use can be found in the writings of the ante- and post-Nicene fathers of the Church?” Most importantly, I wanted to know if the references to “holy” water found in Scripture were pointing to a sacramental tool that invokes the power of God when used in faith, or if they were simply Biblical metaphors for a “deeper” spiritual truth. Shortly thereafter the Lord began to answer my questions.

It was at this same time that I read a story about the use of holy water in a book by Leanne Payne. At a girls‟ Christian camp, Ms. Payne was a counselor, and at the very beginning of the week, she discerned that not all was spiritually well with the some of the girls in the camp. This, of course, would be typical given the diverse backgrounds from which a large group of girls come. However, things rapidly began to get worse. Ms. Payne found out that one girl was heavily involved in the occult and black , and had begun to involve the girls in her cabin in her activities. According to the story, the girls were using a Ouija board and trying to levitate each other. As a result, the camp counselors were having a difficult time getting the girls to come to chapel, sing, and participate in Bible study; and, by midweek, the girls refused to attend chapel at all. It was then that Ms. Payne remembered the use of holy water in her church, although she was unaware of its power and effects. She then drove to a local church, obtained some holy water from the , brought it back to the camp, and sprinkled it all over the girls‟

1 Holy Water and Incense cabin while the girls were on a nature hike. When they returned, the first one to enter the cabin was the girl who was involved in the occult and had introduced it to the other girls. To Ms. Payne‟s amazement, the girl immediately fell on her knees and began repenting and asking God for forgiveness. A revival then broke out in the camp, and during the rest of the week, the girls repented and worshiped God.

Another incredible incident took place at St. Michael‟s in San Clemente during one of our Wednesday night services. It was then that Fr. P.J. Boardman, a CEC priest from St. Michael‟s in Middletown, Rhode Island, was preaching a deliverance service. As many of you know, there is much weeping at deliverance services, so we had sent a couple of our across the street to buy some tissue. As they were crossing the parking lot of the supermarket, a man came up behind them and tried to attack them for no reason (of course, they knew it was demonic). One of the two priests then commanded him in the name of Christ to stop, and the man was thrown back in the air a few feet, knocked out cold. After that, they dragged him into St. Michael‟s and positioned him over the rail while Fr. Boardman was preaching. Now, if there was ever a man who understood the use of holy water, it is he. Immediately, he began to douse the man with holy water, while renouncing the works of . Within a few minutes, the man regained consciousness, began weeping, repenting and praising God. He then stated that he take this message of God‟s love back to his own people and walked out of the church. We have never seen him since, but the incident surely left a mark on my understanding of the power of holy water.

By reading and hearing these two stories, God began to open my spiritual eyes and ears to the message of the use of holy water for the sanctification of men.

Cleansing and Purification

Now, what exactly is God doing when we administer holy water? In Ezekiel 36:25-33, God says, “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a

2 Holy Water and Incense new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.” The Lord goes on to say in verses 29 and 33, “I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses…On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will also enable you to dwell in the cities, and the ruins shall be rebuilt.” What does this mean? The explications and implications are many. First of all, the emphasis should not be on our ability to make ourselves holy, but on God‟s means of doing it. He says that He will sprinkle us with clean water, and we are made clean. As a result, we receive new hearts and new attitudes, and we will be delivered. It also implies that Israel (the people of God) had gradually slipped into a place of apostasy and rebellion. Their thoughts, their hearts and their attitudes had become hardened against the ways of God, which brought self-deception concerning their relationship to their Creator and Redeemer. The people of God needed to be cleansed from their sinful ways and thought processes. Finally, the Lord tells us that upon our cleansing by water, civilization can once again thrive and the land can become inhabitable and fruitful.

One of the truths that we hold dear as evangelicals is that the Blood of Christ cleanses us from all of our sins. This is a true statement, and in no way should it be altered or qualified. However, we, as evangelicals, have assumed by default of the previous statement that all of our thoughts (the meditations of our hearts) are therefore pure and clean. As charismatics, we have supposed being filled with the Holy Spirit automatically means complete redemption of our thought processes. We‟ve assumed that Satan or our flesh holds no more sway over our minds. There is an important distinction that must be made here: While our souls are cleansed through the atoning work of Christ (our sins are forgiven), our minds are still in the process of redemption. In other words, like Peter who had good intentions, we can still think on the side of Satan during various times of our walk with the Lord. The dangerous situation in which many Christians lose themselves is when those demonic paradigms (disguised as good and holy) overtake the minds of those believers. At that point, they become of no good service to the Kingdom of God. In fact, much of what they think is hostile to God and His economy. And the end result is this: whatever your mind thinks, your heart becomes. This is exactly what

3 Holy Water and Incense happened to Israel in Ezekiel 36. While they had already made a covenant with God (they were walking out their salvation), they had fallen into a place of rebellion which allowed for wicked thoughts and actions; therefore, they needed God‟s deliverance.

One of the chief problems in evangelical thinking is the notion that, once a person is saved, he no longer needs deliverance. That is simply not true; we need deliverance on a regular basis because of the fact that our minds are constantly polluted from what we see and hear in the world. You must remember this: your mind is in the process of redemption, but it is not completely redeemed. And, if we are not careful, the heresies and lies of Satan can take root in our hearts if we don‟t remove them from our minds on a regular basis. What does God give us to purge our minds of those lies? I believe one of the best tools is holy water.

Another interesting verse regarding the purifying effects of water is found in Ephesians 5:25 and 26. In this chapter, St. Paul is talking about the relationship between Christ and His Church, and he states

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it, that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy without blemish.

Paul is making it clear that the Church, although it is justified by Christ’s work on the cross, is in need of sanctification (the purification from sinful ways) and makes it way toward being spotless as she walks toward and with Christ. How does Christ sanctify His Body, the Church? It is through the washing of water by the word. While some of my friends would like to separate the physical and spiritual implications of this passage, I don’t believe this is what Paul understood. Based upon other by St. Paul, I don’t think he had a dualistic view of God’s Kingdom that makes the “washing of water” a

4 Holy Water and Incense mystical and nebulous metaphor for a spiritual truth. Instead, I believe he had a sacramental understanding of the use of water for the purification of Christ’s Body. Old Testament References

As I continued to ponder about holy water and its power, the Lord began to show me a number of correlations between the Old Testament and the New Testament. Before I go any further, I want to make it clear that God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. The God of the Old Testament is the same God of the New Testament. The things He was demonstrating in the Old Testament were for done for our sakes so we could properly understand the New Testament. In fact, the New Testament is incomplete without the Old Testament.

With that said, the Lord began to show me that the same water that was used to deliver the children of Israel at the Red Sea, was the same water that brought judgment on Pharaoh and his armies. He also showed me that the same water that saved Noah and his family, removed all the wicked from the earth. The water that saved them was the same water that destroyed their enemies. Then the Lord showed me in I Peter 3:20 and 21 that, just as Noah and his family were saved by water, “, which corresponds to this, now saves you.” The implications of this passage are more than can be discussed in one book, but let me make a few points. First, the water was and is God‟s instrument for both salvation and purification—Noah was risen to “new life” above the water, and sin was washed away by the same water. Baptism has the same effects. When we are sprinkled with the at baptism, we are buried with Christ—our sin nature becomes dead—and we are risen to new life through His resurrection when we rise out of the water. Second, for Noah and his family to survive, he had to obey God‟s command to build the ark within which they would be saved. The ark represents the Church. Upon entering the Church we are saved and walk out that salvation. And the initiation into the Church is…baptism.

You may be asking and saying, “What does all this have to do with holy water? I already understand the Biblical mandate concerning baptism.” Let me make a few more points

5 Holy Water and Incense and explain more of God‟s revelation to me before I give you the complete picture of the importance of holy water. The Power of the Holy Spirit in Holy Water

It was at this point that I began to examine the powerful effects of holy water. For example, why are the so afraid of water?

Romans 6 says that at our baptism, we are buried with Christ, and then we rise to new life in Christ. Through the waters of baptism we died. You have already died, contrary to what your natural mind might be telling you! At your baptism you died, and then rose to new and eternal life in Christ. This correlates with Hebrews 2:14 which says:

Through Christ‟s death, He destroyed him who had the power of death, that is the devil, and delivered all those who, through the fear of death, were subject to lifelong bondage.

What this says is that Christ took on our nature, our humanity, and died that He might deliver us, destroy him who had the keys to death, and deliver all those who were bound by fear of death.

I am certain that most of the phobias people have all stem from one cause—the fear of death. If we can get the revelation that we have already died through baptism, we will begin to realize the freedom that Christ has given us. It is the beginning of true liberty. If you are a baptized Christian, you‟ve already died.

The reason holy water is so powerful is that it is like spitting in the face of the devil. When we dip our fingers into the holy water and make the , we are reminding ourselves and our archenemy that we‟ve already died in Christ through the waters of baptism. When we do this, we are proclaiming to Satan, “You are destroyed for your power has been taken from you. Just as Pharaoh and his armies were destroyed

6 Holy Water and Incense by water, you, too, have no power over me. Not only am I freed from the power of death, I have arisen to new life in Christ.”

The interesting thing about demons is that they do not like water. In the Gospels it says that when a goes out of a man, he walks around seeking a dry place, a desert. I believe this is because water provides life. Throughout Scripture we can find references to water‟s ability to provide and sustain life. When the desert is irrigated with water, flowers begin to bloom, cities are able to thrive, and barns are filled with plenty. However, when life dies, the land perishes and becomes a desert. This is exactly what Satan wants. He seeks to kill, steal and destroy. His minions, the demons, wander around seeking ways to destroy life and to remove it from the land; hence, the desert is their favorite haunt. Desolation is their goal.

An interesting sidebar about the demons‟ hatred for water can be found in the historical pre-millennial view. Many who ascribe to this view of the world believe that prior to Genesis 1, the earth was inhabited, and Lucifer actually lived on the earth as an archangel. Furthermore, they believe that it was then that Satan rebelled against God, and one-third of the angels sided with him. As a result, God destroyed the earth with water to wash away their wickedness. Many of those who hold to this historical pre- millennial view believe that demons are afraid of water because they had been destroyed by it once, and now they are disembodied beings who roam the earth seeking to destroy God‟s creation, primarily mankind.

In St. Matthew 8, Christ casts out the evil spirits in two demoniacs, but, prior to them being exorcised, they beg Jesus to send them into the nearby herd of swine. Immediately after Christ gives them the command to go into the pigs, the herd rushes over the side of a cliff into a body of water. Think about the torment those demons experienced in relation to this viewpoint!

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The Ministry of Deliverance

During the late 1960s and early 70s, many pastors, especially those involved in the Jesus Movement, became heavily involved in deliverance ministries which involved the casting out of demons who had possessed or oppressed the body and/or soul of an individual. During those times, I, like many Evangelical pastors, would proclaim to the demonic forces, “Come out in the name of Jesus!” This has been the most repeated phrase in , and for good reason—it is dictated by the Bible and quoted by the apostles. However, delivering someone can be a great struggle since the demons do not want to leave; it is their goal to destroy mankind by influencing and inhabiting their lives. As a result, I would have to spend hours or even days trying to deliver someone. It is a ministry that requires much prayer and fasting. But I‟ll tell you a big cannon that we can incorporate into our deliverance, one that shouldn‟t be hard for Pentecostals to accept because they believe in anointing people with oil. The big “cannon” against demonic strongholds is holy water. When you start to minister deliverance to someone, sprinkle him with holy water and say, “Demons, come out in the name of Jesus Christ.” What you are doing is spitting in the face of the devil and saying, “You have no more power over this person. He has already died with Christ, and you cannot hold him in bondage. His life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Jesus went into the grave, you were destroyed, and you know you were destroyed, you know you have no power over this person.”

Now let me say something about the holy water fonts in the back of liturgical churches. We have them at every entrance of the nave at St. Michael‟s, and we should have them in every church in the CEC. The holy water fonts are there for parishioners to minister self- deliverance to their minds as they enter in to hear the Word of God and participate in the of Holy Eucharist. When we enter, we should dip our fingers into the font and make the sign of the cross. In essence, we are saying a prayer—“In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, God, cleanse my mind and my heart of wrong thoughts. As I enter Your sanctuary, cleanse my mind of the corrupt thinking of this world. Cleanse me so that I can hear and receive your Word and worship you in the beauty of holiness.”

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When we do so, we are reminding ourselves of our baptism; we are risen to new life through Christ‟s resurrection. We are also reminding Satan and ourselves that death and the demonic forces have no more power over us.

I always encourage our parishioners to do this when they come to church, especially at Wednesday night services, because they have been out working in worldly environments, and battling the enemy all day long. It is easy for their minds to become filled with what the world has told them, and much of that information are lies. The mental battles they face can make them weary and unreceptive to the Word of God. They need the deliverance of God through the holy water to clear their thoughts and settle their hearts.

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Part Two—Protocol for the Use of Holy Water

The of Holy Water

First of all, holy water can only be blessed by a or a priest. The priest has been given the authority to consecrate physical things set aside for use in the Kingdom of God and to thus invoke the Holy Spirit to manifest His presence in those items. The complete prayers of blessing for holy water can be found at the end of Chapter Two.

Second, any water may be set apart for use as holy water. While some priests may prefer to use “designer” bottled water, others may wish to use tap, river or spring water. For aesthetic purposes, the water should be clear and clean since it will be used to bless the homes of parishioners, and will also be available in holy water fonts at the entrances of your churches.

Third, is used as part of the blessing of holy water. In fact, the salt itself is blessed prior to being mixed with the holy water. The reason salt is used is rather simple. Just as salt is used as a purifier in the natural, we recognize its symbolic and spiritual implications and effects. Perhaps the verse where we see salt used most powerfully is in II Kings 2:19-22:

Then the men of the city said to Elisha, “Please notice, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees; but the water is bad, and the ground is barren.” And he said, “Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him. Then he went out to the source of the water, and cast in the salt there, and said, “Thus says the Lord: „I have healed this water; from it there shall be no more death or barrenness.‟” So the water remains healed to this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spoke.

Salt is used both literally and figuratively throughout the Old and New Testaments as a purifying agent; it drives out anything foul. So, too, it is used to drive out foul spirits.

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When the salt, already a purifier in the natural, is blessed with the presence of the Holy Spirit, it purifies the spiritual as well. Remember, the physical and the spiritual are really inseparable. Wherever the holy water is applied (i.e. a home), the salt in the water acts as the purifying agent.

Storage of Holy Water

As with all things consecrated for holy use, holy water should only be stored in a clean container that has, itself, been blessed. Never store holy water, or any other blessed item, in a container that would be used for common storage use. For example, do not keep holy water in a plastic bowl that was used to store yesterday‟s lunch and will later be used to keep leftovers from dinner. Remember, the key word in “holy water” is “holy.”

Administration of Holy Water

All baptized Christians may administer holy water when they deem it is necessary for deliverance. They may sprinkle holy water in their homes, and/or they may apply it to their children or themselves. However, only and priests are authorized to administer holy water in services sanctioned by the episcopate. For example, the bishop may wish to bless the parishioners at the beginning of the Holy Eucharist on Sunday morning. He may defer the responsibility of this action to a priest, a deacon or even a layman. The key point is that those who do so act under the authority of their bishop and/or priest.

Let me make another point—the power of God in the holy water is not any less effective when a layman sprinkles his own home than when it is used by a priest in the church. The difference is a layman is the priest of his own home, but he is not the priest of the homes of other parishioners. A bishop or a priest, on the other hand, is the overseer for the entire diocese and/or . He is their God-ordained and God-appointed shepherd,

11 Holy Water and Incense and he is the one who is responsible for blessing the flock. Therefore, it is his responsibility, and not that of the layman, to bless those in his charge.

Disposal of Holy Water

Occasionally a certain amount of holy water used during an ecclesiastical service may be left unused, and no acceptable way of its storage can be found. For example, when our priests perform house during the season, many of them bless the water at the homes of the parishioners. Too often they have water left at the end of the house blessing.

The way to dispose of the remaining water is to pour it onto the earth. That does not include driveways or sidewalks. Find an open piece of land such as a lawn or flower garden, and dispose of the holy water in that location. Under no circumstances should you pour the holy water down a sink drain, or into the toilet. It is holy water.

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Frequently Asked Questions—Holy Water

Q1. In Acts 19:12, the sick are being healed with handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched Paul’s body. Would it be appropriate to compare these handkerchiefs and aprons with holy water?

A1. The premise for using the handkerchiefs and aprons is the same as with holy water. Both the handkerchiefs and holy water are blessed by someone who has been placed in authority to preach the good news of Jesus Christ. Both are physical objects used to impart the power of God through the Holy Spirit. However, I believe there are more Biblical references to the use of holy water than there are to using handkerchiefs. It would be more accurate to compare Paul‟s use of handkerchiefs to Oral Roberts‟ use of the television to heal the sick. Both of these items are things around which a church would not develop a particular theology or regular practice. Of course, this statement does not preclude their use. The use and blessing of water for spiritual purposes, on the other hand, can be seen throughout Scripture and in the writings of the Fathers of the Church, and those precedents support its regular usage.

Q2. When you say that holy water is a potent tool for use in deliverance, are you implying that it can be used as a substitute for prayer and fasting in preparation for the casting out of demons as stated by Christ in Matthew 17:21?

A2. First, let me make a statement about the obligations of our bishops and priests in the Charismatic Episcopal Church. Before a candidate is ordained to the priesthood, he must make a commitment that he will pray the of Prayer everyday of the week. He must spend time with the Lord regularly to fulfill his obligation of being a true shepherd for his parish. That commitment is nonnegotiable. The priest must also participate in the sanctioned fast days (ember days) of the Church. He is also highly encouraged to fast when he believes the Lord is telling him to do so.

Second, I don‟t believe in an “either, or” theology. For instance, faith cannot be separated from good works. We should not be of the mentality of either faith or works. Separating the two is destructive to the Church as well as to the individual and society. What I do believe, and what the CEC ascribes to, is “both, and” theology. Therefore, I believe in applying both holy water and prayer and fasting. In Acts 19:13-16, the Jewish exorcists tried to cast a demon out of someone by using the name of Jesus, but the demon mocked them by saying, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” At that point the demon “leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them…” Why did that happen? Why did the demon not “know” them? It is because they didn‟t invoke the name of Jesus in faith. Just as Simon the sorcerer sought the power of the Holy Spirit for his own gain, these men tried to use the name of Jesus with wrong motives. As a result of their lack of faith, the demonic spirit was able to overtake them. Both faith and the speaking of Christ‟s name are required. And faith is built up through prayer and fasting.

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Holy water contains the power of the Holy Spirit through the blessing of the priest, but that power is not released unless the one administering it uses it in faith. He must believe in the power of God to see deliverance occur. In other words, he doesn‟t put his faith in water, but in the presence of the Holy Spirit in the water. The combination of both holy water and prayer and fasting is the most powerful way to overcome demonic forces.

Q3. What historical precedents indicate the use of holy water in the Church?

A3. This is a good question which invites another point to be made as well. Many Christians use the argument, “If it isn‟t in the Bible, then I won‟t do it.” This sounds good, but, let‟s face it—the New Testament doesn‟t give us much information about the form of worship used by the early Christians. The few references regarding worship in the New Testament indicate that the early Christians used a liturgy focused around the Table of the Lord (Holy ). For us to gain a better understanding of early and practice, we must rely on other ecclesiastical documents from integral sources.

The first known document regarding the subject, one which attributes to St. Matthew the precept of using holy water, is entitled Apostolic Constitutions written under the name of Pope Alexander I, who lived during the second century. From this point on, there are numerous references in Church Tradition to the use of holy water and the miracles that followed as a result. One could easily suppose that first and second century Christians used holy water for expiatory and purificatory purposes similar to its uses under Jewish Law. In fact, evidence demonstrates that many early Christian homes had receptacles of water used for the purpose of cleansing prior to participating in the Table of the Lord.

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Chapter Two Part One—The Power of Incense

Full- Use of Incense

Before I move into this topic, let me make a comment. One of the idiosyncrasies of the various denominations in the Protestant West is their tendency to choose and pick verses that support their theology, and disregard or qualify those that may appear contradictory to their teachings. Most of the time, church leaders are guilty of seeing in Scripture only those things that they want to see. It is easy for them to say that they hold to everything the Bible teaches, and, at the same time, not do everything that Scripture says. Many evangelical pastors will put on their church marquee “We are a Bible teaching church. We are a full-gospel church.” Yet, when you examine closely to what doctrine they hold, you find that much of what Scripture has to say is left out of their sermons.

This is much the same with the book of Malachi. On the one hand, numerous churches believe in the Biblical mandate of making tithes and offerings to God. The support for this practice is seen throughout the Old Testament, and is encapsulated in Malachi 3:8- 10. On the other hand, many of those same churches, especially those who claim to be full-gospel, Bible believing churches, seem to have missed or ignored Malachi 1:11.

Malachi 1:11 says this: “„For from the rising of the sun, even to its going down, My name shall be great among the Gentiles; in every place incense shall be offered to My name, and a pure offering; for My name shall be great among the nations,‟” says the Lord of hosts.” Now you understand that the Lord is not saying that His Name is great only during the daylight hours, don‟t you? God is saying that His name is great for all eternity. That is a true statement, no matter how many scholars try to prove He doesn‟t exist. As long as the sun rises and sets, as long as history continues, God‟s name, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is great. That is indisputable amongst those who call themselves Christians.

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However, the caveat for the entire verse is found in the second part of the verse. How will His name become great amongst the nations? According to this verse, how does God‟s Name become great here on earth? In every place incense is offered in His Name, God will be great amongst that people, that nation. The incense, which is the prayers of the saints, is the impetus that causes the people to honor the Holy .

If we take a casual glance at our present-day culture, it is easy to see that God‟s Name is not great among the nations. Why is that? The possible reasons are too numerous to list here, and they may all be true. But one big reason not given by most evangelical churches is found in Malachi 1:11: incense is not being offered to God in most of our churches. If we desire to see His Name great among the gentiles, we must work to teach the Gospel of Christ, anoint the sick, help the widows and orphans, administer the , and educate our children in the ways of God. But we must also offer incense to God as we worship Him.

Another great verse where we see a reference to the use of incense is in Psalm 141:2: “Let my prayer be set before you as incense, the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.” In this Psalm we see David crying out to God to be made holy before Him. Why did David use the word “incense” as a comparison to his prayer before God? David, a good Hebrew, understood the use of incense in the Tabernacle and didn‟t see his prayer as some abstracted feeling or message to God, but as a physical reality ascending to His throne. Let me give you some examples. In the books of Exodus and Leviticus, instructions for the proper use of incense give clear reference to God‟s approval of its use. In Exodus, God says to the people of Israel, “You shall make an altar to burn incense on; …Take sweet spices, stacte, and onycha and galbanum, and pure frankincense with these sweet spices…you shall make of these an incense, according to the art of the perfumer, salted, pure and holy.” (Exodus 30:1 and 34-35, NKJV) Here God shows not only His approval for the use of incense, but here He actually commands its use. In the preparations of the High Priest, the Lord spoke to Moses that, “…he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from the altar before the Lord, with his hands full of sweet incense beaten fine, and bring it inside the veil. And he shall put the incense

16 Holy Water and Incense on the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy seat that is on the Testimony, lest he die.” (Leviticus 16:12 and 13, NKJV) What does this represent? The cloud of smoke from the incense covers the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant as the prayers of the people of Israel calling out for the mercy of God. This was David‟s prayer, a prayer of mercy from God to be made holy, not by his own works, but by God‟s grace. And this is done through sacramental means i.e. incense.

There are many other Scripture references for the use of incense in the Old Testament, but what we must understand is that this was a part of the worship in the Tabernacle as commanded by God, and this form of liturgical worship continued in the “Church” (the people of God) even until the time of the Messiah. The use of incense was acceptable and natural for David as it was for any other of the Jewish leaders and prophets since the time of Moses. What we need to see is that Jesus Christ, being a good Jewish citizen, participated in the same liturgical Jewish worship just as His ancestors did, and incense was a part of that worship. Many of my Protestant brothers say, if Jesus said not to do something, then we should obey His command and not participate in the questionable practice. And if He didn‟t do something in the New Testament, then we should follow His example as well. Their rallying cry has been “We only do what Jesus did!” That sounds good, until we take a closer look at their argument. First of all, Jesus never said anything about not using incense, and, furthermore, He would have witnessed its use in the acceptable Jewish form of worship. If He was truly against its use in Christian worship, I am sure we would have seen something about its prohibition in the Gospels. Many people are just simply afraid of incense because they do not understand the whole Word of God, and quickly assign arguments against its use so they don‟t have to deal with their religious prejudices.

The reasons for these prejudices are many—for some people, these practices too closely resemble those of the Roman Catholics; for others, it is just foreign to their Protestant sensibilities. Perhaps the most abused defense against the incorporation of liturgical/sacramental practices is the claim that they are demonic or of pagan origin.

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Neither one could further from the truth, yet I‟ve heard it said by many pastors that incense and holy water are both tools of Satan to cause Bible believing Christians to be distracted from the work of the Holy Spirit.

One of the ironies of this kind of thinking is that many of these same pastors at one time thought that the gift of speaking in tongues was also demonic, until they, themselves, became baptized in the Holy Spirit and that particular gift became prevalent in their lives. How was their mindset transformed? It was because they believed the Word of God in faith, and abandoned their rational “line upon line, precept upon precept” mentality which prohibited them from entering into the full will of God for their lives. Now these men are free in the Holy Spirit, and no longer assign derogatory names to certain gifts outlined by St. Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians.

The Power of Incense; The Power of Prayer

The use of incense in the Church is not just some that has no consequence. It is not simply some aesthetic used to make the church smell pretty. Instead, it is actually prayer. How do I know this? In the Revelation 5:8, St. John says, “Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.” John goes on to say in the eighth chapter, verses three and four,

Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. And he was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel‟s hand. This is the worship of the Church Victorious that is offered to God in Heaven, and it is the worship we should replicate here on earth. The incense we offer before God during the Daily Offices of Prayer and the Holy Eucharist is the prayers of the people.

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We can see how the power of prayer is manifested in the use of incense in Numbers 16:46-48. Just prior to these verses, Israel rebelled against her God-ordained leaders, Moses and Aaron, and the Lord began to exact punishment on the people for their sin. At this time, Moses commands Aaron to do the following:

So Moses said to Aaron, “Take a censer and put fire in it from the altar, put incense on it, and take it quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them; for wrath has gone out from the Lord. The plague has begun.” Then Aaron took it as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the congregation; and already the plague had begun among the people. So he put in the incense and made atonement for the people. And he stood between the dead and the living; so the plague was stopped.

How could this have any effect on the will of God to punish and destroy the people of Israel? Through the intercession of Moses, the plague was stopped. Moses cried out to God, “Please, don‟t destroy Israel!” But we don‟t see these words being used in the verses, so how did he cry out to God, how did Moses intercede on behalf of the children of Israel? He did it through the use of the incense. It became Moses‟ prayers, a physical reality of the cry of his heart. Combined with faith, Moses was able to intercede for the people of Israel through the use of incense.

Another instance where we can see the power of incense is found in II Chronicles 26:16- 23. These passages tell the story of how King Uzziah offered incense in rebellion to the instructions given by God. Only the sons of Aaron were allowed to enter the temple of the Lord to burn incense, yet King Uzziah, full of pride and rebellion, took it upon himself to enter the holy place and commit this sinful act. When confronted by Azariah the priest, Uzziah became angry, but, while the censer was still in his hands, his forehead broke out with leprosy. From that point on, he was isolated from the rest of the house of Israel because of his rebellion which lead to this incurable consuming disease.

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The point is that God not only sanctions the use of incense by His people, He gives strict orders pertaining to its usage. The implication is that incense is a powerful sacramental tool that is used for the intercession of the saints, and it must be regarded in that way. To view it as simply ornamental or ceremonial is not only missing the point; it is a degradation of the sacramental God gives us to intercede for the Body of Christ.

Besides that, to have the view that incense is nothing more than an aesthetic used to create a certain environment is to assume that one understands the mysteries of God. That is a dangerous mindset to have for it places so-called “rational” thinking on par with the thoughts and ways of God. That was the sin of King Uzziah—through the sin of pride, he believed he was above the law. As a result, he died leprous and in isolation.

Mystery versus Mind

The next question is “How can incense be the prayers of the saints?” My only answer is that I don‟t know. It is a mystery, just as all the Sacraments are a mystery. For example, St. Paul tells This is something I can‟t explain, but I believe it. Our minds are not equipped to understand the mysteries of God, but they can comprehend what the Scriptures teach us and command us to do. When God says that incense used in liturgy is the prayers of the saints, I just accept it because I figure that God knows more than me. Who has the gift of speaking in tongues figured out? We do it, yet we can‟t understand it.

Now you may think that what I am telling you sounds strange, but how about when Oral Roberts was on television in the 1950s preaching that God would heal the sick if only they would reach out and touch the television screen and believe for healing? And, guess what, those people who had faith and touched the television were healed. Many thousands of people have been healed through that form of ministry. How did that happen? I don‟t know, but somehow God used a physical object through which He manifested His power to deliver and heal. You see, we charismatic‟s do strange things all the time, yet we have our little idiosyncrasies. We‟ve believed that God would heal

20 Holy Water and Incense people through the television, we‟ve believed that speaking in tongues is a gift of God, we‟ve believed that being slain in the Holy Spirit is a work of God, yet we have a hard time believing that incense should be used in the church as an offering for prayer. I believe the answer to this is that, although the use of incense is Biblical, many Protestant Evangelicals have a disdain for any form of worship or practice of the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox brothers. Unfortunately, they blind themselves from seeing the Biblical, fruitful and helpful practices that have been used by the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church since the first few centuries.

The Natural Leads to the Spiritual

I also think that a church should smell like a church. It should have a distinctive odor to it that makes it unique from every other building in our towns. God reminds us of His reality through the use of our natural senses. The aesthetics of the church are not there simply for enjoyment; their primary purpose is to bring remembrance to our minds, which are still in the process of redemption, that God is alive and very much involved in the affairs of our daily lives. Through taste, touch, sight, hearing and smell, our natural senses lead us to the knowledge that God sits on His throne in Heaven ruling over the entire universe. The problem facing the Church and the world is the devil uses every means at his disposal, especially our natural senses, to convince us that God is dead and that there is no point in having faith in something unseen. Incense is just one means of using the natural to point to the reality of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It provides an odor that tells us that there is something special, something holy, about this particular place. When you go to St. Michael‟s Pro-Cathedral Church in San Clemente, you don‟t have any doubt in your mind that you are in a holy place because of the smell of the incense that is offered up daily.

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Part Two—Protocol for the Use of Incense

Appropriate Times for Use of Incense

As I‟ve already stated, the primary time for using incense in worship is during the Holy Eucharist. It is at that time that we are joined with the Church in Heaven through the Body and , and it is also the time that we are joined together as the Body of Christ here on earth. We are brought together as a communion, and together we offer up our petitions to God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, through the use of incense.

Incense can also be offered to God during any sanctioned Church office, such as the Daily Office of Prayer (Matins and Vespers). Although the officiant may not be ordained to bless the Sacraments (i.e. a layman), during this office he acts under the authority of his bishop, and through the bishop‟s authority he is able to offer the incense as the prayers of the people.

Acceptable and Unacceptable Incense

It should be noted that not all incense is appropriate for use in prayer. There are numerous manufacturers of incense, many of which are oriented toward new age teachings and the occult. These are not acceptable for use in Christian worship.

The best way to purchase incense for Christian worship is to contact Fr. Jim Obermeyer, Vicar of Christ the King CEC in Newhall, California, USA. He offers a wonderful selection of incense created exclusively for . If this is too costly of a means, contact a Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox manufacturer. Many Greek Orthodox monasteries produce a number of liturgical items for purchase including incense.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Some Evangelical Christians make the assertion that the use of incense by the Roman was simply an adaptation of pagan practice to encourage pagans to attend church. Is that a true or fair statement, and, if not, how does the Church defend herself from such accusations?

A1. While it is true that pagans have used incense throughout history, that fact does not detract from the Biblical truth and foundation for its present day use in the Church. Throughout both Old and New Testaments, we can clearly see references to the acceptable use of incense by the “sons of Abraham.” In fact, God delineates between the acceptable and unacceptable (Godly v. pagan) ways to use incense. In the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and II Chronicles, we can see God‟s specific instructions for its use in the Tabernacle and the Temple. You must remember that pagans during this time also burned incense, so when God gave parameters for its use, He was showing that it was not only acceptable, but also a holy obligation. He was demonstrating the difference between pagan use and Godly use of incense. Furthermore, in II Chronicles, Scripture shows us that there were parameters within the House of God for the acceptable offering of incense. King Uzziah unlawfully offered incense in the Tabernacle, and, as a result of his unrepentant and hardened heart, he became leprous even until the time of his death.

Another point I would like to make about this topic is that I believe many Christians have a gnostic impulse which causes them to dismiss the use of anything physical in their worship. Since the Enlightenment, Protestant Christians have equated the disembodied spiritual realm with the Kingdom of God. This kind of thinking and much of the doctrine that results from it approaches the borderline of heresy. Christ ascended into Heaven with His physical body, and this is the example of things to come. I believe we shall see a day when the physical earth and all who have stood in faith for God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit will also be glorified in their physical bodies. Christ came to redeem the earth, not to destroy it.

To make the accusation that the use of incense by the early Church was simply a marketing technique used to bring pagans into the House of God is silly and foolhardy. I believe from my reading of the early Church Fathers that it was a natural transition from Jewish worship to newly-founded Christian worship. Although some Christians were opposed to its use in the first couple centuries A.D., I believe that it was a reaction to the abomination of offering incense to Caesar. And since there were so many martyrs who died at the hands of Caesar and his government, this would be natural. However, it does not invalidate the correct use of incense in the Church. God tells us that for as long as history lasts, incense shall be offered to Him, and, where it is offered, His name will be great.

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Q2. What is incense? From what is it produced?

A2. Incense is an aromatic substance mainly produced from tree resin. In ancient times, incense was procured from the resin of the Terebinth trees, primarily the Boswellia sacra of Arabia Felix and the Boswellia papyrifera of India. To enhance the aromatic smell of the burning incense, and to produce a thicker smoke, other ingredients are added. The resin is dried and cut into small pieces which can then be put onto the burning charcoal.

Q3. It is interesting to see that the New Age movement embraces the use of incense in their practices. Do you think there is a correlation between the use of incense in the Holy Liturgy and New Age practice?

A3. Yes I do, and this is why the Western Church, primarily those who disassociate themselves from sacramental theology, lose their power to transform this world. I certainly believe that when New Age adherents burn incense for their religious purposes, they are praying to their gods, whomever they may be. Of course we know that they are appealing to demonic spirits, but that doesn‟t take away from the power that is evoked through their burning of incense. Believe it or not, demonic spirits do have a certain amount of power. I believe the New Age movement obtains much of that power through the burning of incense; it is their prayer. Much of the Protestant Church can‟t resist that power, either, simply because they dismiss the belief that the power of prayer can be greatly enhanced by the use of incense. If we begin to do as Malachi 1 states, then part of the “wall of Jerusalem” will be put back into place as defense against the godless kingdoms of this world.

Both New Agers and Christians who hold to sacramental theology believe in the power of incense; however, pagan New Agers offer their incense to their false gods, but Christians offer (or should offer) their incense to the only one true God.

Conclusion

I believe that one of the main reasons God‟s name is not great among the nations is because we, the Western church, have a hard time believing that incense, holy water, and other can really affect our worship and our culture. Instead, we‟ve believed that it is only through sheer numbers of people that we are able to change the world. We have believed that “horses and chariots” will actually do the saving, although we confess otherwise. Consequently, if your church is rather small and doesn‟t seem to be growing, it is easy to get dismayed and think, “We‟ll never be able to convert all our city to Christ.” However, that is not the case. The reason many of you may think that is because you can‟t see beyond the “veil.” There is only one Church, the Church in

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Heaven and the Church on earth, and every time you have a Holy Eucharist, you are joined with the Church in Heaven, “with angels and archangels and all the company of Heaven.” Now I think, and some may consider it only speculation (like speculation about speaking in tongues or touching the television for healing), that when the prayers are being offered up in the worship service with the incense, there is a joining of the Church in Heaven and the Church on earth in prayer. Now that is a mighty army for God—there are more people in Heaven than there are in the whole world right now! The intercessions of the saints through the use of incense brings us to the throne of God, His mercy seat, and He hears our cries to Him.

Let me qualify all that I‟ve said with this: “Without faith, we cannot please God.” And that is the truth. The use of holy water and incense is not a magic trick; instead it is the use of these tools through faith that causes them to be effective.

Having said that, I believe it is the lack of use of these tools that has kept the Western Church from becoming powerful in our culture. The battle cry of many of my evangelical friends has been “Faith only!” And they are correct to a degree. Where I diverge from their thinking is that I believe that God wants to establish His Kingdom here on earth by using physical things to empower His people. He wants, once again, to consecrate the physical world as holy unto Himself. He wants to bring about the Paradise He once intended for Adam and Eve.

Since the Enlightenment, Western culture has seen the physical and spiritual world as two separate entities. One is considered profane while the other is viewed as holy. So, in the West, we see our physical lives and the physical environment around us as profane, and Heaven as the holy destination of our disembodied spirits. That is not how the early Fathers of the Church understood God‟s Kingdom—they saw the two worlds as inextricably linked, and the still holds to this same belief.

We‟ve done the same thing with faith. We‟ve made it a disembodied entity that is nebulous and vague. When some of my friends have pleaded the blood of Jesus, I‟ve

25 Holy Water and Incense often asked them, “Where is the blood? Is it floating around in space somewhere?” Of course, I‟m being facetious, but it is also an honest question. Where we find the blood of Christ is in the cup of our salvation at the Holy Eucharist.

When we “see” things such as holy water and incense, we should develop the perspective that the entire physical world was created by God for His pleasure and use. And some of those things are set apart by God for the redemption of the world, chiefly bread and wine. But also incense and water. We need to view them not only as natural elements, but also as potentially spiritual weapons against the kingdoms of this world. We need to regain the understanding prior to the Enlightenment that the physical and spiritual dimensions of things created are inseparable. We need to understand that God desires His “will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.”

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Appendix

The Blessing of Water

Salt, and pure and clean water, being made ready in the Church or , vested in and violet , shall say,

V. Our help is in the Name of the Lord. R. Who hath made heaven and earth.

And immediately he shall begin the of the salt.

I adjure thee, O creature of salt, by the living + God, by the true + God, by the holy + God, by God who commanded thee to be cast, by the prophet Elisha, into the water to heal the barrenness thereof, that thou become salt exorcised for the health of believers; and do thou bring to all who take of thee soundness of soul and body, and let all vain imaginations, wickedness, and subtlety of the wiles of the devil, and every fly and depart from every place where thou shalt be sprinkled, adjured by the Name of Him, who shall come to judge both the quick and the dead, and the world by fire. Amen.

Let us pray.

Almighty and everlasting God, we humbly beseech thy great and boundless mercy, that it may please thee of thy loving-kindness to bl+ess and to hal+low this creature of salt, which thou hast given for the use of men, let it be to all them that take of it health of mind and body, and let whatsoever shall be touched or sprinkled therewith be free from all uncleanness, and from all assaults of spiritual wickedness. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Exorcism of the Water

I adjure thee, O creature of water, by the Name of God the Father + Almighty, by the Name of Jesus +Christ His Son our Lord, and by the power of the Holy + Ghost, that thou become water exorcised for putting to flight all the power of the enemy; and do thou avail to cast out and send hence that same enemy with all his apostate angels: by the power of the same our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall come to judge the quick and the dead, and the world by fire. Amen.

Let us pray.

O God, who for the salvation of mankind hast ordained that the substance of water should be used in one of thy chiefest Sacraments: favorably regard us who call upon thee, and pour the power of thy bene+diction upon this element, made ready by careful cleansing; that this thy creature, meet for thy mysteries, may receive the effect of divine grace, and so cast out devils, and put sickness to flight, that whatsoever in the dwellings of thy faithful people shall be sprinkled with this water, may be free from all uncleanness, and delivered from all manner of hurt; there let no spirit of pestilence abide, nor any corrupting air; thence let all the wiles of the hidden enemy depart, and if there be aught that layeth snares against the safety or peace of them that dwell in the house, let it fly before the sprinkling of this water: so that the health which they seek through calling upon thy holy Name may be protected against all things that threaten it. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Then the Priest shall cast the salt into the water in the form of a Cross, saying,

Be this salt and water mingled together: in the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

V. The Lord be with you. R. And with thy spirit.

Let us pray.

O God, who art the Author of unconquered might, the King of the Empire that cannot be overthrown, the ever glorious Conqueror: who dost keep under the strength of the dominion that is against thee; who rulest the raging of the fierce enemy; who dost mightily fight against the wickedness of thy foes; with fear and trembling e entreat thee O Lord, and we beseech thee graciously to behold this creature of salt and water, mercifully shine upon it, hallow it with the dew of they loving-kindness: that whosoever it shall be sprinkled, with the invocation of thy holy Name, all haunting of they unclean spirit may be driven away; far thence let the fear of the venomous serpent be cast; and wheresoever it shall be sprinkled, there let the presence of the Holy Ghost be vouchsafed to all of us who shall ask for thy mercy. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Upon completion of this prayer, the holy water is ready for use.

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