EVERY BLESSING IS A LITURGICAL ACT. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A BLESSING THAT IS NOT LITURGY PERFORMED BY THE PRIEST.
Blessings are liturgical acts performed on people, places or things (in service of people who use them).
CCC 1069 The word "liturgy" originally meant a "public work" or a "service in the name of/on behalf of the people." In Christian tradition it means the participation of the People of God in "the work of God." (Cf. Jn 17:4). Through the liturgy Christ, our redeemer and high priest, continues the work of our redemption in, with, and through his Church.
Liturgy: The set of signs and symbols by which the Church worships God and is sanctified. All liturgical actions: prayer, sacraments are therefore aimed at worshipping God the Father, through Jesus Christ, in the Holy Spirit, and at the sanctification of each of the faithful who make up this Church of Christ.
It is the way in which the Church in its head and in its mystical body or members can come into contact and communication with God, through gestures, words, rites, actions, and thus be able to participate in the marvellous grace of God, be sanctified and enter into that intimate life of God.
In the words of Pope Pius XII in his encyclical "Mediator Dei": "The liturgy is not merely the outward and sensible part of worship, much less the apparatus of ceremonies or a set of laws and rules..., it is the exercise of the priestly office of Christ".
In the Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium, number 7, we find this concise definition: "It is the exercise of the priestly office of Christ, by means of sensible signs, which accomplish in a proper way the sanctification of man".
Blessings may be performed by any ordained minister, but are normally performed by priests.
In the Catholic tradition, blessings are considered sacramentals. Sacramentals are sacred signs instituted by the Church to confer grace and prepare the faithful to receive the principal sacraments. Unlike the sacraments, which are seven (for example baptism, confirmation, Eucharist, etc.), sacramentals are numerous and include a variety of blessings, prayers, sacred objects and rituals.
A blessing is a liturgical action by which God is asked to bestow his grace and protection on particular persons, objects or situations.
It is important to highlight that, although blessings are sacramentals and have religious significance, they do not grant grace in the same way as sacraments. However, it is believed that blessings can be effective instruments for obtaining divine help and God's protection in the daily lives of the faithful.
Yes, blessings are sacramentals. Yes, blessings are liturgical acts.
The English word bless is used to translate the Latin word benedicere and the Greek word eulogein. Both of these mean “to speak good.”
"It is the way God sees the world, since the account of Creation," explains Father Romain Duriez, a priest of the Diocese of Rouen and author of a memoir on the Book of Blessings, which details the Roman ritual in this area. In this sense, ritual blessings are "the manifestation of divine blessing": "God blesses us, and in return we bless him".
"In Scripture, blessing is, in the first place, the action of God who says, wills and does our good; for him, saying and doing are identical", confirms Dom Robert Le Gall: "Divine blessing begins with the creation through the Word; it finds its culmination in the mystery of the incarnate Word, who died and resurrected for us."
This is manifested in the blessings of the Church, which are liturgical actions.
As such, "they lead Christians to praise God and put them in a position to achieve the principal effect of the sacraments and to sanctify well the various circumstances of life", develops the decree of the Congregation for Divine Worship which instituted, in 1984, the new ritual of blessings. This is the meaning of a sacramental, the category on which blessings depend, and which prepares for receiving a sacrament.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines sacramentals as "Sacramentals are sacred signs instituted by the Church. They prepare men to receive the fruit of the sacraments and sanctify different circumstances of life." (no. 1677).
The Catechism teaches that the most important sacramentals are three: blessings, consecrations and exorcisms (1671-1673).
1671 Among sacramentalsblessings(of persons, meals, objects, and places)come first.Every blessing praises God and prays for his gifts.In Christ, Christians are blessed by God the Father "with every spiritual blessing." (Eph 1:3). This is why the Church imparts blessings by invoking the name of Jesus, usually while making the holy sign of the cross of Christ.
What can we bless?
"We can bless anything that does not contradict God or the Gospel," says Father Loïc Belan, in charge of sacramental pastoral care in the diocese of Versailles. Sometimes, during a baptism, I am asked to bless a medal representing a sign of the zodiac. Then I explain that I can't.
Be careful not to confuse the blessing with the making of an amulet that magically becomes a protector. The text of the blessing of a car reminds future users of their responsibility: "Be prudent for the safety of others". The same applies to the blessing of a flat: "It is not to ward off evil spirits," insists Father Belan.
THE LITURGY - WORK OF THE HOLY TRINITY I. The Father-Source and Goal of the Liturgy 1077 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. He destined us before him in love to be his sons through …More
THE LITURGY - WORK OF THE HOLY TRINITY I. The Father-Source and Goal of the Liturgy 1077 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. He destined us before him in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved."3 1078 Blessing is a divine and life-giving action, the source of which is the Father; his blessing is both word and gift.4 When applied to man, the word "blessing" means adoration and surrender to his Creator in thanksgiving. 1079 From the beginning until the end of time the whole of God's work is a blessing. From the liturgical poem of the first creation to the canticles of the heavenly Jerusalem, the inspired authors proclaim the plan of salvation as one vast divine blessing. Catechism of the Catholic Church - IntraText
Brantegem calls it a blessing that is not a blessing to a couple that is not a couple, through a doctrine that is not a doctrine, according to a clarification that is not a clarification. You can bless without blessing as long as what is liturgical is not liturgical, if it is done in a casual way and with a stopwatch with a maximum duration of 10 seconds Francis’ [Pseudo] Blessing in a NutshellMore
Brantegem calls it a blessing that is not a blessing to a couple that is not a couple, through a doctrine that is not a doctrine, according to a clarification that is not a clarification.
You can bless without blessing as long as what is liturgical is not liturgical, if it is done in a casual way and with a stopwatch with a maximum duration of 10 seconds Francis’ [Pseudo] Blessing in a Nutshell
