Question Corner: Does holy water ‘absolve’ us from venial sin?

Q: I heard a priest on the radio talking about holy water fonts in church, and he said that as a sacramental, the holy water “absolves us from venial sin.” He actually used the word “absolves.” That doesn’t sound right to me. What does the Church teach about this? (Rhode Island)

A: I can see where this would sound odd to you the way it was phrased, but the priest on the radio was at least broadly correct in noting that there are ways venial sins can be forgiven even outside of the sacrament of penance.

First, let’s recall some basics. The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines a mortal sin as that which “destroys charity in the heart of man by a grave violation of God’s law” (CCC 1855).

As the name implies, a mortal sin leaves us, in a sense, spiritually “dead.” For an act to be a mortal sin, three conditions must be met: The act must be seriously wrong, the one committing it must know it is seriously wrong, and they must commit the sinful act of their own free will.

If any one of these components is missing, the sin is considered “venial” (see CCC 1862). Venial sin is still a problem in our spiritual lives because it “weakens charity,” even if it does not “deprive the sinner of sanctifying grace (and) friendship with God” (CCC 1863).

Baptism frees us from any and all sin, including the original sin we are all born with as well as any actual sins we may have committed prior to baptism. After baptism, the sacrament of penance is the “gold standard” for seeking forgiveness of both mortal and venial sins.

However, we as Catholics believe that our all-powerful God is free to extend his grace beyond what he has already promised through his sacraments.

For instance, a true sorrow for sin that is motivated entirely by a love for God is called “perfect contrition,” and according to the Catechism: “Such contrition remits venial sins; it also obtains forgiveness of mortal sins if it includes the firm resolution to have recourse to sacramental confession as soon as possible” (CCC 1452).

Beyond this, there are a few other ways that merely venial sins might be forgiven outside the confessional.

One is receiving holy Communion. As paragraph 1394 of the catechism tells us: “As bodily nourishment restores lost strength, so the Eucharist strengthens our charity, which tends to be weakened in daily life; and this living charity wipes away venial sins.” (Though it should be kept in mind that this only applies to a worthy — i.e. free from mortal sin — reception of Communion. Receiving holy Communion in a state of mortal sin only compounds that sin.)

Other things that are generally understood in Catholic theology to remit venial sins include the penitential rite at the beginning of Mass, the sacrament of the anointing of the sick and a bishop’s blessing.

With respect to holy water in particular, St. Thomas Aquinas specifically identifies the “sprinkling of holy water” as a means for the remission of venial sin in question 87, article 3 of the “Third Part” of his work the “Summa Theologica.”

Whether or not these extra-confessional sources of forgiveness can be appropriately described as “absolving” venial sins is an interesting question. It does seem that in our modern sacramental theology, the Church generally shies away from using the word “absolution” in contexts other than the sacrament of penance. For instance, as we can see in some of the above-mentioned quotes, the Church in her official teaching documents tends to describe venial sins as being “remitted,” “forgiven,” or “wiped out” by things like perfect contrition or the use of holy water.

Still, while the precise meaning of the word “absolution” would likely make an interesting thesis for a theologian or canon lawyer, I think we accept the basic point the radio priest was trying to make.

Jenna Marie Cooper, who holds a licentiate in canon law, is a consecrated virgin and a canonist whose column appears weekly at OSV News. Send your questions to CatholicQA@osv.com.

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