Saint Nicholas Orthodox Church

Some time ago, when I was a young priest, I was giving catechism classes to inquirers into holy Orthodoxy, when the topic of water blessing and the blessing of homes at Theophany came up. I explained it to them like this. This world, this creation, is in captivity; it is enemy held territory. The evil one, having enslaved all of creation at the fall, has laid claim to every nook and cranny of this earth. And for a while it looked as though he might be able to hold onto it. But then he reached too far and attempted to enslave the Master of All and to bind Life with the chains of death, and his power was broken. But creation is still fallen, it is still contested land in the spiritual battle. St. Paul has written: ?For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies? (Romans 8:19-23)

We Christians, the children of God, are engaged in this struggle as co-workers with Him, to reclaim fallen nature for the Kingdom. We often think about this in terms of our own salvation, but the Church, addressing all of creation in a holistic manner, also reaches out and reclaims a bit here and a bit there of creation in general. We do this in order that we might restore the usefulness of creation for working out our own salvation. Hence we bless everything, including our homes, and by blessing them, we reclaim them for the Kingdom of God.

There are few things more vital to our lives than our homes. In our homes we pray, we work, we talk to others, we order our lives, we rest, we work out our problems, etc. What more important place to reclaim for the Kingdom of God - or is it better to continue living in a place which is occupied by the enemy? For the most effective working out of our salvation, we must drive the enemy out of our homes, and keep him at bay by our prayers, our righteous life, and the annual sprinkling by Holy Water at Theophany.