Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 10.djvu/190

HOLY WAR. 164 HOLZ. by Shaddai upon Diabolus," by John Bunyan (1682). HOLY WATER (Lat. aqua bencdicta). WiiUr blessed by a priest for religious uses, and employed in the Koman Catholic and Oriental churches. In most ancient religions, the use of lustral or purifying water not only formed part of the public wor^liip, but also entered largely into the |M?rsonal acts of sanclitication presirihed to individuals. The Jewish law contained many provisions to the same eirect; and Christ, by esUib- lishing bajilism w ilh water as the necessary form of initiation into the religion instituted by llim, gave His sanction to the use. The usage of sprinkling the hands and face with water before enti-ring the sanctuary, which was prescribed in the Jewish law, was retained, or at least very early adopted, in the Christian Church. It is expressly mentioned by Tertullian in the end of the second centun,-. And that the water so employed was blessed by the priests we learn from Saint Jerome, and from the Apostolic Con- stitutions, which contain a fonnula for the pur- pose. That now given in the Roman missal and ritual has been preserved unaltered from the sacramentary of Saint Gregory. It includes an exorcism (q.v.) and the admi.xture of salt which has been blessed. The water so prepared is sprinkled by the priest on the congregation be- fore high mass (this rite being called the As- pergc.i, from the first word of the anthem which IS sing during its progress), and is publiclj' em- ploj-ed as part of the rites for funerals and for the blessing of various objects and persons ; that used in the consecration (q.v.) is prepared in a special manner. The ordinary holy water is also used privately by devout Roman Catholics on entering and leaving the church, and at other times. It is considered by them as included among sacramentals (q.v.). Although it is difli- cult to fix the precise time, it cannot be doubted that the practice of mingling salt with the water is of very ancient origin. HOLY WATER VASE, or Stoup. A recep- tacle, known in France as bcm/icr, for holy water, placed at the entrance of Roman Catholic churches, so that those who come in or go out may dip their fingers in it and cross themselves. It is frequently in the form of a shell and usually attached to the wall. The kind of a vessel known as pild in Italy stands on a base of its own. HOLY WEEK, The week immediately pre- ceding Easter, and especially consecrated to the commemoration of the passion of Christ. In the Roman Catholic Church, the special characteris- tics of the celebration of the Holy Week are in- creased solemnity and gloom, penitential rigor, and mourning. If any of the ordinary Church festivals fall therein, it is transferred till after Easter. All instrumental music is suspended in the churches, the altars are stripped of their ornaments, the pictures and statues are veiled froni public sight; manual labor, although it is no longer entirely prohibited, is by many persons voluntarily suspended; the rigor of fasting is redoubled, and alms-deeds and other works of mercy sedulously enjoined and practiced. All Church services of the week, moreover, breathe the spirit of mourning, some of them being spe- cially devoted to the commemoration of particular scenes in the passion. Palm Sunday commemorates the triumphal entry of Christ into Jerusalem, and is observed by the blessing of palm branches, which are car- ried in the jirocession as they were by the |M;op!e of Jerusalem on that day. Spy Wednesday is the old English name for the day which com- memorates the betrayal of Christ by Juiias. Holy Thursday (also called Maundy Thursday) is the commemoration of the Last Supper and tho institution of the Eucharist. With this in mind, white vestments are worn at the mass (only one mass is celebrati'd on this day), after which tho altars are solemnly stiipiK'd and washed by the clergy. (See also FooT- a.shi.ng.) The matins of the last three days, generally sung on the pre- ceding evening (see Tknkuk.k), constitute an impressive service. On (iood Friday tlic mass is not celebrated, the day being the ecimnic'moration of the one sacrifice of the great High Priest; but a special service is held, called the 'mass of the presanctificd,' includiifg the communion of the ])riest from the host reserved from the previous day on the 'altar of repose.' ( For the ceremony of the 'adoration of the cross,' see Cross.) Holy Saturday was in the earliest times set aside for the solemn administration of baptism and orders; the present services of the day begin to partake of the gladness of Easter (q.v.). In the Anglican communion the observance of tho week in a similar sjiirit is prescril>ed, and the Scripture selections all have a bearing upon the events com- memorated. Good Friday is a legal holiday in England and Ireland, and its observance is large- ly increasing, even among the non-liturgical de- nominations throughout the English-speaking world. HOLYWELL, hr/li-wel. A municipal and Parli;nii<iitaiy borough and market-town in Flintshire, North Wales, 4VL> miles northwest of Flint (Map: England, C 3). It has limestone quarries, coal and lead mines, and numerous establishments for smelting, manufacturing shot, zinc, etc. There are also manufactures of cot- tons, flannels, and galloons, paper, and Roman cement. Holywell owes its origin to the re- nowned well "of Saint Winifred, which is said to be the most copious spring in Britain. Its waters were believed to be efficacious in curing diseases, and are still resorted to by Roman Catholic pilgrims. The well is covered by a fine Perpendicular chapel attributed to Margaret, mother of Henry '1I. In the vicinity are re- mains of the old Saxon Abbey of Basingwerk. and in the town is Saint Buenos College for Roman Catholic priests. Population, in 1891, 2894; in 1901, 2652. HOLZ, h6lts, Arxo ( 1863—) . A German poet and critic, born at Ra.stenburg. Before he was nineteen he was engaged in journalism, and in 1882 published a volume of poems, Klinginshcrz, which won the Augsburg Schiller Prize. In a second volume, Deutsche Weisen (1884), written with .Tersehke, and in the liuch dcr Zeil (1885 and 1802). his extremely modern tendency ap- pears, and the attention to details and the at- tempt at photographic realism is carried even further in tiic (llri.ie (1S02), in which he collaborated with .Johannes Sclilaf. His real- istic theory is further illustrated in the plays Socialarist'okraten (1896) and Die Blcchsrhmiede (1902), the latter a satiric dialogue, and is de- fended by Holz in Die Kunst (1891 et seq.), and Revolution der Lyrik ( 1899) .