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Today at Mass, the priest blessed chalk which is then distributed to be taken home and used to inscribe over the door of the house. I remember this custom from when I was a young child and have not seen it done anywhere since then. I post the prayers from the service leaflet here for those who may wish to follow this Epiphany custom.
Blessing of chalk
Our help + is in the name of the Lord.
Who hath made heaven and earth.
Lord hear my prayer.
And let my cry come unto thee.
The Lord be with you.
And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.
Bless+, O Lord God, this chalk that it may be helpful to men and grant by the invocation of thy Most Holy Name that whosoever shall use it or inscribe with it the names of thy Saints Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar upon the doors of their homes, may through their merits and intercession enjoy health of body and protection of soul; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
20+G+M+B+08
The above line should be written on the lintel above the front door into your home. A piece of blessed chalk may be taken home with you for this purpose. Following the writing, this prayer is to be used:
Let us pray.
O Lord, holy Father, Almighty everlasting God, we beseech thee to hear us: and vouchsafe to send thy holy Angel from heaven, to guard and cherish, protect and visit, and evermore defend all that dwell in this house. I call upon Saints Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar, to protect my family and my home from every harm and danger, and I place this mark over my door to remain as a constant reminder to us and all who enter here that my house is truly a house of the Lord. O God, make the door of my house the gateway to thine eternal Kingdom. All this we ask through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord. Amen.
Happy Epiphany!
John K
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Thanks for posting this John.
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John,
Our Pastor told us today that he had blessed the chalk last night, and distributed little pieces of it as we left the Church after Mass.
I never experienced this custom before (I'm 58). Thanks for giving the prayers.
Best,
Michael
BTW, my brother's Pastor also follows this custom in a different town -- is this an Eastern custom, or just one that has been neglected in the West?
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Michael--I believe that this is Western custom. It was well loved in the Polish Roman Catholic Church I grew up in and discontinued when a new pastor came when I was around 7 or 8.
The church where the I received blessed chalk today is an Anglo-Catholic Episcopal parish.
Happy Epiphany!
John
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Dear Friends,
I have large silver letters, "KMB" that we always put out for Christmas and also on our outdoor Christmas wreath that has a small metallic image of the Three Kings.
But I take this to also mean "Kristus Mansionem Benedicat" or "Christ blesses this home." (?)
Alex
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Alex,
From what I have read, it can mean both/and/either/or.
Caspar, Melchior, Balthasar or
Christus Masionem Benedicat.
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John and Alex, Thanks for the replies. My brother asked his Pastor who said that it is a very traditional German/Polish custom. His pastor is Slovakian, of the Latin Rite, but with a fondness for Eastern "traditions", i.e., "Greekicizations".  , which is why I asked. Happy Epiphany back at you! Michael
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Gaspar is written as Kaspar in Polish. I was always taught that it was the initials of the Magi.
John K
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I would have sworn that we had a thread about this a couple of years ago and that Alex and I spoke about it at some length, but I can't lay hands on it now. I did find two very nice Christmas threads though - a bit late for the New Calendar, but timely for the Old. https://www.byzcath.org/forums/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/60002/fpart/1https://www.byzcath.org/forums/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/131446/fpart/1Christ is Born! Glorify Him! They are indeed the initials of Sainted Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar. The custom is common among both the Germans and East Europeans, as well as among the Irish. Your birth, O Christ our God, has shed upon the world the light of knowledge; for through it those who worshipped the stars have learned from a star to worship You, the Sun of Justice, and to recognize You as the Orient From On High. Glory be to You, O Lord! Many years, Neil, who has a particular devotion to the Holy Magi and is sitting here fondly remembering the annual calculation of East - complete with compass - made by his Dad and Dr Kapinos, both of blessed memory, to determine the placement of the Magi in relation to our creche
"One day all our ethnic traits ... will have disappeared. Time itself is seeing to this. And so we can not think of our communities as ethnic parishes, ... unless we wish to assure the death of our community."
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I think you are right Neil - I'm scratching my head over it as I have this memory of a thread about it - and I'm convinced that Alex was in on it as well.
BTW while on this sort of thing - I noticed on one of those topics you found again a reference to the 3 Kings cake from Germany.
Lasy year I was in France just after Epiphany and found myself having a slice of the Epiphany Crown [ a ring 'couronne' not a sort of regal crown if-you-see-what-I-mean ] and got the heart !!
Not been able to find out much about this - anyone here know ?
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I am not sure and thought that only a priest can bless things, or is that practice of the west?
Dandelion
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C
When ever we, my brother or I went on our summer vacation, it was not uncommon for mom to bless us using three fingers and tracing the sign of the cross on our forehead. Is it a blessing? I think so! Also among our people when my aunt married, she was bless by mother and father my baba and dido with a wedding bread before they left for church. S, I say yes, in particular situation, lay people can bless.
З Різдвом Христовим та Новим Роком
Щирі побажання, кріпкого здоров'я.
Багато щастя, чистої води в криниці,
В полі ярої пшениці,
Хліба-солі на столі, і погоди на душі.
Kolya
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I am not sure and thought that only a priest can bless things, or is that practice of the west? Dandelion, Not sure what you're asking here. The tradition of the chalk being blessed is a western one, but is done by the priest (I know the blessing for it used to be in the Rituale, whether it still is, I don't know). The prayer is that Christ bless the house or that it be blessed through the intercession of the Holy Magi. The point made by Kolya, of blessings asked by parents or others for their loved ones, is common to nearly every tradition - but I'm still lost as to the relevance of the matter to this thread (which might just mean that I need more coffee  ) Many years, Neil
"One day all our ethnic traits ... will have disappeared. Time itself is seeing to this. And so we can not think of our communities as ethnic parishes, ... unless we wish to assure the death of our community."
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Last year I was in France just after Epiphany and found myself having a slice of the Epiphany Crown [ a ring 'couronne' not a sort of regal crown if-you-see-what-I-mean ] and got the heart !!
Not been able to find out much about this - anyone here know ? Anhelyna, Like many such cakes, I know that Epiphany Crowns invariably contain some object which carries a tradition with it. I'm aware of coins and gems - the finder being considered to have a "lucky" year ahead of them. In Mexico and some other Latin countries, if I remember correctly, the object baked into the cake is a small Christ Child figurine. The one who finds it is expected to be the recipient of blessings in the coming year and is supposed to take it to the nearest church. A bean or pea is the object in other countries and the finder becomes "prince" or "princess" in activities associated with the feast. As to a heart. I don't know - haven't run across that one before, but I suspect the symbolism may be similar - "lucky in love in the coming year" or somesuch. Many years, Neil
"One day all our ethnic traits ... will have disappeared. Time itself is seeing to this. And so we can not think of our communities as ethnic parishes, ... unless we wish to assure the death of our community."
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The tradition of celebrating Epiphany in France uses a cake called "galette des rois". It is usually translated into English as "twelfth night cake". It's generally made of almond paste covered in flaky pastry (not sure how you say this in the US; it is called p�te feuillet�e in French). See here for a pretty good explanation in English: http://www.askoxford.com/languages/culturevulture/france/galette/ . (If you read French, you'll find a lot about galettes des rois on the web.) A charm, sometimes a simple broad bean, is put in the galette. Whoever finds the charm, is king for the day.
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