The Surprising Spiritual Power of Church Bells.
Bells don’t just call people to prayer, they also have a little-known spiritual relevance.
Church bells have been with us since the 5th century and were commonly used in the Middle Ages. They were especially used in monastic communities to call on monks to assemble for prayer in the chapel as, throughout the day, they were in various locations of the monastery. Later, the custom spread more and more among parish churches and the bells were used to call the people to the celebration of the Eucharist, as well as for the recitation of the Angelus during the day.
However, bells also have great spiritual power. When a new bell is installed in a church, it is traditionally “baptized” or “consecrated” by the local bishop or priest. The ancient ceremonies imitated baptism and the current ceremony still requires the use of holy water. The bells are also named after a particular patron saint, although many are named after the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The Roman Ritual contains a very solemn blessing of church bells and speaks of the spiritual symbolism and sacramental power these bells possess now.
"God, who decreed through Saint Moses, your servant and legislator, to create and to sound silver trumpets at the time of sacrifice, to remember the people through their clear tones to prepare for your worship and gather for your celebration." Grant us, we beseech thee, that this bell, destined for your holy Church, be sanctified by the Holy Spirit through our humble ministry, so that when it rips and rings, the faithful are invited to the house of God and eternal reward.
May the faith and piety of the people grow stronger and stronger whenever I hear their melodious repique. May your sound drive away every evil spirit; may thunder and lightning, hail and storm disappear; that the power of your hand subdues the evil powers of the air, that tremble with the sound of this bell and flee act followed by the vision of the holy cross recorded on her.
May our Lord grant us this, He who overcame death on the cross, and now reigns in the glory of God the Father, in the unity of the Father and of the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. "
Pay attention to how the priest calls on the power of God to drive away “evil spirits” in addition to “thunder (... Lightning, hail and storm" through the sound of these bells. The blessing continues with a closing prayer that, again, evokes the spiritual weight the bells receive.
“O Christ, Almighty Ruler, as you once calmed the storm on the sea by awakening in the boat of sleep of your human nature, so come now with your benign help to the needs of your people, and pour out on this bell the dew of the Holy Spirit.
Whenever it sounds, the enemy of good flee, that the Christian people hear the call to faith, that terrorizes Satan's empire, that your people be strengthened in being called to join the Lord and that the Holy Spirit be with believers just as it rejoiced be with David when he played his harp.
And just as once the thunder in the air drove away a horde of enemies, when Samuel sacrificed a suckling lamb as a holocaust to the eternal King, so when the sound of this bell sounds in the clouds brings a legion of angels to guard the assembly of your church, the first fruits of the faithful and strive for your eternal protection in their body and spirit.
We ask this through you, Lord Jesus Christ, that you live and reign with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. "
Church bells have been with us since the 5th century and were commonly used in the Middle Ages. They were especially used in monastic communities to call on monks to assemble for prayer in the chapel as, throughout the day, they were in various locations of the monastery. Later, the custom spread more and more among parish churches and the bells were used to call the people to the celebration of the Eucharist, as well as for the recitation of the Angelus during the day.
However, bells also have great spiritual power. When a new bell is installed in a church, it is traditionally “baptized” or “consecrated” by the local bishop or priest. The ancient ceremonies imitated baptism and the current ceremony still requires the use of holy water. The bells are also named after a particular patron saint, although many are named after the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The Roman Ritual contains a very solemn blessing of church bells and speaks of the spiritual symbolism and sacramental power these bells possess now.
"God, who decreed through Saint Moses, your servant and legislator, to create and to sound silver trumpets at the time of sacrifice, to remember the people through their clear tones to prepare for your worship and gather for your celebration." Grant us, we beseech thee, that this bell, destined for your holy Church, be sanctified by the Holy Spirit through our humble ministry, so that when it rips and rings, the faithful are invited to the house of God and eternal reward.
May the faith and piety of the people grow stronger and stronger whenever I hear their melodious repique. May your sound drive away every evil spirit; may thunder and lightning, hail and storm disappear; that the power of your hand subdues the evil powers of the air, that tremble with the sound of this bell and flee act followed by the vision of the holy cross recorded on her.
May our Lord grant us this, He who overcame death on the cross, and now reigns in the glory of God the Father, in the unity of the Father and of the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. "
Pay attention to how the priest calls on the power of God to drive away “evil spirits” in addition to “thunder (... Lightning, hail and storm" through the sound of these bells. The blessing continues with a closing prayer that, again, evokes the spiritual weight the bells receive.
“O Christ, Almighty Ruler, as you once calmed the storm on the sea by awakening in the boat of sleep of your human nature, so come now with your benign help to the needs of your people, and pour out on this bell the dew of the Holy Spirit.
Whenever it sounds, the enemy of good flee, that the Christian people hear the call to faith, that terrorizes Satan's empire, that your people be strengthened in being called to join the Lord and that the Holy Spirit be with believers just as it rejoiced be with David when he played his harp.
And just as once the thunder in the air drove away a horde of enemies, when Samuel sacrificed a suckling lamb as a holocaust to the eternal King, so when the sound of this bell sounds in the clouds brings a legion of angels to guard the assembly of your church, the first fruits of the faithful and strive for your eternal protection in their body and spirit.
We ask this through you, Lord Jesus Christ, that you live and reign with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. "
