Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz blessed chalk during Advent for members of the Archdiocese of Louisville’s Faith Clubs, which provide faith formation for adults with developmental disabilities.
Maureen Larison, who helps organize the clubs as consultant for adult formation and initiation in the Office of Faith Formation, said the club’s members will use the chalk to bless their homes on the feast of the Epiphany.
Materials provided to club members explain how to use the chalk to do a traditional Epiphany blessing of the home:
“The home blessing is done by writing on the door or door frame with chalk the symbols 20+C+M+B+21. The 20 and 21 represent the current year. The + reminds us of the cross on which our Savior died. The C, M, and B stand for the traditional names of the Wise Men, Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, as well as an abbreviation for the Latin phrase ‘Christus mansionem benedicat’ which means ‘Christ bless this house.’ ”
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops website includes a guide for doing a chalk blessing at home at bitly.com/chalkblessing.
