Catholic worship relies heavily on “sacramentals,” material objects or prayers that are believed to be “sacred signs” that prepare a person to receive sacramental grace and dispose that person to cooperate with that grace. Examples would include crucifixes, medals, scapulars, rosaries, ashes, palms, images, statues, candles, stations of the cross, and novenas.

“Holy water” is another sacramental widely used in Catholic worship. Catholics believe water blessed by a priest wards off evil. Catholics dip their finger/s into the holy water font at church and bless themselves by making the sign of the cross by touching their forehead, lower chest, and both shoulders. Some Catholics even have holy water fonts in their homes.

There is no mention of sacramentals in the Bible. They have their roots in pagan superstition and were allowed to creep into the early church.