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It is not so odd that the Church would use herbacious branches to sprinkle holy water. Psalm 51:7 says, roughly, "Wash me with hyssop and I shall be pure, cleanse me and shall be whiter than snow." The hyssop used there is more likely the modern oregano than the modern hyssop plant. This was enjoined by the Book of Numbers (Chaoter 19) as a way of cleansing a place or person or object which had been defiled by contact with the dead. From these sorts of ancient Jewish ritual sprinklings, the Church developed its own liturgy of asperges -- sprinkling with holy water -- and even uses the verse from Psalm 51 as part of that liturgy, firming up the connection. The use of a fancy metal aspergillum is certainly one way to do this ritual. The use of an oregano branch is equally meaninful, without being a departure from the Judeo-Christian tradition.



Is that what sprinkling with holy water is about, then, FS, purification before entering the place of worship?